^[1]

Heat oil

1 tbl spn Cumin Seeds

1 tbl spn Corriander Seeds

When they start to pop add fine chopped onion

Fry until growing

equal garlic & ginger – approx 3 cloves to 1 inch ginger make into paste

add to pan

after circa 1 min

Add tin of toms – fine / small. If they are not then blitz them — smooth tomato is vital to end result.

lower heat to low to med.

Add

1 tbl spn Turmeric Powder

1tbl spn Coriander Powder

2 tbl spn butter / ghee

Cillie power to taste

Look at the edges to see when it ready for the next step

If not cooking veg option add in and meat cut into cubes

Fry for about 2 mins – look for colour and texture change

add some veg into big bitesize pieces.

Add coriander leaf and curry leaf a decent handful of each

Last added 1/2 tbl spn of Garam Masala

cook for 3 to 5 mins

^[2]

Ingredients

Methi Chicken

• 4 tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 onions, thinly sliced into half moons
• 2.5-cm piece of cassia bark
• 2 green cardamom pods
• 1 clove
• 1 Indian bay leaf (tej patta)
• 2 dried red chillies
• 1kg boneless skinless chicken thighs
• 5-6-cm piece of fresh ginger, grated
• 3 garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tbsp ground coriander
• 200 g full-fat Greek-style yoghurt
• 1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves (kasur methi)
• 1 tsp each salt and chilli powder
• 4 tbsp tomato purée
• ½ tsp sugar

Method

Heat the oil in a heavy-based pan over a medium-high heat. Add the onions and fry, stirring occasionally, for about 20 minutes until golden brown and caramelised. Use a slotted spoon to remove the onions, leaving as much of the oil in the pan as possible, and place on a plate to drain. Spread the onions across the plate so they crisp as they cool.

Add the cassia bark, cardamoms, clove, bay leaf and red chillies to the pan, then add the chicken and cook over a medium-high heat until golden brown all over.

Reduce the heat to medium, add the ginger and garlic and stir for about 2 minutes until the garlic no longer smells raw. Add the turmeric and ground coriander and stir for a minute, then add the yoghurt, followed by the fenugreek leaves.

Do not let the yoghurt boil – you should not need to add any water, as the yoghurt will prevent the spices from sticking to the base of the pan. Add the caramelised onions, salt, chilli powder and tomato purée and stir gently. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 5 minutes.

Remove the lid, stir in the sugar until it has dissolved, then taste and adjust the seasoning. Increase the heat to medium-high and stir, uncovered, until the oil comes to the surface. Serve hot, garnished with cream and coriander, if using.

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The ingredients are:

For the spice rub:

1/4 tsp ground cinnamon,

1 tsp ground coriander,

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp black pepper

Main Dish

birds eye chillies (remove the seeds to reduce the heat),

4 cloves garlic,

ginger root,

vegetable oil,

shallots,

pork shoulder,

1/2 litre chicken stock,

2 tbsp tamarind paste,

4 tbsp kecap manis

2 tbsp soy sauce.

Bulky strong veg, i.e. spud, sweet potato etc. Towards the end, I added some string beans and peas.

Cook in the pot until meat and veg are soft. Keep the lid on for most of the time, then remove and reduce to an almost dry mix.

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rice

veg , meat, onions , garlic, ginger , beans etc . Anything which is strong enough to survive the cooking.

Make a stock based on JB Chinese Curry Sauce.

Marriande the main ingredients in JB Chinese Curry Sauce.

If using meat, Stir fry until sealed/browned.

Stir fry until veg start to soften.

Beans, prepare in your normal way. I used dried beans which have been rehydrated separately.

IMPORTANT Keep the Stock Hot .

Add the rice.

Laddle in the stock until everything is covered and give it stir to ensure everything is covered.

Cook on low / middle heat. Add small amounts of hot stock as needed.

I like to add chopped toms close to the end.

