Raghavan Iyer's Lamb Biryani from 660 Curries

Recently, the local Persian grocery store butcher has been stocking the meat case with lamb shank (or what we think is lamb shank - speaking in English is iffy and we don't speak enough Dutch to converse adequately).  Given that lamb is pretty expensive or not stocked at other butchers or the standard grocery store, we've been taking advantage of their supply as much as possible.  I often use lamb in a Persian soup which serves as our lunch, but this week I decided to also explore the lamb curries of Raghavan Iyer's 660 Curries.  While this isn't a 'curry' as many people understand curry, it's a wonderful mix of meat, herbs, spices, rice, and sometimes nuts and raisins. According to Raghavan, this biryani is originates from Hyderabad and is called 'kacchi biryani' where 'kacchi' is uncooked lamb (which is later layered with cooked rice and then baked).  

I've previously made chicken biryani's (although I realize I've never posted about them on this blog!), but this is a different twist with a completely different flavor from the meat.  

Ingredients: 

For the Lamb Marinade:

• ~ 1 lb (I used 10 oz) lamb of leg, cut from the bone (if not already available this way), fat trimmed and cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1 cup of plain yogurt (I prefer Greek yogurt, but otherwise use full fat yogurt)
• 1/2 cup of firmly packed mint leaves, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup of firmly packed cilantro, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons of minced ginger
• 1 tablespoon of minced garlic
• 1-2 Thai chilies (original recipe calls for Kashmiri chilies, which I have replaced with Thai chilies)
• 1.5 teaspoons of sea salt
• 1 teaspoon of garam masala (I used a pre-made mix)
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground turmeric

For the rice: 

• 1 cup of white/brown basmati rice
• 2 tablespoons of coconut oil (original recipe calls for Ghee or unsalted butter)
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 2 black cardamom pods
• 2 free or dried bay leaves (I used dried)
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon saffron threads
• 1 teaspoon of sea salt

Others: 

• 2 tablespoons coconut oil (original recipe calls for Ghee or unsalted butter)
• 2 tablespoons of finely chopped mint for garnish

Directions: 

Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350F (~175C).

1. Marinate the lamb (min 3 hours, overnight if possible): Combine the lamb, yogurt, mint, cilantro, ginger, garlic, chilies, salt, garam masala, and turmeric in a bowl and toss/stir to completely coat the lamb.  Refrigerate, covered overnight (or at least 3 hours before cooking). 
2. Soak the rice (min 1 hour, longer for brown rice): Depending upon if you are using white or brown rice, before you are ready to start assembling the biryani, prepare the rice:  Rinse the rice until the water runs clear (first two rinses will be cloudy).  Fill the bowl half way with cold water and let it sit at room temperature until the grains soften.  One hour is sufficient for white rice.  I soaked for 3 hours for brown rice (note, I did not experiment with the time - seek advice on the back of your packaging for advice or elsewhere). 
3. Cook the rice: 
1. Heat coconut oil/ghee/unsalted butter in a medium sized saucepan over medium high heat.  Add cumin seeds, cardamom pods, bay leaves, and cinnamon sticks.  Cook until they sizzle, about 3 to 5 minutes (note, original recipe calls for 15 to 20 minutes, but on medium-high heat, this doesn't take long for me... if I let them go longer, the cumin seeds will burn).  Then immediately add the onion and stir-fry until the onion is light brown around the edges, about 10 minutes (note, original recipe calls for 3 to 5 minutes, for browning on the edges, I think it needs longer).  
2. Stir in the saffron and allow the mixture to release its fragrance.  Add the drained rice and toss gently to coat the grains with the mixture.  Pour 1 cup of cold water, add the salt, and stir the rice to incorporate the ingredients.  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook until the water has just evaporated and remove from the heat.  For brown rice, consider adding another 1/2 cup of water as this type takes longer to cook through.  
4. Assemble the Biryani and Bake: 
1. Lightly spray the interior of a medium sized casserole dish with cooking spray or coat with melted ghee/butter/coconut oil.  
2. Spread the lamb (including any remaining marinade) across the bottom and drizzle melted ghee/coconut oil/butter.  
3. Add the rice mixture, spreading evenly over the lamb. 
4. Cover the casserole dish and bake until the rice is cooked through and the lamb is fork-tender (approximately 1 hour).  
5. Serve: Garnish with finely chopped mint and serve.  Note, there are whole spices in this dish, so be careful to eat around these.  

