Smothered Lamb (labdhara gosht)

I'm not sure if it's the influence of a dear friend from Kerala, or the results of a recent novena to Saint Alphonsa, but the husband and I have been eating Indian food non-stop for the past two weeks. I purchased three cookbooks (two by the amazing Madhur Jaffrey) before we left town for almost two weeks. So when we returned in early February, I set out on my Indian kitchen adventure.

Our youngest child gobbles it up like a trooper. We are thankful that our college-aged daughter is living in the dorm this semester and cannot complain about the abundance of curry, coriander and red chiles!

Our Indian friend tells us that the rate of cancer in India is very low compared to the US. The spices are known to have medicinal and cleansing effects. We are living proof of that. I honestly have not felt this good in a long time. All of the recipes I've encountered have no gluten in them. Nothing artificial either -- just pure flavor. I did have to make several trips to the local Central Market to stock up on Indian food basics, such as coriander pods, ground coriander, turmeric, curry, mustard seeds, whole cloves, lots of garlic, onion and fresh ginger (not the powdered stuff!). But it was so worth it. So if you're ready to dabble a bit in Indian cuisine, I give you my first offering by Chef Jaffrey - Smothered Lamb.

Smothered lamb in the pot!

Smothered lamb with roasted organic beets on the side.

Ingredients:

1 pound of boned shoulder of lamb, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 small onion (4 oz.) peeled and finely chopped
1-inch piece of ginger peeled and finely chopped
1/2 can of diced tomatoes (I use the Muir Glen ones)
1/2 cup of finely chopped cilantro
1-2 jalapeno peppers, thinly sliced -- don't remove seeds
1/4 teaspoon of ground turmeric
2 teaspoons of garam masala
1 teaspoon of cumin
1/4 cup plain yogurt (do not use low-fat)
1 Tablespoon of tomato paste
3/4 teaspoon of salt
3 Tablespoons of vegetable oil (I use canola oil)
4 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped
Freshly ground pepper to taste

Put all the ingredients (except oil, garlic and black pepper) into a bowl and combine well.

Put the oil in a deep dutch oven (I use my 5 or 6-quart Le Creuset), and set over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, stir fry the garlic until it turns medium brown. Then put in the meat mixture and stir around a couple of times. Add 1 cup of water and bring mixture to a boil. Put lid on the dutch oven and reduce to simmer. Cook for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, give or take. When meat is done, remove the cover and cook uncovered until the sauce is reduced and thick (stirring occasionally). When the sauce is desired consistency, add a generous sprinkling of black pepper. If you don't care for lamb, you can substitute pork shoulder or stew beef.

Serve with brown rice. I also like to serve either roasted beets or stir-fried green beans and mushrooms.