Lamb biryani

Biryani is a real favourite of mine, especially when cooked dum-style, whereby the ingredients steam in their own juices under a dough crust, which traps in all the amazing spices. Instead of dough,

I’ve used a tight lid of tin foil in this recipe, which works just as well.

400g lamb neck, cut into small cubes 4 garlic cloves, grated

1 tbsp finely grated ginger

1 tbsp sunflower oil

1 large onion, chopped

1 tbsp cumin seeds

1 tbsp nigella seeds

1 tbsp madras spice paste

200g basmati rice, rinsed well

8 curry leaves

400ml lamb or chicken stock

100g paneer, chopped

200g spinach, cooked and water

squeezed out chopped coriander, sliced green chillies

and plain yogurt, to serve

1 Toss the lamb in a bowl with the garlic, ginger and a large pinch of salt. Marinate in the fridge overnight or for at least a couple of hours.

2 Heat the oil in a casserole. Fry the lamb for 5-10 mins until starting to brown. Add the onion, cumin seeds and nigella seeds, and cook for 5 mins until starting to soften. Stir in the curry paste, then cook for 1 min more. Scatter in the rice and curry leaves, then pour over the stock and bring to the boil. Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4.

3 Stir in the paneer, spinach and some seasoning. Cover the dish with a tight lid of foil, then put the lid on to ensure it’s well sealed. Cook in the oven for 20 mins, then leave to stand, covered, for 10 mins. Bring the dish to the table, remove the lid and foil, scatter with the coriander and chillies and serve with yogurt on the side.

PER SERVING 394 kcals, fat 19g, saturates 8g,

carbs 31g, sugars 3g, fibre 2g, protein 23g, salt 0.6g