What biryani's have you made?  Have you ever baked one (this was my first baked biryani)?  Any cooking tips?

Raghavan Iyer's Sliced Okra Soup (bathed in Buttermilk) from 660 Curries

I'm finally back in the kitchen, inspired by local ingredients and fellow friends helping me get back into the groove of things.  I'm definitely working my way back up the hill, but things are looking up.  This weekend was fantastic cooking-wise, I managed to get a number of recipes under my belt that I'm happy to be writing about.  I think I spent both Saturday and Sunday in the kitchen for a minimum of four hours each, but I am slowly beginning to feel normal in the kitchen again.

This recipe was one I decided on last minute on Saturday to accompany some roasted lamp chops I threw together (roasted in our brand new oven, more to come on that!) for dinner.  While I'm not sure it was the greatest pairing in the world, this was a delicious soup and fabulously simple to prepare and cook that I am inclined to make this a standard go-to 'open friends eyes to Indian food' recipe!

Note, I didn't plan well enough in advance to have buttermilk on hand.  Upon researching via the internet, I did find that a common replacement is one tablespoon of lemon juice for every cup of milk. Based on my research, the amount of time you should let the mixture sit is non-standard, I read anywhere between 2 and 10 minutes.  I ended up going with about 5 minutes, for good measure. Admittedly I have no idea what this recipe tastes like when buttermilk is used, but if you're looking for an healthy alternative, milk with lemon juice is a good one!

Ingredients:
1 pound okra (I used a frozen bag since good, fresh okra is available here.  These will little mini-okra which were cute, tasted the same as long okra)
4 cups buttermilk (or as per above, I used 1 tablespoon of lemon juice for every cup of milk, let the mixture stand for about 5 minutes before using)
2 tablespoons of chickpea flour (also called Besan in Hindi, can be found in any Indian grocery store or perhaps try a Whole Foods type of store)
2 tablespoons white granulated sugar
2 teaspoons of salt
2 teaspoons of cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon of ground tumeric
2 tablespoons of finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves and stems (remove bulky stems)
12 medium-sized to large fresh curry leaves (as Raghavan advises in his book, there is no replacement for these leaves, if you don't have them just omit them.  Usually found in any Indian grocery store.  I only had dried leaves available when I made this soup)
2 tablespoons Ghee or melted butter
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds (I just realized this recipe calls for fenugreek seeds and I used fennel, I will have to try this again!)

1. Trim the caps off the okra, and then cut the pods into 1 inch lengths.  Cut the pieces length wise.
2. Whisk the buttermilk/milk, chickpea flour, sugar, salt, cayenne, and turmeric together in a bowl, making sure the flour is completely incorporated with no lumps.  Then stir in the cilantro and curry leaves.                                        
3. Heat the ghee or melted butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat.  Sprinkle the cumin and fennel seeds into the pan and cook until they sizzle, turn brown-ish, and are fragrant, about 10 seconds.  
4. Immediately add the okra and stir-fry until the slices blister in spots and acquire a light brown coloration on their skin, between 8 and 10 minutes.  
5. Pour in the spiced buttermilk/milk mixture and stir once or twice to deglaze the pan, releasing any browned bits of spices and okra.  Lower the heat to medium and simmer, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until the okra is fork tender and the curry has thickened slightly, 10 to 12 minutes.  The color of the liquid will change from a pale, cream color to a bright yellow as the soup thickens.  

I hope you try this recipe and if you do, let me know what you think about it!

Eet Smakelijk (equivalent of Buon Appetito in Italian)!

