Lamb vindaloo

After a visit to Asia Market and sourcing lots of wonderful spices and herbs, I decided to make curry from scratch for the first time. I was able to find lamb stew meat at the butcher's, so I went for a lamb vindaloo. Again, my mini chopper proved to be a terrific buy. 

Lamb vindaloo with wholegrain basmati and blanched green beans

This recipe requires a preparation time of 8-24 hours to marinate the meat and a cooking time of at least 4 hours. 

Ingredients

for the paste
6 dried red chilli peppers, soaked 30 mins in warm water & drained

½ onion, roughly diced

5 cloves garlic, crushed

2 tbsp fresh coriander, roughly chopped

2 tsp fresh ginger, grated

1 tbsp ground cumin

1 tsp cumin seed

2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp whole cloves

½ tsp ground turmeric

2 tsp fenugreek seed

¼ tsp pink salt

3 tbsp distilled white vinegar

800-900g lamb stew (or lamb chop or rack of lamb)

2 tbsp grass-fed butter or ghee
½ C beef broth

Method

1. Combine all the ingredients for the paste and blitz in a chopper/food processor/blender.
   
2. Rub the paste onto the lamb, cover in cling film, and let marinate in the fridge for at least 8 hours and up to 24 hours.

   

   Lamb rubbed with curry paste

3. When the lamb is ready, heat a clay pot or dutch oven with butter/ghee and brown the meat (in batches if necessary).

   

   Lamb marinated for 24 hours

4. Once the lamb is browned, add in the beef broth, cover and bring to a boil. Then reduce the heat to a simmer. Let the lamb cook gently for at least 4 hours, till the meat is tender and cooked through.
   
5. Serve on a bed of wholegrain basmati.

   

   Lamb vindaloo, cooked for 6 hours

The dish is aromatic with a lovely depth of flavours and the right amount of heat (for a vindaloo that is!). The lamb stew meat cooked very nicely (patience pays off so don't rush it), was sweet and super tender, and fell apart in the mouth. I'm delighted with this homemade curry paste and will be making more curry from scratch from now on.