^[5]

Ingredients  

• 2 cups low sodium stock I made this using stock cubes and water
• 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1 Tablespoon Cornstarch use with about 2 Tablespoons of water to make slurry
• 2 teaspoons curry powder – The generic one is fine. I prefer my own JB Madras Mix.
• 1 teaspoon Chinese 5 spice seasoning
• 1 Tablespoon Olive oil
• 1 Tablespoon Dark soy sauce
• Salt to taste optional

^[6]

.

Ingredients

• 3 medium–large floury potatoes ^[7] (about 500g/1lb 2oz in weight), peeled and chopped into bite-sized pieces
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil ^[8]
• 1 large brown onion ^[9], finely chopped
• 2 tsp cumin ^[10] seeds
• 1 star anise ^[11]
• 2 tsp sea salt ^[12], plus extra if desired
• 2 large garlic ^[13] cloves, crushed
• 4cm/1½in piece fresh root ginger ^[14], peeled and finely grated
• ½ chilli ^[15], finely chopped, plus extra if desired
• 1½ tsp garam masala ^[16]
• 1 tsp turmeric ^[17]
• few sprigs fresh coriander ^[18], leaves and stalks separated and both finely chopped (about 1 pinch stalks, 2 pinches leaves, or to taste)
• 50g/1¾oz unsalted butter ^[19]
• 1 small head of cauliflower ^[20], cut into small florets

How-to-videos ^[21]

Method

1. Wash the potatoes under cold water. Place in a large bowl, cover with cold water and set aside.
2. Heat the oil in a medium–large lidded saucepan. Fry the onion, cumin seeds, star anise and salt for around 8–10 minutes over a low heat, stirring frequently until the onions are translucent and soft.
3. Add the garlic, ginger and chilli and fry for a few minutes. Stir in the garam masala and turmeric. If the pan is too dry, add a splash of water so the spices do not stick to the pan and burn. Allow the spices to fry for 1–2 minutes, then add the chopped coriander stalks and butter. Check the seasoning and add salt as required (it should be quite salty as there are a lot of vegetables to season). Add more chilli if desired.
4. Drain the potatoes thoroughly and add to the pan, along with a splash of water to help the potatoes steam. Increase the heat, bring to a simmer and cover with a lid. Allow the potatoes to steam for about 10–12 minutes.
5. Add another splash of water and the cauliflower florets. Stir well to ensure the cauliflower is coated in the sauce. The potatoes should be half cooked at this point.
6. Increase the temperature and bring the mixture to the boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer, cover with a lid and allow to steam for 8–10 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender and the cauliflower is a little al dente.
7. Remove the star anise and garnish with the coriander leaves just before serving.

^[23]

This is a wonderful eat anytime curry adapted from a recipe by Pat Chapman of The Curry Club. The curry is so easy to make and will be loved by all. I added chickpeas to my version as I love them but you could add peas which is more traditional.

Ingredients

2 tbsp ghee or vegetable oil
2 medium red onions, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
5 cm piece of fresh ginger, finely chopped
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp coriander, ground
1 tsp chilli powder (use less if you don’t like your curries too hot)
4 cloves
1 cardamom
500g mince. This can be lamb, beef or pork which ever you like
400g tin of tomatoes
1 tbsp tomato ketchup
225g tin tomato soup
400g tin chickpeas
1 tbsp garam masala
1 tbsp fenugreek
To Serve
boiled rice (this can be cooked at the same time in the top pot)
salt
2 hard boiled eggs sliced

Instructions

Add the ghee or oil to the inner pot over a medium heat.
Fry the onions, garlic and ginger until the onions start to soften.
Turn down the heat slightly and add the turmeric, coriander, chilli powder, cloves, cardamom and a little water if too dry. Cook for 5 minutes stirring from time to time.
Mix in the meat, tomatoes, ketchup and soup. Turn up the heat and bring to the boil while stirring from time to time.
Add the garam masala and fenugreek. Simmer for 5 minutes with the lid on before putting the inner pot into the insulated outer container.
Shut the lid and leave to thermally cook for a minimum of 2 hours without power.
Check the seasoning before serving. Serve with rice and sliced boiled eggs on top