Raghavan Iyer Breast of Chicken with Tomato and Coconut Milk from 660 Curries

Well, it's been quite a long time since I've blogged.  I certainly intended to blog more frequently over the last month, but with completing out my job contract and visitors from the US, it's been very busy around here! It's been great fun, but even though I've been cooking the entire time I really haven't found much time to blog. I received a lovely cook-book, 600 Curries by Raghavan Iyer, from my sister-in-law who visited us in early July and have been exploring many recipes from this book over the last month.  This is the first of what I expect will be many recipes I blog about from this cook-book.  Cooking from this book is quickly becoming a favorite past time around here!

Breast of Chicken with Tomato and Coconut Milk
adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer 660 (p. 146)

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons of oil (I used peanut, the recipe calls for canola)
1 small onion, cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced (I used a small yellow onion, the recipe calls for a red onion)
4 medium sized cloves garlic, finely chopped (I used a blender for this)
2 lengthwise slices fresh ginger (each 2.5 inches long, 1 inch wide and 0.25 inch thick), julienned
1.5 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 teaspoons of English-Style Madras Curry Powder (don't let this stop you, this was very simple to make if you have a spice grinder and whole spices; it may be possible to mix the already ground spices as well, but I have not tried this)
1.5 teaspoon of coarse kosher or sea salt
0.25 cup unsweetened coconut milk (I actually used a lot more as I wanted a lot more broth, I used 8.5 fl oz)
1 large tomato, cored and fully chopped (I used 2 small ones and left out about 0.25 of the chopped tomatoes out - it felt like too much tomato and since it is added towards the end I didn't feel they would cook down enough)
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems (I used a small handful, this is not something I would measure measure out)

English-Style Madras Curry Powder

Place the following items in a spice grinder or coffee grinder and blend until the mixture is finely ground (like your other ground spices!)
2 tablespoons coriander seeds
2 teaspoons cumin seeds
1 teaspoon black or yellow mustard seeds (I used black)
0.5 teaspoon whole clove (this was hard to measure, an approximate is fine and can also be adjusted to your taste)
0.5 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
5 to 7 dried red Thai or cayenne chilies, stems removed (to taste)

Once blended, add 1 teaspoon of ground tumeric to the mixture.

You will have leftover masala from this recipe.

Recipe:
1. Prepare all the ingredients (chop the tomatoes, grind the splice blend, cut the onion, garlic and ginger, etc.)
2. Preheat a wok over medium-high heat.  Add the oil and allow it to warm up.
3. Add the onion, garlic and ginger and stir-fry until they are light brown, about 5 minutes (yes, I used a timer)
4. Add the curry powder and mix with the vegetables.
5. Quickly thereafter, add the chicken and sear the meat on all sides (if possible, if not, sear on as many sides as possible)
6. Add salt to the mixture.
7. Add the coconut milk and allow it to come to a boil.  Turn down the heat and allow the chicken, vegetables, spices and coconut milk simmer until the chicken is cooked through.
7. Remove the chicken pieces using a slotted spoon.  Leave as much of the ginger and other vegetables in the soupy mixture remaining as possible.

Chicken cooked and removed from wok

8. Add the tomatoes and cilantro (the recipe calls to do this after the sauce thickens, but I wanted the tomatoes to cook down a bit) to the soupy mixture.
9. Raise the heat to medium,  and allow the sauce to reduce until it thickens to your desired consistency.

Sauce thickening with tomato and cilantro included

10. Add the chicken back into the wok and serve over cooked white rice immediately.

Final product in the wok!

Final product with cooked white rice

This was a fabulous weeknight meal and a great way to use of the massive amount of chicken I had leftover from earlier this week.  To make this faster, prepare the spice blend ahead of time and if possible and chop the onion and garlic ahead of time (but only a night in advance, of course, if you chop everything the day of that is better).  Leave the garlic to a quick chop in a blender/food processor. I ended up doubling the recipe (used the the single serving of garlic and ginger though) to accommodate the amount of chicken, which is great for leftovers (hopefully my new colleagues don't mind the smell of Indian food!).

Hope you enjoy this new recipe! Cheers!