Lamb Pilaf

Lamb Pilaf

This is lamb week. Must be the endless rain and cold, makes you crave for the heat that a lamb dish gives out. I didn't have a lot of time though to make my usual Lamb Biryani with the gravy and all, and so settled for a drier Lamb Pilaf.

The meat I got from an Egyptian-run shop that seems always to sell lamb unlike the Italian supermarkets. I also bought a pack of golden raisins that are more than 3 times the price of normal raisins but like my mother likes to say, 1 cent for 1 cent's quality's worth.

Lamb Pilaf :

1 Kg lean Lamb meat from the Leg or Shoulder

250ml Yoghurt

2 Tbsps ground Ginger

6-8 cloves minced Garlic

1 Tsp ground Turmeric

1/2 Tsp ground Nutmeg

Salt

Pepper

300g Basmati Rice

1/2 Tsp Saffron Strands

100ml Milk

500ml Boiling Water

Hara Masala (4 Chillis, 3 Tbsps Coriander Leaves, 2 Tbsps Mint Leaves)

6 finely-sliced medium Onions

1 Tbsp Black Cumin Seeds

Cinnamon stick

4-5 Cardamoms

3-4 Cloves

Sultanas

Garam Masala

75g Butter

Lime Juice

Hard-boiled Eggs

Roasted sliced Almonds

It's not difficult to make the dish, but one must think of marinating the meat (yoghurt, garlic, ginger, turmeric, nutmeg, salt and pepper) and soaking the rice (with salt and water) beforehand - for minimum 2 hours.

Then all the other ingredients have to be ready and on hand.

The saffron threads have to be immersed in hot milk. The Hara Masala has to be prepared by mixing the leaves and chillis together. The eggs have to be boiled.

Next, brown 3/4 of the onions in a pan. When they have turned golden, remove and drain them on some kitchen paper. Set aside.

In the same oil, brown the remaining onions with the marinated lamb pieces and some salt. When they start turning brown, add in the remaining youghurt marinade and cook till it turns light brown. Then add in 350ml of the boiling water, cover and simmer for 20-45 minutes depending on the quality of your lamb.

Drain the rice. Melt 50g of the butter in a pan and fry the whole spices. Add in the rice, the raisins, some salt and pepper and stir well. Add in the remaining 150ml of hot water, stir, cover and cook over high heat till the water is almost all absorbed. Shouldn't take more than 2-3 minutes and the rice must not be cooked through. Remove cover, stir well and turn off the heat.

In a non-stick pan, arrange the following ingredients in this order in a cone :

1. Half the Saffron Milk
2. Half the Rice
3. 1 Tsp Garam Masala
4. The Lamb (just the meat)
5. Half the Onions
6. The Hara Masala
7. Remaining Rice
8. 1 Tsp Garam Masala
9. Remaining Onions

Make a hole in the centre and 2 sides of the cone and quickly pour in the lime juice, remaining saffron milk, the cooking juices from the meat...The remaining butter can be cut into small pieces and spread on top of the rice. Cover tightly and let the lamb pilaf simmer for 30-45 minutes on very low heat.

Mix the rice and meat together before serving, garnishing with the hard-boiled eggs and roasted almonds.

Spiced Porridge with a touch of lemon

Spiced Lamb Lasagna

What did I do with the leftovers? Made a Spiced Porridge with the Lamb Bones and the leftover Pilaf. Hubby normally avoids eating rice porridge but he enjoyed this particular one as it is pretty much like a Lamb Soup. And with the meat, I shredded and fried it with garlic, onions and mint leaves and prepared a slightly Spicy Bechamel, all in preparation for a Indian Lamb Lasagna. That's where India met Italy for the week.