^[24]

Ingredients

4 teaspoons chili powder

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon sugar

½ teaspoon onion powder

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper

salt and black pepper – to taste

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 cloves garlic, chopped

500g minced beef

¼ cup tomato sauce

^[25]

Serves 3

Ingredients

450g pork scotch fillet, cut into 5mm slices

2 to 3 tbsp olive oil

1 small brown onion, cut into wedges

2 garlic cloves, crushed

3 cm piece ginger, peeled, finely grated

2 heaped tbs Thai red curry paste

Pinch lemon myrtle

300 ml thickened cream

¾ cup chicken stock

300g potatoes, peeled, roughly chopped

200g green beans cut into 3 cm lengths

1 lime, zested and juiced

2 tsp fish sauce

2 tsp brown sugar

Pinch dried basil

¼ cup fresh coriander leaves, finely chopped

1 cup long grain rice

Method

1. Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan over medium heat.
2. Coat the pork slices with plain flour.
3. Cook pork in two batches in the heated oil until browned on both sides. Adding more oil before the second batch, if necessary.
4. Remove pork from the pan and set aside.
5. If necessary, add a little more oil to the pan and allow time for it to heat.
6. Add onion to pan and cook for 5 minutes or until onion is softened.
7. Add garlic and ginger. Cook stirring for 1 minute or until fragrant.
8. Add curry paste. Cook stirring for 1 minute or until fragrant.
9. Add lemon myrtle, cream and stock and bring to the boil.
10. Add potatoes, beans, lime zest, lime juice, fish sauce, brown sugar, basil and coriander to the mixture.
11. Bring mixture to the boil.
12. Reduce heat to low. Return pork to the pan, cover and simmer for 30 minutes or until vegies and pork are cooked through and sauce is slightly thickened.
13. Meanwhile, place the rice in boiling water for 15 minutes, drain and rinse with hot water.
14. Serve the pork mixture over the rice.

^[30]

A classic Indian staple with lamb as the star. This lamb rogan josh from Rick Stein brings together Kashmiri chillies, garam masala and green cardamom pods.

From the book

Rick Stein’s India ^[31] by Rick Stein ^[32]

Ingredients

Instructions

Put the ghee in a large, sturdy casserole over a medium heat. When hot, add the whole spices and fry for 1 minute, then add the onion and fry for 10 minutes until softened and golden. Stir in the garlic and ginger, fry for 1 minute, then add the ground spices (reserving the extra garam masala and ground fennel) and fry for 30 seconds.

Stir in the tomato puree, then add the lamb and salt and stir to make sure the lamb is well coated in the other ingredients. Pour in the water, bring to a simmer, then cover the pan, reduce the heat to low and simmer gently for 1 hour or until the lamb is tender. Stir in the yoghurt and cream, then season with the extra garam masala and ground fennel. Scatter with the fresh coriander and serve.

^[33]

Ingredients (serves 4)

Rendang Paste

• 100g grated fresh coconut (can use desiccated)
• 4 dried Kashmiri chillies
• 2 tablespoons coriander seeds
• 1 teaspoon of cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon of turmeric powder
• 225g shallots or onions, roughly chopped
• 30g garlic, roughly chopped
• 50g peeled galangal or ginger, roughly chopped
• 1 large fresh red chilli, seeded and roughly chopped

For the Curry

• Glug of oil. I used rapeseed
• 1kg of braising steak chunks
• 1 quantity of rendang spice paste – as above
• 2 tins of coconut milk
• 4 fat lemon grass stalks – bruised – (just bash them lightly)
• 12 dried kaffir lime leaves – crumbled
• 2 x 7.5cm cinnamon sticks
• 125ml Tamarind water – all you do is soak the 60g of pulp in 125ml of hot water and leave for 5 minutes.  Break up the pulp with your fingers and then strain the syrupy mixture through a fine sieve, discarding the fibrous material and seeds.
•  1 tbsp of palm sugar or you can use brown sugar, palm sugar will taste better in this dish.

