Ingredients:
For the marinade:
- ½ onion, roughly chopped
- 6 cloves garlic
- 1” piece of ginger
- 1/3 cup cilantro leaves
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp ground coriander
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tsp chili powder
- ½ tsp asafoetida (find this at Savory Spice store, or just leave it out)
- ¾ tsp garam masala
- ½ tsp salt
- juice of half a lime
For the curry:
- 5 lbs. lamb, cut into 1.5-2 inch cubes (we recommend leg or neck for this)
- 1 Tbsp oil
- 1 cinnamon stick
- ½ medium onion, thinly sliced
- 1 medium onion, grated
- 3 medium tomatoes, seeded and finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup boiling water
- 1 small russet potato, chopped into 1-inch cubes
- ¼ cup roughly chopped cilantro, for garnish
Directions:
- Combine all the marinade ingredients in a food processor or small blender and blend/pulse until pureed and a thick paste forms. Marinate the lamb for at least an hour, or preferably overnight.
- In a large pot, add the oil and heat over medium heat. Add the cinnamon stick and fry for about a minute.
- Add the thinly sliced onion and fry until slightly browned (about 10 minutes).
- Add the grated onion and tomatoes and reduce heat until simmering. Cover the pot and simmer for 20 minutes. Season the sauce with salt.
- Add the marinated lamb (with marinade) and simmer (uncovered) for about 30 minutes.
- Add the boiling water to the pan, cover and simmer until the lamb is just tender (about 20 minutes).
- Add chopped potatoes and cook just until the potatoes are cooked through (10-15 minutes)
- Season with salt and garnish with cilantro. Serve with lime wedges, yogurt, naan, and/or rice.
Alternatives:
- If you don’t have time for the full recipe, finely chop a large onion and fry in ¼ cup of oil until deep brown (20-25 minutes). Add the ground/powdered spices from the marinade (coriander, Tumeric, cumin, garam masala and chili), a small piece of fresh ginger, chopped, and a couple chopped cloves of garlic and saute until fragrant (about 30 seconds). Add 1 cup of water and cook for 10 minutes. Add two chopped tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes. Add salt to taste, then the lamb and 2.5 cups of water. Cook until done and garnish with chopped cilantro. This won’t have quite the depth of flavor as the original recipe, but it’s still darn good!
- Replace the lamb with chicken, fish, shrimp or diced vegetables (cauliflower, chickpeas, beans, carrots, and peas all work great). Be sure to shorten up the marinade and cooking time for the fish or veggies.