Warming curries for winter
These spicy dishes are great winter warmers on chilly days when you’re holed up at home
JAMAICAN CURRY
It’s usually made with goat’s meat and Scotch bonnet peppers, but we’ve replaced these ingredients with lamb and habaneros.
SERVES 6-8 PREPARATION: 15-20 MIN MARINATING: OVERNIGHT COOKING:
1½ TO 2 HOURS SPICE BLEND
10 ml (2t) coriander seeds
10ml (2t) black peppercorns 6 cardamom pods 10ml (t) fenugreek seeds
5ml (1t) ground cinnamon
5ml (1t) ground ginger
5ml (1t) ground allspice
5ml (1t) turmeric LAMB
1 can (410g) chopped tomatoes
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 onions, finely chopped
1 habanero chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
3 thyme sprigs
1kg stewing lamb pieces
45ml (3T) vegetable oil
1 litre (4c) water RICE AND BEANS
200g basmati rice
1 can (400g) red kidney beans
200ml water
200ml coconut milk
1 onion, chopped
3 thyme sprigs TO FINISH
1kg baby potatoes, washed chopped chillies
1 Spice blend In a hot, dry pan, toast the coriander seeds, peppercorns, cardamom and fenugreek seeds until fragrant. Grind using a mortar and pestle and add the rest of the spices.
2 Lamb In a large bowl, mix the spice blend with the tomatoes, garlic, onions, chilli and thyme. Add the meat to the marinade, cover and marinate in the fridge overnight.
3 Preheat the oven to 160°C. Heat the oil in a heavy-base pot. Remove the meat from the marinade and fry in batches until browned. Transfer the meat to a large casserole dish with a lid.
4 Lower the heat and fry the remaining marinade until the onions are soft, then add to the meat. Pour in the water, cover with the lid and bake for 1 hour.
5 Rice and beans In a large pot, mix the rice, beans, water, coconut milk, onion and thyme. Bring to a simmer, cover and switch off the heat. Leave on the stove for 25-30 minutes.
6 To finish After the first hour of baking, increase the oven temperature to 200°C. Add the potatoes and bake for another 30 minutes or until the potatoes are soft. Sprinkle chopped chillies over and serve with the rice and beans.