Directions

For the paste

1. Heat a dry, heavy based, frying pan over a medium heat.  Add the coconut and stir for a few minutes until it is richly golden – don’t let it burn.
2. Tip into a food processor and leave to cool.
3. Meanwhile, put the dried Kashmiri chillies, coriander seeds and cumin seeds into a spice grinder and grind to a fine powder.
4. Add this to the processor with the cooled coconut add the rest of the spice paste ingredients and 100ml of water.  Blend to a smooth-ish paste.

For the curry

1. Heat the oil in a large, heavy based frying pan.  Add the beef in batches and fry briefly until it has changed colour but not browned, set aside in a bowl.  Add the spice paste to the pan and fry for a couple of minutes until fragrant. Return the beef and add the coconut milk, lemon grass, lime leaves and cinnamon sticks and 1 and a half teaspoons of salt.
2. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat, add the tamarind water and leave to simmer, uncovered for 2 and a half hours, stirring occasionally, and more frequently towards the end of cooking, until the beef is tender and the sauce has reduced and thickened.
3. Remove the lemongrass from the rendang and stir in the palm sugar and season to taste.
4. Serve straight away with some wild rice, cooked to packet instructions. Enjoy.

^[34]

Ingredients

For the rendang

• 1 onion ^[9], roughly chopped
• 1 tbsp chopped fresh ginger ^[14]
• 1 tbsp chopped galangal ^[35] (or another tbsp of the above)
• 1 tbsp chopped garlic ^[13]
• 1 lemongrass ^[36] stalk, tough outer layer removed and roughly chopped
• 1 tsp turmeric ^[17]
• 6 long red dried chillies, soaked in water and roughly chopped
• 2 tbsp sunflower oil ^[37]
• 1 cinnamon ^[38] stick
• 6 cardamom ^[39] pods
• 650g/1lb 7oz braising steak ^[40], cut into 2cm/1inch cubes
• 4 kaffir lime leaves ^[41]
• zest ^[42] of a kaffir lime or lime
• 400ml/14fl oz coconut milk ^[43]
• 1 tbsp of tamarind ^[44] paste or juice of a lime
• 50g/2oz desiccated coconut ^[45] flakes
• coriander ^[18] sprigs to garnish

For the herby rice

• 1 tbsp sunflower oil ^[37]
• 1 cinnamon ^[38] stick
• 4 cardamom ^[39] pods
• 250g/9oz basmati rice ^[46]
• 600ml/1pint 1½fl oz water
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander ^[47]
• sea salt ^[48]

To serve

• deep-fried shallots ^[49]
• 1 deep-fried red chilli ^[15]

Method

1. For the rendang paste, place the onion, ginger, galangal, garlic, lemongrass, turmeric and chillies into a food processor. Blend to form a smooth purée.
2. Heat a wok and add the oil. Fry the paste over a high heat until the paste turns darker and is highly aromatic.
3. Add the cardamom pods (crush the cardamom pods gently with the back of a spoon before frying) and the cinnamon stick broken in half and cook for another minute then add the meat.
4. Fry the meat in the paste stirring all the time, until it is well browned.
5. Pour over the coconut milk and tamarind purée and bring to a gentle simmer, add the kaffir lime leaves and zest.
6. Season with salt, stir well then reduce to a simmer.
7. Cook for between one hour and one hour and a half, stirring frequently during this time. The meat should be really tender and the sauce really reduced and rich.
8. Meanwhile toast the coconut flakes in a dry pan. Keep a close eye on this, as it will burn really quickly. It should be a lovely deep brown colour when ready. Blend to a powder in a small blender or pound in a pestle and mortar. When the rendang is ready stir into the mixture making sure it is well mixed in.
9. For the herby rice, wash the rice really well under cold water, the water will run clear when it is washed enough. Allow to drip dry Heat the oil in heavy-based saucepan that has a tight fitting lid.
10. Add the spices and fry for a minute.
11. Add the rice and fry until the grains begin to turn an opaque white.
12. Add the water and a good pinch of salt.
13. Bring to the boil then allow to bubble away until nearly all the water has been absorbed and air holes are beginning to appear.
14. At this point pop the lid on. Leave the heat on underneath for a minute (this will create lots of steam) then allow to stand for five minutes (do not remove the lid).
15. Keep warm until everything else is ready. You can hold rice like this for up to half an hour.
16. To serve, mix the herbs into the rice and divide between four warmed serving dishes. Next spoon on the rendang, finish with a few sprigs of coriander and serve immediately, garnished with the deep-fried shallots and chilli.

