Whole Lamb Leg Curry

This aromatic lamb is an absolute crowd-pleaser. Serve it with rice, chutney and just-cooked green beans with slivered almonds.

Serves: 6-8

INGREDIENTS

Marinade
8 cloves garlic
1 large thumb ginger, peeled
1 tablespoon each cumin and coriander seeds
1½ cups yoghurt
2 teaspoons garam masala
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
½ teaspoon chilli powder
1 teaspoon sea salt
½ cup ground almonds (almond meal)
2.1 kilogram leg of lamb (I used lamb from the Greenlea Butcher Shop)
30 grams butter
2 medium brown onions, sliced
6 whole cloves
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons lemon juice
To serve
2 teaspoons neutral oil
2 teaspoons black mustard seeds

METHOD

Marinade: Put the garlic, ginger, cumin and coriander seeds in a small food processor and whizz to combine. Add the yoghurt, spices, salt and ground almonds, and whizz again to combine. Make about 20 deep slits into the lamb with the point of a sharp knife. Smooth over the marinade and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat the oven to 160°C.

Line a large roasting dish with baking paper.

Add the lamb, pour a cup of water into the base of the dish and cover with foil, ensuring it doesn’t touch the yoghurt topping. Roast for 4 hours.

Heat the butter in a large frying pan. Add the onions and cloves and cook over a medium heat for 20 minutes. Add the cinnamon and lemon juice and stir to combine. Spoon over the lamb, replace the tinfoil, and cook a further hour. Remove the foil and cook the lamb for a final hour.

The total lamb cooking time is 6 hours.

Heat the neutral oil in a small frying pan and cook the mustard seeds for 1-2 minutes until they start to pop. Drain through a fine sieve. Garnish the lamb with the mustard seeds to serve.