Mellow Coconut Lamb Curry

Printable Recipe

Prep Time: 20 minutes  can be organized much earlier in the day or even the day before

Cook Time: 30-40 minutes

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 tbsp grapeseed oil

1 tbsp garlic, finely chopped

1 tbsp cumin seeds

1 tbsp coriander seeds, crushed (I do mine in my coffee/spice grinder)

1 tsp ground cardamom

1 tsp fennel seeds

1/2 -1 tsp masala (Bal suggests turmeric, I used her ginger masala)

8-10 fresh curry leaves

salt & pepper to taste

1lb/450g stewing lamb cut into 1-2" pieces

1 large eggplant, diced fine

1 cup unsweetened coconut

1 can (14oz/400g) fire roasted, diced tomatoes, drained

1 medium onion, cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced

2 cups vegetable broth

1 hot green chili, seeded and finely chopped (optional, but the dish, while flavorful, is very mild in the heat department)

Directions

1. Organize and measure all your ingredients and line them up near the stove.  The initial cooking is quick, so you don't want to burn anything during the process.

2. Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven over medium high heat.   When the oil is hot add the garlic and stir for 10 seconds. Add the cumin seeds, coriander seeds, cardamom, fennel seeds, Masala, curry leaves salt and pepper and cook for another 20 seconds.    Stir in the lamb, making sure it's well coated with all the spices.  Cook for 5 minutes.  

3. Add the finely diced eggplant, toss and cook for another 5 minutes or until the eggplant softens.   Add the coconut, toss and cook for another 2-3 minutes.  

4.  Stir in the tomatoes, onions, vegetable broth and reduce the heat to low.  Cover and simmer until the lamb is cooked through and tender (about 20-25 minutes).  Taste for seasoning... this was when I added the chopped green chili and continued to cook for another 5 minutes or so without the cover. 

Serve with rice or couscous.  This time I steamed the couscous with turmeric and 2 smashed cardamom pods which gave it a gorgeous sunny colour and a delightful perfume, . 

Mellow Lamb Curry

Mellow Lamb Curry
Adapted from How to Cook Everything iPad App

Printable Recipe

Prep Time: 20 mins
Cook Time: 1 ½ hours

Serves 4-6

Ingredients
2 tbsp oil (I like olive, but any neutral oil is fine – grapeseed, canola)
2 lb/1kg boneless lamb shoulder, trimmed of excess fat and cut into 2” cubes
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
2 cups onion, thinly sliced
1 cup onion, chopped
1 tbsp garlic, minced
1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
2 tbsp curry powder or garam masala (this time I use the last of my Sri Lanka Black Curry Blend plus Singapore Curry Blend from Epices de Cru)
1 ½ cups chicken broth
Garnish: fresh cilantro leaves, chopped

Directions
1. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven over medium high heat. When the oil is very hot, add the lamb chunks in 4 or five batches to sear on all sides. Do not put all the lamb in at once or it will just stew and leach out all the juices. Sprinkle with salt & pepper while they brown. Remove each batch as they brown and set aside.

2. Once all the lamb has browned, add the sliced onions to the fat in the pan. Cook over medium heat stirring occasionally until golden (about 10 minutes)

3. Add the chopped onion, garlic, ginger & spices. Stir and cook for an additional 4-5 minutes – until the chopped onions soften.

4. Return the lamb to the pot along with the broth/stock. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce the heat to low. Simmer (there should still be some bubbling) until the lamb is tender – at least an hour. If it’s too soupy, remove the cover, raise the heat and cook until the gravy is the consistency you like. If, on the other hand, the curry is too dry, add a little more liquid (water or broth). Taste for seasoning and serve garnished with cilantro.

Serving ideas: steamed rice or fragrant couscous to sop up the gravy.
Mark also added cayenne to really spice things up and finished with ½ cup yoghurt before serving.

Thai Chicken & Shrimp Curry

Thai Red Curry Chicken & Shrimp
Inspired by Everyday Easy: Chicken

Printable Recipe

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 10-15 minutes

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:
1 tbsp vegetable oil
3 chicken breasts, skinless, boneless and cut into bite sized pieces
4-6 large cremini mushrooms, cut in half and sliced (or just coarsely chopped)
4 tsp Thai red (or green) curry paste – for if you like things really spicy
1 can (14oz/400ml) coconut milk (I used lite)
2 tbsp soy sauce
1lb/450g large/extra large shrimp, shelled and deveined
6 scallions/green onions, green part only, cut into ¼” pieces
Handful of snow peas
Handful of Asian Greens (I forget the name, but you could see what looks like sweet pea tendrils at the ends)
Salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
Garnish:
Fresh cilantro, chopped

Directions:
1. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and mushrooms and stir fry until the chicken and mushrooms are browned (about 3 minutes or so). The chicken will not be cooked through. Stir in the curry paste and toss to coat.

