Hairy Dieters Lamb, Spinach and Potato Curry
Well, it's supposed to be Lamb, Spinach and Potato but I didn't have any spinach in the house. I did, however, have green cabbage, so I stripped the stems out, chopped it roughly and used that.
I reckon this would work well with chickpeas instead of the lamb for a vegetarian version.
I altered the amounts in the recipe to suit our budget a bit better as lamb is not cheap.
You will need:
400g lamb leg steaks
1/2 tbsp oil
3 large garlic cloves, chopped (I used lazy garlic from a jar, 3 small tsp)
1 1/2 large onions, roughly chopped (I used 2 medium onions)
20g chunk of root ginger (you could also use lazy ginger from a jar)
1/2 plump fresh red chilli (recipe called for a whole one, but I don't like things too hot, you can use a whole one if you prefer)
60g ready made curry paste
400g chopped tinned tomatoes
350g potatoes (preferably maris pipers in the UK) cut into 3cm chunks
400ml water
2 bay leaves
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp caster sugar
3 medium rip tomatoes, quartered
100g young spinach leaves (or green cabbage or kale, etc, but follow notes on timing)
freshly ground black pepper
Trim the lamb of any hard fat and cut into rough chunks of about 3cm.
Season the meat with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tsp of the oil in a large non stick pan and fry the lamb (in batches if you need to) until lightly coloured on all sides. Transfer the lamb to a plate as soon as each batch is browned.
Heat the remaining oil in a large flameproof casserole dish or ovenproof pan (I used the ovenproof pan) and add the onions. Cook over a medium hear for 6 to 8 minutes until the onions are soft and lightly browned, stirring regularly.
Turn down the heat, add the garlic, ginger, chilli and curry paste and cook for 5 minutes more, stirring frequently.
Remove from the heat and blitz the onion mixture with a stick blender until blended to a puree. I used a jug to get a bit more depth to the mixture, you could also let it cool a while then blend in a jug blender or food processor.
Return the mixture to the pan and put back on the heat.
Add the browned lamb to the spiced onion puree in the dish and cook over a gentle heat for 2 - 3 minutes, stirring.
Add the tinned tomatoes, potatoes, water, bay leaves, tsp of salt and the sugar.
If you are using cabbage or kale instead of spinach, also add this now, but if you are using spinach, that comes later.
Bring everything to a gentle simmer, then cover with a lid and place into the oven for 1 hour and 30 minutes or until the lamb is tender and the sauce has thickened. Check after 1 hour and give the curry a good stir.
Just before the curry is due to be finished, quarter your tomatoes and get the spinach ready if you are using that.
Take the casserole dish or pan out of the oven and remove the lid. Stir in the tomatoes and spinach leaves.
Cover once more and return to the oven for a further 5 minutes or until the tomatoes are soft and the spinach has wilted.
Serve hot with rice and some spoonfuls of plain yoghurt of you fancy.
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