Dhana Ghosht
Ingredients
1 1/2 lb stewing lamb, trimmed of fat and di, ced
2 cup yogurt (full-fat), natural
6 garlic cloves, crushed
4 tsp coriander, ground
2 lila murcha, (fresh green chili pep, pers), crushed
4 tsp paprika
4 tsp salt (or less)
3 tsp ginger, coarsely crushed
4 tbsp cooking oil (mustard oil is best)
2 medium onions (or more to taste)
3 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp black mustard seed
2 tsp red chili powder (also called cayen, ne pepper or
4 oz coriander, fresh
Preparation
Dice the meat into bite-size cubes and soak in warm water for 2-3
minutes.
Mix the paprika, ground coriander, salt, crushed garlic and crushed
green chilies with yogurt. Drain the lamb and add to the yogurt
marinade. Leave to marinate for at least six hours. Ideally it should
marinate in the refrigerator for 24 hours.
Dice the onions into thin semi-circles. In a large saucepan or a
generous frying-pan, heat the cooking oil over a high flame. Add the
onions when the oil is hot enough to "steam." Reduce the heat to
medium and stir occasionally. Fry the onions until they change
colour to a deep red/brown. This should take 10 to 15 minutes.
At this point add the black mustard seeds and stir a few times. Then
add the ginger, cumin seeds, red chilies and turmeric powder.
Increase the heat and fry this "masala" for a couple of minutes. Add
the marinated lamb to the masala and mix well.
At this point you have two options, either to cook the meat on the
stove or to bake it. Stove-top cooking takes less time but requires
fairly constant stirring. It should be cooked in a covered saucepan
on a low to medium flame for about 45 minutes. Add water if the sauce
gets too dry and begins to stick. For baking, transfer it to an
ovenproof casserole, cover it, and bake for 1 1/2 hours at 200
degrees F. Check occasionally, though you are unlikely to need to add
any water to the sauce.
Finally, prepare and wash the fresh coriander in cold water. Only the
leaves and the tender stems should be retained. Chop coarsely and mix
well just before serving. If you don't have any fresh coriander, then
mix in about 2-3 t of coriander powder. Serve with well buttered
(boiled) rice or pita bread and fresh salad.
NOTES:
* A popular North Indian lamb dish with coriander -- This is a family
variation on a popular North Indian dish. I cook it whenever I could
get hold of fresh coriander, which in Edinburgh is seldom.
I don't know its authentic Indian name. We simply call it "dhana
lamb" as that's how its always cooked at home. Dhana means
"coriander" in Gujarati. Yield: Serves 3-4.
* Take care not to burn the onions and don't overcook the masala just
before mixing in the marinated meat.
* I think the dish tastes a lot better if it is baked. It's even
better if cooked for a longer period at a lower temperature.
: Difficulty: easy to moderate.
: Time: 15 minutes preparation, 1 day marinating, 2 1/2 hours
cooking. : Precision: approximate measurement OK.
Mukesh J Patel
: University of Edinburgh, Centre for Cognitive Science, Edinburgh,
Scotland
: seismo!ukc!cstvax!epistemi!mukesh
: [email protected]
: Copyright (C) 1986 USENET Community Trust
Servings: 3
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