Lamb Curry | Delicious & Easy

June 15, 2020Janine
Lamb curry

Prep time: 40 minutes

Cook time: 2 hours

Serves: 4

Delicious Lamb Curry

For years now I’ve had the pleasure of enjoying my friend Matt’s delicious lamb curry. It’s a gorgeous rich curry, with a wonderful depth of flavour, a rich gravy and melt-in-your-mouth bite size lamb off the shoulder. Every time he brings it to a shared meal everybody raves about it, and we’ve been hounding him for the recipe for years! Well, you are lucky enough to be receiving that recipe now. We invited him to join us at Janine’s Gluten Free Kitchen to share his secret recipe with us.

The Spices

This recipe is a make from scratch curry, but don’t be scared off by that. It’s really very easy and well worth the time for the extra flavoursome curry. We start with spice seeds which is the basis of the flavour profile. The trick here is to buy and use the freshest of spices possible. Find yourself a busy Indian Market and buy the spices from them. If you don’t use them often I would recommend you keep them stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Otherwise buy only small quantities so you can turn them over quicker.

Lamb Curry

Roasting the Spices

To release the oils and flavours from the spices you will need to dry roast them in a frying pan. You want your pan over a medium heat as you roast them. They need to be kept moving at all times otherwise they’ll burn. Be patient. It only takes a few minutes as they heat up quite quickly. And keep the pan moving around until you hear the crackle and pop of the mustard seeds. When you take them off the heat they’ll continue to roast for another couple of minutes. Let them cool down and don’t touch them as they’re super hot!

The Curry Pot

This curry is best made in an enamel heavy saucepan. We love using Chasseur cookware but there are a number of different brands you can choose from. You want a pot with a well fitting lid that will go from stove to oven with no fuss.

The Baking

Bake the curry in the middle of the oven at 350 degree Fahrenheit or 180 degrees Celsius. Check it after an hour in case your oven runs hot and you need to top up the moisture. You don’t want it to dry out. If you see it starting to stick to the pan, add another cup of boiling water and stir well though, then drop the temperature by ten degrees. The aim is to have a good gravy to eat with your lamb, which the tomatoes, onions and capsicum do beautifully. When it’s cooked, let it cool slightly before serving with your favourite curry sides.

 

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Print Recipe

Delicious Lamb Curry

  • Prep time: 40 minutes
  • Cook time: 2 hours
  • Total time: 2 hours 40 minutes
  • Serves: 4

This delicious recipe is a gorgeous rich curry, with a wonderful depth of flavour, a rich gravy and melt-in-your-mouth bite size lamb off the shoulder.

Ingredients

  • 6 tsp Coriander Seeds
  • 3 tsp Cumin Seeds
  • 1 tsp Fennel Seeds
  • 1 tsp Fenugreek Seeds
  • 2 tsp Mustard Seeds
  • 1/2 tsp Cardamon Seeds
  • 3 tsp Sweet Paprika - dried ground
  • 1/2 tsp Cayenne Pepper - dried, ground
  • 2 Tbs Turmeric Powder
  • 1.4 kg Lamb Shoulder - diced with the sinew removed
  • 1 bunch Spring Onions - roughly chopped
  • 1 Red Capsicum - roughly chopped
  • 6 Garlic Cloves large peeled
  • 1/2 cup Filtered Water cool
  • 1/4 cup Vegetable Oil
  • 1/2 cup Boiling Water
  • 400 g Italian Diced Tomato
  • 1 Tbs Tamarind Paste dissolved in 1/2 cup hot water

Method

Spice blend

  • 1)

    Gently heat a dry, shallow frypan.
    Add your seeds into the frying pan and gently roast the seeds until you hear the mustard seeds begin to crackle and pop. Take off the heat and allow to cool down.
    Using a coffee grinder or a morale and pestle, grind your seeds into a fine powder.
    To your ground spices, add your paprika, cayenne pepper and turmeric and set aside.

Wet paste

  • 1)

    In your food processor, add your sliced spring onions, diced red pepper, garlic and filtered water. Blend until the ingredients have reduced to a medium paste.

Cooking the curry

  • 1)

    Add vegetable oil to a heavy-based, oven safe cooking pot. Bring to a medium heat then add your wet paste. Fry your paste for 5 minutes until the colour is deepened.

  • 2)

    Add your spiced mix and stir well through. Add 1/4 cup of the boiled water, stirring well. Fry for another 5 minutes, adding the other 1/4 cup water if needed. You want the paste to be moistened, not saucy.

  • 3)

    Add your diced lamb, coating it with all the paste. Put the lid on the pot reduce to a medium/low heat for 10 minutes.

  • 4)

    Add your tomatoes (or coconut water) and tamarind water. Stir well through, add 1/2 cup hot water and bring back to the boil.

  • 5)

    Cover with the lid and bake for 2 hours in an oven at 350 Fahrenheit or 180 celsius. Check it at 1 hour to ensure it is still saucy. If it looks like it’s drying out, add another 1/2 cup boiling water and stir through.

  • 6)

    Serve hot.

Notes

This recipe can be made the day before and heated in the oven before serving.
Recipe can be frozen after cooking.

13 Comments

  • Nicola

    July 23, 2020 at 1:44 am

    This is absolutely FANTASTIC – been eating it all week

    Love it – thank you!

  • Nicola

    July 23, 2020 at 1:49 am

    The lamb curry is FANTASTIC – we absolutely love it.

    There are a couple of ingredients that we don’t eat so we adjusted the recipe for that, such as substituting tomatoes for spinach and leaving out one or two things – but in general it is completely fantastic recipe and has given us the way to make the yummy curry we have been looking for for ages.

    Thanks Janine you are awesome and thanks heaps Matt too of course.

    1. Janine

      August 14, 2020 at 4:16 am

      Brilliant Nicola. Love hearing how you make it your own to suit your own body too!

  • Paula

    July 25, 2020 at 4:54 am

    This is the best lamb curry ever! I’ve not had much success with making a great curry but have made this twice now and its absolutely delicious every time… melt-in-your-mouth lamb and super tasty spice flavours.

    1. Janine

      August 14, 2020 at 4:15 am

      Wow Paula, that’s awesome.

  • Jenny

    September 6, 2020 at 5:48 am

    I’ve made this curry 4 times now, each time a hit in a different way. Totally got me into playing with spices and being creative. Thanks Guys!!!

    1. Janine

      September 12, 2020 at 11:53 pm

      That’s brilliant Jenny, thanks for the feedback. Gotta love a recipe that you can make as is, or even better, adjust to your taste, and it works a treat each time. You’re so welcome, and thanks for the feedback 🙂

  • Anne Broadbent

    February 7, 2021 at 7:27 am

    This curry is the best curry I have ever tasted – Thanks Janine & Matt.

    1. Janine

      February 15, 2021 at 5:11 am

      Thanks, Anne, I agree, it’s super tasty!

  • Susan

    May 1, 2021 at 8:54 pm

    This is the first time I have attempted a lamb curry and it is by far the best curry I have ever tasted and easy to make.
    Thank you Janine and Matt

    1. Janine

      August 23, 2021 at 2:04 am

      you’re very welcome Susan, that’s great to hear 🙂

  • jen

    May 21, 2022 at 7:34 am

    Winter is coming and felt to make this straight away so consistent and nurturing. Love it! thanks heaps Matt and Janine

    1. Janine

      May 21, 2022 at 7:56 pm

      Awesome Jen, agreed, it’s a perfect winter meal.

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