RecipeReplica:Curried lamb in Pepper Gravy

For this recipe, I hopped over to Akal's Saapadu(= A Sister's Feast), a bilingual blog that is a treasure trove for multi-cuisine recipes. There were plenty of recipes that I have bookmarked but I chose the scrumptious "Lamb Pepper Fry" recipe that drove me into a frenzied shopping for some succulent Australian lamb shanks and try the recipe soon after. Rather than doing a dry version, I liked mine with a bit of gravy to go with steamed rice. So yummy it was, we ate almost all and I didn't have much to photograph.

Ingredients:

• Lamb with bones - 2.2 pounds, cleaned and cut into bit size pieces
• Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
• Fennel seeds - 1/4 tsp
• Bay leaf - 1
• Olive Oil - 3 tbsp

For the Marinade:

• Onions - 2, large, coarsely chopped
• Tomato - 2, medium, cut into chunks
• Ginger - 1/2 inch, chopped
• Garlic - 3-4 cloves
• Dry Red Chillies - 3
• Peppercorns - 1 1/2 tsp
• Turmeric Powder - a pinch
• Cilantro - 1/2 bunch, cleaned and coarsely chopped
• Lemon Juice - 2 tbsp

Procedure:

• In a pan, heat 2 tbsp of oil and add the Onions, Garlic, Peppercorns and dry red chillies. Saute until the onions are browned.
• Add the turmeric, ginger to the pan and follow-up with tomato after a couple of minutes. When the tomato begin to lose shape, add the cilantro and switch off the stove.
• Cool the mixture and grind.
• Pour the lemon juice, spinkle some salt into the ground mixture.
• Marinate the lamb chunks in the ground mixture for about an hour.
• Pressure cook the lamb along with the marinade for about 2-3 whistles. Switch off.
• Grind the fennel and cumin seeds coarsely in a mortar/pestle.
• In a deep saute pan, add the remaining oil and the add the ground spices plus the bay leaf.
• Transfer the pressure cooked mixture to the saute pan and cook until a desired consistency is reached.

Enjoy!