Ingredients:
- 2 cups coriander leaves
- Half a cup mint leaves
- Half a cup desiccated coconut
- Half a cup flaked almonds
- 4-6 green chillies, de-seeded
- A pinch of mustard seeds
- A pinch of dried mint
- 4 tbsp groundnut oil
- 1.5cm piece of cinnamon stick
- 4 cardamom pods
- 3 cloves
- 2 onions, finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2.5cm piece of ginger, grated
- 1kg boneless stewing lamb (shoulder is good), cut into large chunks
- 1 tsp salt
- Half tsp turmeric
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 100ml full-fat yogurt
- 1 tbsp lemon or lime juice
- 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- Half tsp garam masala
- Fresh coriander, toasted coconut and flaked almonds to garnish
Method:
This is an awesome curry. Don’t be put off by the long list of ingredients.
Soak the coconut in a quarter cup of hot water for 10 minutes. Put the coriander leaves, mint leaves, coconut (with water), nuts, green chillies, mustard seeds and dried mint into a food processor and blend to a fine puree, adding a little more water if necessary.
In a heavy casserole pot, heat the oil, then add the cinnamon, cardamoms and cloves. After 1 minute, add the onions and saute gently for 15 minutes until the onions are just turning brown. Then add the garlic, ginger and the lamb. Add the salt and saute everything for 5 minutes, stirring continuously. Then add the turmeric, coriander, cumin and stir everything so the lamb is well coated with the spices.
Turn the heat down low then slowly add the yogurt and once again stir-fry for a couple of minutes. Add the green puree, around 400ml water, bring to the boil, cover and leave to simmer for about 1 and a half hours on a low heat until the lamb is really tender. You will be able to tell when it’s ready when the oil starts to separate from the sauce. Then add the lemon juice and check the seasoning. If you want more sauce, add some more water.
When ready to serve, sprinkle with the pepper and garam masala. Stir well. Put into a serving dish and garnish with the fresh coriander, coconut and almonds.
Serve with boiled basmati rice.