Keema Alu Mattar - Ground Lamb with Potatoes & Peas

Keema Alu Mattar

Our local supermarket now carries Australian lamb and it was a pleasant surprise to find no unpleasant aromas while cooking their ground lamb. There is some fat in the meat, so I'll be sure to use less oil the next time.

There was no cilantro (coriander leaves) in the house, so curry leaves were added to the usual recipe.
  

Tomato Pulao or Tomato Fried Rice

Tomato Pulao

A pulao is usually made with uncooked rice, but I had a whole 2 cups of it sitting in the fridge so I used that instead. It came together very quickly and goes well as a side dish with Begun Bhaja and/or Fuji Apple Raita.

The curry leaves in this pulao give it a South Indian flair.

Chicken Cooked in Coconut Milk and Flavoured with Curry Leaves

Chicken Keema in Coconut Milk

I’m trying to encourage my curry leaf tree to grow, so I was determined this week to use a couple of stems. Ground chicken was on the menu and it occurred to me that it would taste sensational cooked in coconut milk with a generous helping of curry leaves. I added the curry leaves in 3 stages – first of all, while tempering the mustard seeds, then while frying the onions, garlic and ginger and finally at the end as a garnish. And I followed my friend’s advice to shred the curry leaves added while cooking to extract as much flavour from them as possible. It’s amazing how good the combination of coconut milk and curry leaves tastes! This chicken curry is cooked until dry but still moist, which makes it perfect to eat with chapatis or tortillas, but also tastes good with rice.

Narkol Diye Dal - Lentils Cooked in Coconut Milk

Mum used to make delicious lentils with coconut for festive occasions, but she always used pieces of coconut to flavour the dish. This recipe uses coconut milk which makes a very creamy lentil dish which is especially delicious because of the chauk/phoron/tarka at the very end of curry leaves, green chillies and black mustard seeds which makes it simply perfect for this preparation!

Ingredients:
1 cup channa dal 
1 (8 oz.) cup coconut milk
1 large onion, chopped
2 medium (Roma) tomatoes, chopped
3 green chillies, chopped
1 tsp. ginger paste
1 tsp. turmeric powder
2 cups water or vegetable stock

Garnish:
4 Tbsp. vegetable oil
3 green chillies, slit at stem end
7-8 curry leaves, one stem
1 tsp. black mustard seeds
1 tsp. ghee

Directions:
1. Place all ingredients (except Garnish) in a pressure cooker, bring to a boil, cover and cook under pressure on medium heat for 20 minutes or until lentils are tender.
2. Allow steam in pressure cooker to dissipate before opening lid.
3. Heat oil over high heat in a small saucepan, fry slit green chillies until skin blisters and turns grey, remove from oil and set aside.
4. Sputter black mustard seeds, add curry leaves and fry for a minute or so.
5. Pour over lentils in pressure cooker, return to a boil and garnish with slit green chillies and ghee.

Serve over steamed Basmati or Jasmine rice or tortillas.