Any kind of curry is a big hit at our house. Chicken Tikka Masala being a clear favourite. I felt my kids needed to expand their understanding of Indian cuisine and try something else for a change. Rogan Josh seems like a good choice for us. The empty plates, and demands for seconds at the end of the meal proved that I had made the right choice.
My son helped prepare the curry paste, so he was very interested in trying the end result and very excited that I would include a photo of him in this post. We call him the Ramsay-Oliver Mini Chef. He has the boyish good looks of Jamie Oliver and the temperament of Gordon Ramsay, especially when he is hungry.
The best part about getting him to help is that, there are no disputes at the dinner table if you get the kids to help with the cooking. Their pride overrides the fussy eating tendencies.
Rogan Josh is an aromatic dish that is usually made with lamb. You can also use chicken. it tastes just as good.
The original Rogan Josh recipe is actually of Persian origin, which is one of the signature recipes of Kashmiri cuisine. Roughan meaning “clarified butter/fat, Josh meaning “intensity” derives from the verb Joshidian meaning “to heat”. Rogan Josh basically means cooked in oil at intense heat. Of course it all depends on the cook, and how much chilli you will add for the heat. My kids are very “heat tolerant” but I make it mild so that they can taste the flavours instead of just taste the heat. I think it is important to get the spice from the aroma rather than heat.
What you need:
- For the Marinade
- 6 tbs of natural yogurt
- 1 tbs lemon juice
- 2 tsp sweet chilli powder
- 1 tsp hot chilli powder
- 2 tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp black pepper
- For the Curry
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 750g lamb, cut into chunks
- 4 garlic cloves, peeled, crushed into paste
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 1 medium onion, roughly chopped (for the paste)
- 2cm piece ginger, peeled and cut in thin slices
- 4 tomatoes, blended to a pulp in a food processor
- 1 red pepper, de-seeded
- 5 black peppercorns, left whole
- 4 cardamom pods, left whole
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 2 tsp ground coriander
- 2 tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp red chilli flakes/powder
- 2 tsp ground fennel seeds
- 1½ tsp garam masala
- salt and pepper to taste
- 3 tbsp plain yoghurt, stirred
- Handful chopped fresh coriander, leaves and stalks
What you do:
- Marinate the lamb with hot chilli, sweet chilli, turmeric, black pepper, lemon juice and yogurt.
- Leave to rest for a couple of hours or overnight (if you have the time).Heat the oil in a large pan over a medium heat.
- Add the black peppercorns, cardamom pods, cloves, cinnamon and fry for about a minute or two, (or until the spices are sizzling and fragrant)
- Add the chopped onion and fry for 9-10 minutes, stirring regularly, until golden-brown.
- Add the marinated lamb pieces and fry until golden-brown all over. If your pan is not large enough do it in batches to avoid crowding the pan. This will make the lamb watery and it won’t brown.
- Meanwhile, in a food processor, blend the garlic cloves, roughly chopped onion, red pepper and ginger with one tablespoon of water to a fine paste.
- Add the paste to the lamb, stir well.Reduce the heat and continue to cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly.
- Stir in the rest of the powdered spices (coriander, cumin, red chilli powder, fennel seeds, garam masala, salt, black pepper)
- Add in the tomato pulp and the yoghurt, stir gentlyT
- hen put the lid on, reduce the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes, you want the sauce to reduce but not completely dry out.
- Add about 3-4 tablespoons of boiling water to the sauce, if it looks too dry to you.Stir well and simmer for a further 8-10 minutes.
- Keep stirring and add splashes of water if needed.
- What you want is the liquid to reduce into a sauce thickness but avoid drying out.
- Last step is to add a cup of boiling water (almost covering the lamb), bring it back to boil, and then reduce the heat and simmer about 10 minutes
- Make sure the lamb is cooked but not dried out.
- Stir in the chopped coriander just before serving.
- This rogan josh works brilliantly with plain steamed or boiled basmati rice.
Enjoy!
Cigdem Sidney Ozdemircelik 