^[54]

first had this fiery, deeply flavorful chicken dish as a friend’s home along with dosas and ever since hooked to it. I was told it’s a traditional Chettinad chicken curry and that there are quite a few variations to this recipe. In today’s version, chicken is simmered in coconut milk and gets its unique flavor from a blend of quite a few spices like fennel seeds, coriander seeds, poppy seeds, pepper corns, cardamoms and cumin to name a few.

Quite a bit of preparation goes into the making of this curry and there is no short cut method and if you have the time and the ingredients on hand, only then venture to prepare and please don’t compromise with the ingredients if you want that authentic chicken curry flavor.

1 Drizzle a vessel with oil and roast the cumin seeds, coriander seeds, peppercorns, fennel seeds, red chillis, cardamoms, cinnamon and curry leaves on medium heat stirring constantly for 2 mts. Remove from fire, cool and grind to a powder.
2 Make a paste of the ginger, garlic, green chillies and poppy seeds. Keep aside.
3 Heat oil in a cooking vessel, add the small onions and curry leaves and saute till transparent.
4 Add the ground paste and cook for a minute before adding the chicken and cook on high heat for approx 4 mts and do stir the chicken once in a while.
5 Reduce to medium heat, add salt, turmeric pwd and tomatoes and combine well. Let the chicken cook in this for 4-5 mts, uncovered.
6 Now add the coconut milk and transfer the contents to a pressure cooker. Pressure cook for 4 mts or until one whistle. Open lid and combine well.
7 Finally add the ground masala pwd and cook for 3 mts. Turn off heat and garnish with fresh coriander leaves.
8 Serve hot with white steamed rice, biryani, chapatis or dosas.

I first had this fiery, deeply flavorful chicken dish as a friend’s home along with dosas and ever since hooked to it. I was told it’s a traditional Chettinad chicken curry and that there are quite a few variations to this recipe. In today’s version, chicken is simmered in coconut milk and gets its unique […]

^[74]

.Its good to add potato,s and larger onion pieces

1 Heat oil in a pressure cooker, add green chillis, curry leaves and chopped onions and saute till the onions turn transparent, approx 4 tms.
2 Add the ginger garlic paste and saute further for another 3 mts. Add the minced meat and turmeric pwd and cook on high without lid for 4-5 mts. Stir inbetween.
3 Add the ground masala pwd and salt and combine well. Add the chopped tomatoes and cook for 3 mts on medium flame. Add a cup of water and place lid and cook on pressure upto 4 whistles or until the meat is almost cooked. Turn off heat. After 3-4 mts, remove lid, add garam masala pwd and coriander leaves. Again cook on low flame for 8-10 mts or till you get the desired gravy consistency.
4 Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve hot with rotis or white steamed rice.

