A month does not go by without a curry being cooked in my house.  Nothing like a good spicy curry to sort you out when your feeling a bit down, get those endorphins moving….just keep an eye on the ghee though, cause that stuff ain’t too good for the old ticker if over used.

My two favourite curry dishes are Lamb Saag and Lamb Bhuna.  Paneer (Indian fresh cheese) can replace the lamb for a vegetarian version of the dish.  Paneer is so easy to make – I’ll drop a post in later to show you how to make your own in under an hour.

Here’s my Bhuna recipe:

Spice Masala

• 2 tsp Coriander seeds
• 1 tsp Fennel seeds
• 1 tsp Fenugreek seeds
• 1tsp Cumin seeds
• 1 tsp Mustard seeds
• 3 Dried chillies

Other Ingredients

• 1/2 Kilo Boned Lamb shoulder cubed
• 2 large Shallots very finely sliced
• 25g of Ghee or Butter
• 1 inch piece Ginger grated
• 5 cloves of Garlic finely sliced
• 5 Curry Leaves
• 1 tsp Salt
• 150ml Water
• 1/2 can Peeled tomatos (drained

The Bhuna is a drier curry dish, with the sauce reduced down so that it coats the meet and has an intense and pungent flavour, so your not looking for it to be too wet.

1. Start by dry roasting or tempering the spices in a dry pan for a couple of minutes to brown and release their flavours
2. Place aside to cool before grinding into a fine Masala (use a small coffee grinder or mortar & pestle)
3. Add some Ghee (or butter and oil) to the pan and saute the shallots, garlic and ginger for a few minutes on a medium heat until golden brown.
4. Add tomatoes and curry leaves and cook until sauce thickens
5. Add spice masala and cook out for 2-3 mins – this will thicken the sauce considerably – be careful not to burn the sauce at this stage. (keep some water aside in case required)
6. Add lamb to sauce and mix thoroughly – add salt – mixing to ensure all meat in coated in sauce.
7. Add water, mix, cover and cook on a low simmer for 2 hours (check every 30 mins to ensure sauce does not burn) add water if required to keep sauce loose.
8. Test meat for tenderness, and finish cooking uncovered to reduce the sauce to a dry and concentrated sauce
9. Finish with chopped coriander, serve with boiled rice, lime pickle, chapatis and cold beer.