Indian Summer Banquet

Looking for weekend food inspiration I revisited “The Essential” Madhur Jaffrey. I decided to go for it and make a curry with various accompaniments:

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Pyazwala Khare Masale ka Gosht

(meat with whole spices & onions)

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Yogurt with Courgettes

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   Fresh Mint Chutney with Fruit

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I liked the idea of mint chutney thinking that it would provide a cooling foil to the richness of the curry. It also looked easy to prepare, always a winner in my book:

(Serves 6)

• 1 handful of washed fresh mint leaves
• 4 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 fresh hot green chillies (I  used whole chillies with seeds)
• 1 medium-sized green apple, peeled, cored & diced just before blending
• 1 orange, peeled, seeded & cubed
• 1 tsp salt

Put all the ingredients in a blender and blitz  until you have a smooth paste. The fresh mint and fruit chutney has a vivid green colour with a fantastic fresh taste and a kick of chilli heat. This chutney would also go well with a range of BBQ meats or cold cuts.

Next to the “Yogurt with Courgettes” which didn’t sound immediately appealing, but I was drawn to it thinking of a “raiti” or “tadzeki” type dish. I also find it difficult to get too enthusiastic about courgettes at the best of time and thought this could be a good outlet for the Summer’s courgette  surplus.

(serves 4-6)

• 2 medium sized courgettes
• ¾ tsp salt
• 1 medium onion
• 350ml plain yogurt
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil
• 1 tsp whole black mustard seeds
• Black pepper
• Pinch of cayenne pepper

Trim the courgettes and grate them coarsely. Put them into a bowl and add ½ tsp salt, mix and leave for 30 minutes. Drain the courgettes pressing as much of the liquid out as possible. Peel and cut the onion into half and then into thin, half moon slices. Put the yogurt in a bowl and lightly whisk with a fork until smooth and creamy.

Heat the oil in a frying pan and when hot, add the mustard seeds. As soon as the mustard seeds begin to pop add the onion. Stir the onion and cook until it becomes translucent, at this point add the courgette. Fry the courgette for around three minutes and then take the pan off the heat to cool.

When cooled add the contents of the pan to the yogurt and carefully mix. Add the remaining ¼ tsp of salt, pepper and cayenne. This dish can be eaten either cold (once cooled put in refrigerator) or warm.

I have to say when the resulting “Yogurt & Courgettes” emerged it didn’t look immediately appealing, but then what was I expecting? For me this dish has a texture issue! In that both the onion and courgette are similarly soft. I think it misses that bite you get in a ”tadzeki” but none the less, it is quite an interesting dish.

After a few hours of solid cooking it was time for the main event, the inspiringly named “Meat with Whole Spices & Onions!” Don’t be put off this worked out well;

    (serves 4-6)

•  900g shoulder of lamb, boned & diced into decent sized cubes (remove excess fat)
• 4 onions
• 9 tbsp vegetable oil
• 10 whole cardamon pods
• 4 whole large black cardamon pods (if available)
• 7 bay leaves
• 1 tsp whole cumin seeds
• 1-4 whole hot dried red chillies ( I used a tsp chili flakes)
• 5 whole black peppercorns
• Fresh ginger 4cmx4cm, peeled and finely grated
• 1 tsp salt

Pat the meat dry and then halve the onions and slice into thin half circles. Heat the oil in a heavy-bottomed pot and, when very hot, add the onions. Fry the onions for about 15 minutes stirring occasionally until they turn a nutty brown caramelised colour (don’t burn them!). Lift the onions out with a slotted spoon and spread onto kitchen paper to cool and absorb any excess oil. In the same pot now add the cardamon, bay leaves, cumin, red chillies, peppercorns and the ginger. Stir for a minute and then add the meat and salt. Stir for about 5 minutes until the meat is all browned. Cover, lower the heat and simmer very gently for 1 hour & 10 minutes or until the meat is tender.

Take the lid off, add the cooked onions and let the meat cook for another 5 minutes. All the liquid should have now evaporated and the meat should be brown with the sauce clinging to it.

Finally, the full on Indian extravaganza was cooked and ready to be sampled. The meat was very succulent with wonderful spice aromas and a nice caramelised onion bite. The fresh mint and fruit chutney added a cooling and freshing palate livener. The yogurt courgette worked quite well but I’d rather OD’d on onions generally, which in retrospect was a mistake.  I would definitely make the curry again, as it was quite different to normal wet curries swimming in sauce. The fresh mint and fruit chutney is a definite winner and one which will be gracing the table this summer. As for the poor old “Yogurt & Courgettes,” I think  this recipe is destined not to be repeated! Let me know what your favourite Indian recipes are?

Tagged as: Curry, Madhur Jaffrey, Mint & Fruit Chutney