^[75]

Vietnamese Recipes & Cuisines (Meat)

^[76]

Ingredients

Liver – 1 cup (1/2 kg)
Onion(medium) – 2 nos
Coriander powder – 4 tbsp
Chilli powder(extra hot) – 1 tsp
Turmeric powder 1/2 tsp
Pepper – 1/4 cup
Green chillies – 3 nos
Ginger – 1/2
Curry leaves
Coconut oil
Water – 2 cups
Salt – As reqd

Method

1)Clean the chicken liver pieces and add the finely chopped green chillies, the finely chopped onion, ginger ,salt and 2 cups of water.

2)Keep it on a low flame.

3)Meanwhile roast the coriander powder with chilli powder and turmeric.

4)Grind it with water to make a paste of it and add the paste to the pan of liver.

5)Keep it on flame for another 10 mins.

6)Meanwhile roast the pepper and grind it to make fine powder of it.

7)When the water dries up in the pan, add the pepper powder and mix it well.

8)Finally cut 2 tbsp of onion and fry it golden brown in 2 tbsp of coconut oil.

9)Add it to the liver curry.

10)Garnish with curry leaves.

^[77]

True kormas are spicy, not hot, and a Moghul creation. Their special feature is a creamy sauce with nuts and saffron. They can be made with chicken, duck, lamb, beef or mutton, and should be served with plain or pullao rice.

Ingredients

1/2lb (675 g)poultry or meat
1/2 cup cashew nuts or almonds (or mixture)
1/2 inch (i. cm) fresh ginger, chopped
1i clove garlic, chopped
2 green chillies (optional)
1/2 teaspoon saffron
2 tablespoons milk, warmed
1 tablespoon ghee
2 tablespoons sunflower or corn oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 fl oz  (75 ml) yoghurt
3 fl oz (75  ml) double cream
1/2 cup chopped fresh
coriander or parsley
salt
lemon juice (optional)

Spices
2 whole green cardamoms
3 whole cloves
1 inch (2.5 cm) cassia bark
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1 teaspoon white cummin seeds

1 Cut the meat into i inch (2.5 cm) cubes (the poultry on or off the bone, to taste).
2 Blend the nuts, ginger, garlic and chillies into a coarse paste with 1/4 pint (150 ml) water.
3 Soak the saffron in warm milk for 10 minutes.
4 Heat the ghee and oil together, then fry the spices then the onion until golden. Add the nut paste and yoghurt, and cook for io minutes or so.
5 Add the meat, mixing it in well. Simmer for about hour or until the meat is tender. Add water bit by bit if needed.
6 About ro minutes before serving, squeeze the saffron strands in their bowl to get the most colour out of them then add in, with the milk. Add the double cream, fresh coriander or parsley and salt to taste. Serve with lemon juice if liked.
Serves: 4

^[78]

Lamb in Red Gravy
This is one of the traditional dishes from the times of the Moghul emperoys. In ancient days they used alkenet root to redden the meat, but in this recipe I have used tomato, paprika and red food colouring. The flavour is fantastic and I have used an authentic Kashmiri recipe rather than a simplified restaurateur’s version.

Ingredients

1/2 lb (675 g)lean lamb, cubed
4fl oz (115 ml) yogurt
salt
1/2 lb (225 g) onion, roughly chopped
2 inch ( cm) fresh ginger, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic
14 oz (400 g) tin tomatoes (or fresh)
about 8 dessertspoons ghee i tablespoon chopped fresh coriander

Spices 1
3 green cardamoms
3 cloves
3 small pieces cassia bark
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon chilli powder
1 teaspoon coriander, ground
1 teaspoon cummin, ground
Spices 2
1 dessertspoon garam masala
2 teaspoons paprika

1/8 teaspoon red food colouring powder

Method

1 Mix the lamb and yoghurt, spices i and salt. Let stand for 6 hours minimum or overnight.
2 Put onion, ginger, garlic and tomato into blender, and purée.
3 Melt ghee in a pan, and add the onion purée. Put the lamb mixture into a separate pan (without ghee). Cook both for about 20—30 minutes. Salt to taste, and stir the meat occasionally to prevent sticking.
4 Combine the two mixtures and cook for a further half hour or so, until the meat is quite tender.
5 Add spices 2, and fresh coriander. Mix well and cook for a further minutes, then serve.
If at any time the curry gets too dry, add a little water. Alternatively, after both meat and purée have been fried, they can be put in a casserole dish in the oven preheated to 375°F (190°C) Gas 5 and baked for 4 minutes. Add spices 2 and cook for a further 8—1 5 minutes.