2. Add the coconut milk and soy sauce and bring to a boil, stirring often. Reduce the heat to medium low and add Asian greens and most of the scallions. Simmer, covered for about 8 minutes or until the chicken is tender and cooked through. Season with salt and pepper (or more curry paste) to taste.

Serve hot, garnished with the last of the scallion greens and cilantro. It’s perfect with steamed rice to sop up all that curry.

Pakistani Lamb & Tomato Curry - Tamatar Gosht

Pakistani Lamb & Tomato Curry - Tamatar Gosht
From Curry Cuisine

Printable Recipe

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cooking Time: 45-60 minutes

Serves 4 (Ruth’s note: I used 2 lbs/1kg of lamb but kept the rest of the ingredients as the book suggested. This is a mild but flavorful curry and quite different to the Indian curries I’m used to)

Ingredients:
¼ cup sunflower oil (I used grapeseed oil)
1 large onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp grated ginger (the book called for 1 tsp ginger paste)
1 large garlic clove, minced (the book called for ½ tsp garlic paste)
1 tin (28oz/546ml) diced fire roasted tomatoes with juice (the book called for 1 ¼ lb/500g of fresh tomatoes, peeled and chopped)
2 tsp red chili powder (I doubled the book’s recommendation and it was still mild)
1 tsp cumin seeds
3 cardamom pods
5 cloves
1 bay leaf
3lb/1 kg lamb shoulder, cut into cubes (Ruth’s note: small cubes mean less cooking time)
1 cup water
¼ cup chopped cilantro leaves
Garnish
Slivers of fresh ginger root
Chopped green chilies

Directions:
1. Heat the oil over medium high heat, in a large saucepan (I actually used my Dutch oven), add the onions and fry until slightly browned. Add the ginger and garlic mince/paste and stir for a minute or until the wonderful aromas waft the air. Add the tomatoes, a pinch of salt, chili powder, cumin, cardamom pods, cloves and bay leaf. Stir until the oil separates out (Ruth’s note: I never noticed much separation, but I did cook for about 15 minutes.)

2. Add the lamb and fry, stirring frequently for 5 minutes. (Ruth’s note: I was skeptical that there was no searing, but the end result was very tender, very tasty). Pour in 1 cup of water, stir well and cover. Reduce the heat to medium low and cook for 45-60 minutes or until the lamb is cooked and tender.

3. Remove the lid and keep cooking gently, stirring occasionally until the oil separates out. Stir in the chopped cilantro leaves. Garnish with ginger and green chilies, if you like more heat) and serve.

I served it with Chana Pulao – Chickpea & Rice Pilaf.

Julia Child's Sauce au Cari - Light Curry with Chicken

Julia Child’s Sauce au Cari or Light Curry Sauce (with chicken)
From Mastering the Art of French Cooking

Serves 6-8

Ingredients:
½ cup white or yellow onion, finely minced
4 tbsp butter
2-3 tbsp curry powder
4 tbsp flour
2 cups boiling milk, white stock or fish stock (I used milk)
2 cups cooked chicken, cut in cubes (my addition)
4-6 tbsp whipping cream
Salt & pepper
Lemon juice
1-2 tbsp softened butter
1-2 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped (optional)

Directions:
1. Cook the onions slowly in butter and oil in a medium saucepan over low heat for 10 minutes without allowing the onions to color.

2. Stir in curry powder and cook slowly for 2 minutes. Add the flour and stir over low heat for 3 minutes.

3. Take the pot off the heat and blend in the boiling liquid (and add the chicken). Return the sauce to heat and simmer slowly for 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Stir in the cream by tablespoons, until the sauce has thinned to the consistency you wish. Check seasoning and add lemon juice to taste.

5. Off the heat, just before serving, stir in the butter by bits and then parsley.

Serve immediately. I ladled it over steamed rice and found the dish very bland – good thing we had some hot Indian pickles.

Curried Winter Vegetables

Winter Vegetable Curry
Adapted from Family Health Cookbook

Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 15-20 minutes

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:
1 tbsp canola oil
½ red onion, chopped
2 cups smallish cremini mushrooms cut in quarters
4 tsp curry powder
1 cup squash, cut in 2” cubes (I like acorn or butternut)
½ head of cauliflower cut into florets
1 cup broccoli spears
2 cups vegetable or chicken broth
½ cup reduced fat coconut milk
½ tsp dried red pepper flakes (optional – we’re wimps and so it was spicy enough without any)
Juice of 1 lime

Directions:
1. In a Dutch oven, heat some oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and mushrooms and cook until the onions are translucent and the mushrooms start to turn golden. Add the curry powder, toss well and sauté until aromatic (another minute or two)

2. Add the squash, broth, coconut milk and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and cook for 5 minutes (or until the squash is not quite tender). Add the cauliflower and broccoli florets, toss and cook until the veggies are just fork tender. If the sauce is too soupy, remove the veggies and boil the sauce to the consistency you like.

3. Taste for seasoning, squirt some lime juice and serve. I served it with Marinated Tofu “Steaks”.