Slow-cooked Lamb and Cashew Curry
Fresh, juicy pineapple and crunchy cashews add great contrasting textures and flavours to this meltingly tender lamb curry.
1.2 kilograms boned lamb shoulder pieces
coconut or vegetable oil, for cooking
sea salt and ground pepper
Spice paste 1 large onion
3 cloves garlic, 2cm-piece peeled fresh ginger ⅓ cup roasted cashew nuts ⅓ cup desiccated coconut
2 teaspoons each ground cumin and coriander
1 teaspoon ground turmeric 2cm thick slice fresh pineapple 400-gram tin crushed tomatoes 1 cup water
To finish thick plain yoghurt
2 thick slices fresh pineapple, finely chopped
¼ cup chopped roasted cashew nuts
2 spring onions, thinly sliced 1 green chilli, thinly sliced
Preheat the oven to 160°C fan bake. Season the lamb with salt and pepper.
Heat the oil in a large ovenproof casserole dish and, when hot, brown the lamb on all sides. Transfer to a plate. Don’t wash the casserole dish.
Spice paste: Put all the ingredients, except the tomatoes and water, in a food processor and blend to a thick paste.
Tip into the casserole dish and cook over a medium heat for 5 minutes until fragrant, stirring so it doesn’t catch on the base of the pan. Stir in the tomatoes and water and season with salt.
Add the lamb and resting juices back to the casserole and turn to coat in the spice mix. Cover with baking paper, then foil or a lid, to seal tightly.
Bake for 1 hour, then turn the lamb and bake for a further 1 hour or until the meat is very tender.
To finish: Top the lamb with dollops of yoghurt then the pineapple, cashew nuts, spring onions and chilli. Serves 6
For a vegetable component we added 150 grams, trimmed green beans cooked in a hot sauté pan with a little coconut oil until lightly blistered.