Recipe: Spicy lamb chops, taken from Dishoom: From Bombay with love
Succulent and richly flavoured, these chops are delicious. The first marinade helps to tenderise the meat, while the second creates deep and complex flavours as the chops are steeped in jaggery and lime over 24 hours. The combination of sweet and sour creates a wonderful harmony.
The recipe works best with thick, meaty lamb chops. Mutton works, as does goat if you can get it. Thicker chops mean you can grill for a while longer and build up some colour, and chops from the shoulder end can be particularly successful.
Ingredients
For the garlic and ginger paste
3 garlic bulbs or 180g fresh root ginger
25ml vegetable oil, plus extra to store the paste
Peel your garlic or ginger completely and roughly chop. Using a mini food processor or blender, blitz the garlic or ginger with the oil to a smooth paste. The oil should be enough to loosen the mixture; if it seems too thick, add 2-3tsp water. Place in a clean, sterilised jar and cover the surface with a thin layer of oil. Store in the fridge and use within 10 days.
Garam masala
1 black cardamom pod
4 cloves
5g black peppercorns
2 large cinnamon sticks
10g coriander seeds
5g cumin seeds
4g fennel seeds
2g star anise
1 bay leaf
2g mace blades
10g poppy seeds
2g dried rose petals
Put everything apart from the poppy seeds and rose petals into a cold, dry frying pan and place over a medium heat to warm, shaking the pan occasionally. Toast for two minutes, then turn off the heat. Add the poppy seeds and rose petals, and let the mixture cool in the pan.
Transfer the cooled spice mix to a spice grinder and grind to a fine powder.
Serves 4 as a starter
8 meaty lamb cutlets
For the first marinade
10g garlic paste
5g ginger paste
1tsp malt vinegar
1/3 tsp fine sea salt
6g papaya paste (optional)
For the second marinade
2 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1tsp coriander seeds
1 clove
1 scant tbsp HP Sauce
25g coriander stalks
1 1/2tsp garam masala
25g garlic paste
35g ginger paste
1/3 tsp crushed black peppercorns
8g jaggery
35ml lime juice
5g red chilli, roughly chopped
5g green chilli, roughly chopped
5g fine sea salt
2tsp vegetable oil
To grill and serve
25g unsalted butter, melted
Mint or coriander leaves
1tbsp pomegranate seeds (optional)
Recipe
Place the lamb chops in a shallow dish. For the first marinade, mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl. Rub the marinade into the chops, cover and refrigerate for two hours.
While the chops are in the fridge, prepare the second marinade. Warm a heavy-based frying pan over a medium heat. Add the cumin and coriander seeds along with the clove and toast for two minutes, shaking the pan to stop them from burning. Tip them straight into your mortar and pestle and leave to cool.
Blitz all of the other marinade ingredients to a paste, using a blender or mini food processor.
Grind the cooled, toasted spices to a coarse powder and add it to the paste.
When the first marinade time is up, take the chops out of the fridge and coat them with the second marinade. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.
Heat the grill to high and take the chops out of the fridge. Toss them again to ensure an even coating of marinade. Place on a foil-lined baking tray and brush with melted butter.
Grill the chops for 2-3 minutes, until they start to sizzle. Turn them over, brush with melted butter and grill for a further 2-3 minutes.
Repeat until nicely caramelised. Allow the chops to rest for three minutes before serving, scattered with mint or coriander and pomegranate seeds, if you like.