Add fresh coriander and serve.

Serves: 4

^[79]

Sliced Beef Curry
This dish is well known in the Indian restaurant. It is based on a traditional Moslem dish which originated in the courts of the emperors centuries ago. Beef was the meat used then, although lamb has become better known. The difference with this dish is that the meat is in slices. I have used beef marinated in red wine (a restaurant technique), and the resultant curry is exceptionally nice.

Ingredients

4 x 8 oz (22 g) pieces steak / Chicken (fillet, sirloin, rump etc, according to your pocket)

1/2 pint (300 ml) red wine , Coconut Milk is a good subsitute

1 large onion, roughly chopped

4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

2 inch ( cm) fresh ginger, roughly chopped

1/2 cup oil

2 tablespoons ground almonds

20 whole almonds

1 tablespoon tomato purée

salt

Spices

Spices 1

1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon cumin, ground
1 teaspoon coriander, ground
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon chilli powder
1 teaspoon poppy seeds
Spices 2
1  tablespoon dry fenugreek leaves
1 dessert spoon garam masala

Method

1 Beat the steak out to thin pieces less than 1/4 inch (6mm) thick with a wooden meat hammer.

You can also cut the meat into bite size cubes.

This is called the ‘pasanda’. Place meat in a flat bowl, cover with the wine / coconut milk, and leave overnight.

2 Fry the onion, garlic and ginger in some oil until golden. Cool, then purée.

3 Fry the purée in remaining oil and, when simmering, add spices i. Fry at quite a high temperature for about 5 minutes, and keep stirring. Mix in the ground and whole almonds, the tomato purée and a little water if it is too dry.

4 Combine the meat, wine marinade and purée mixture in a shallow casserole dish, ensuring the meat is well covered, salt to taste and cook for 3 5—40 minutes in a preheated oven at 375°F (190°C) Gas .

5 Meanwhile soak spices 2 in water. After 3 5—40 minutes, add to the casserole and stir in well. Cook on for a further 20 minutes, then serve. If at any stage it looks too dry, add a little water.

Serves: 4

^[80]

Curry

When I use a meat, I cube it and sear it in a frying pan. Set aside until later.

Veg I have tried, potato, carrots, aubergine,  swede, parsnips, turnips etc. Basically anything bulky enough to survive the cooking.

Sometimes, I add various beans. Red Kidney, haricot, chick pea , black eyed etc.  I buy dried in which case make sure they are pre soaked. When adding small beans delay adding them or they break up and turn to mush in cooking.

Mix the powder spices and mustard seeds.

Pre chop onions, ( if using fresh , chop garlic and ginger ).  This will make it less of a rush once things start.

Add oil to pan add in the spice / seed mix.  Heat slowly until they pop.

Add 1/2 the onions ,  garlic , ginger  ( if using powder add it to the powder mix above ) to the pan, turn the heat up until you get a gentle fry.

Stir from time to time until onions soft and translucent.

I use  a choppy blender stick or put into a liquidiser etc blitz until a lumpy paste.

Put back into the pan and cook gently for a couple of mins. Constantly stiring / mixing.

Add in the toms and coconut milk.

Slowly bring to a boil and keep the pan simmering.

This is where I add the meat and veg, including the remaining onions from earlier.

Add a decent hand full of curry leaves and stir in.

Let bubble for hours, Sometimes I put in the oven and sometimes leave on the hob.

Time varies depending on the qty and size of veg bits.

Give it a stir every now and then, add moisture if needed.- water is fine.

End result should be creamy curry.