If you’ve followed my blog over the years there should be no surprise about my love for curry. I don’t think I can ever get tired of eating it; especially meat curries. Every meat curry tastes different because the curry takes on the natural juices of the meat. Lamb curry especially has a unique taste. The meat itself has a spiced flavor that is quite substantial. When you eat lamb; you know you’re eating lamb. Typically you’ll find lamb or mutton curry on the menu during celebratory events. It’s a curry my mom made once in a while, but especially for birthdays or holidays. My Muslim friends tell me that mutton curry is a must for Eid and my Christian cousins on my dad’s side of the family always have a lamb dish for Easter.
I bought a large piece of free range, grass fed Australian boneless lamb leg lamb from Costco and split the meat between a lamb chow mein and this curry dish. However, when making curries, I do prefer to use bone-in meat because the flavor of the bone adds to the overall dynamic of the curry. Although, no bones, this curry was still incredibly tasty and satisfying. Thick gravy and tender meat. Just delicious! I really enjoy lamb curry with dhal puri or dhal and rice and love cooking it on the weekend when I have a little more time to spend in the kitchen.
I’m slowly making my way through all the curry recipes I’ve documented to share with you all, but in the meantime here are some others you might enjoy:
Lamb vs. Mutton
The two terms are used interchangeably, but the only difference between lamb and mutton is age. Lamb would refer to the meat of a sheep that is younger than a year old. Mutton is the term used for the adult sheep. Lamb meat is a lot more tender than mutton and easier to find at local grocers or butcher shops.
Washing and Cleaning Lamb
Lamb can tend to have a gamey taste. Washing the meat properly helps to remove some of that taste along with any foul smell. In West Indian cooking, it is common to wash or clean meat a certain way. We do not cook meat straight out of the package. The way I learned to clean goat and lamb meat is with a couple of handfuls of flour, 1 teaspoon salt, juice of 1 lime, and enough water for the meat to soak. Mix the meat with these ingredients and let it sit for ½ hr to 45 minutes, then rinse it off piece by piece. Use a knife to pull off any fibrous strands then rinse again and pat dry. This method of “cleaning” the meat is a way to remove any slime, rank smell, or off taste that the meat might have. This is the way we always cleaned meat in my home, but feel free to use your own way.
Lamb Curry
Ingredients
- 3lbs lamb meat
Pre-season for meat
- 2 tablespoon quick version green seasoning
- ½ teaspoon garam masala
- ½ teaspoon geera (roasted cumin)
- 1 teaspoon madras curry powder
Curry Paste
- 2 tablespoon quick version green seasoning
- 2 tablespoon garam masala
- 2 ½ tablespoon madras curry powder
- 1 heaping teaspoon tomato paste
- 3 tablespoon water to mix (more if needed)
Remaining Ingredients
- 3 tablespoon canola oil
- 4-5 curry leaves
- ½ yellow onion, sliced
- 5-6 cloves
- 1 small cinnamon stick
- Salt to taste (start with 1 ½ tsp)
- Boiling water on reserve in kettle
- 2 medium potatoes, peeled and quartered
Instructions
- Wash and clean meat then chop into 3in chunks. See note below on washing.
- Season meat with pre-seasoning, let marinate overnight or a few hours.
- Prep ingredients. Make curry paste, set aside. Gather remaining ingredients, set aside.
- Heat 3 tablespoon oil in karahi or heavy bottom pot. Add curry leaves and fry until fragrant and brown. Add curry paste mixture. Saute mixture until medium brown. Add meat, toss meat with curry paste mixture to coat. Add sliced onion, cloves, cinnamon stick, and salt. Bounjal the meat -Let meat cook in its own liquid until it has evaporated and curry paste has seared onto meat, about 20-25 minutes.
- Pour boiling water over meat, enough to cover the meat. Let meat boil until tender, adding a little water at a time throughout the process until meat is tender, about 45 minutes or more.
- Add potatoes once meat is almost tender. Remove curry from heat once potato is cooked. Adjust salt to taste.
Notes
The way I learned to clean goat and lamb meat is with a couple of handfuls of flour, 1 teaspoon salt, juice of 1 lime, and enough water for the meat to soak. Mix the meat with these ingredients and let it sit for ½ hr to 45 minutes, then rinse it off piece by piece. Use a knife to pull off any fibrous strands then rinse again and pat dry. This method of “cleaning” the meat is a way to remove any slime, rank smell, or off taste that the meat might have.
Omar Khan says
Love this website. Alica is very thorough with her explanations of West Indian cooking. As a Guyanese foodie, this resource is very valuable.
Davi Ann says
Alica, I’ve been a silent reader of your blog for a while now and have made a lot of dishes. However, today I can’t help but let you know how helpful your blog has been to me. I grew up in Guyana but never put much effort into learning how to make Guyanese dishes. Sometimes I pity my husband’s taste buds lol! As of right now, I am making this lamb curry and the aroma in my house is reminiscent of my mom’s cooking back home. I just want to say from the bottom of my Guyanese brown girl heart, THANK YOU!
Alica says
Hi Davi, wow thank you so much for your sweet words! I’m really happy to have a part in bringing back those special memories. I hope you enjoyed that lamb curry!
Davi Ann says
We sure did enjoy it! Thank you 🙂
chandra says
Your recipes and explanations are wonderful.
Having been using your recipes and they all reminiscent of mom”s cooking.
Gerson Rodrigues says
Hi Alica,
I just prepared the lamb curry and the whole family simply enjoyed the meal. The aroma and the taste were heavenly. I hail from India and needless to say we enjoy food cooked with a blend of spices. I had one question, if we were to add ginger and garlic paste to the recipe would it enhance the flavor ? Just a question, as we use a lot of ginger and garlic in our food. Thank you once again for the best lamb curry recipe in the world.
Gerson
Monu Danesh Surendran says
Hi Alica,
That lamb curry looks fabulous. Really hope to cook this up. I was just wondering what goes into your Madras Curry Powder as
you have listed “Garam Masala” too in your ingredient list. Here in India, I tend to use actual spices, roasted and then ground to a paste/powder. This would be my initiation into Guyanese cuisine!
Navita says
Hi what cut of lamb is it?
Alica says
Hi Navita, I used rump cut, it is very meaty. However, any meaty bone-in cuts you can find are better, like leg or shoulder.