Lamb Saag

So after that little ramble last night, what are we eating? Well, the spinach was cheap and good, and also red capsicums, broccoli and cauliflower. Strawberries were cheap, too. The bloke requested a lamb curry, and by coincidence Woolworths had a special on lamb rump steaks - a mere $15 per kilo. I bought a 900g tray and by the time I stripped off all the fat and set aside the gristle and tendon for the cats, I ended up with 600g of lean meat.

I used a Madhur Jaffrey recipe for a classic lamb saag, and whipped up my ye olde three tins dahl, to which I added a goodly amount of cauliflower in small florets. That sorts out two dinners. I used a lot of the capsicum to make a simple pasta sauce - bacon, onion, garlic, tomato, herbs. That does another two meals, with some broccoli or salad on side. And there will be leftovers for lunches.

Lamb recipe follows: Recipe: Moghlai Lamb with Spinach
600g boneless lamb cubes
7 cloves of garlic, crushed
5 tsp grated ginger
2 tblsp ground coriander
3 tblsp light oil
1 large onion, cut in fine half rings (about 160g)
1 tsp cayenne
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp salt
4 tblsp natural yoghurt
500g fresh spinach, cut into fine ribbons.
Mix garlic, ginger and coriander into meat, set aside for 30 minutes.

Heat oil in a large saucepan, and fry onions in the oil until golden brown and crisp. Remove onions and drain on kitchen paper.

Reduce heat, and stir in lamb, all of its marinade, and the cayenne, salt and turmeric. Stir for a minute or two to partially brown, then cover and leave for about ten minutes on a low heat. This will sweat a lot of the juices out of the lamb. Remove lid, add 1 tablespoon of yoghurt. Stir in well, to amalgamate, and repeat process - a tablespoon at a time - with the remaining yoghurt. Chop and stir in the crisped onions.

If the meat is tough, simmer for half an hour. If it's a tender cut, stir in the spinach immediately and stir until it is wilted down. Cover and simmer for another 50 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Source: Madhur Jaffrey's Ultimate Curry Bible. Mildly varied.
Notes: This is pretty mild, you might like some more cayenne. Jaffrey notes that this is a classic Moghul recipe, and probably has been the same for centuries, except for the cayenne.

You might be more familiar with the title I chose - "Lamb Saag". Apparently paalag or palak is proper spinach, while saag is a more general term for greens.