Rogan josh shepherd’s pie — Vivek Singh The Cinnamon Collection
IN my opinion, my rogan josh shepherd’s pie is a perfect Coronation dish as it combines two of Britain’s best loves — a pie and rogan josh together! The use of lamb in this dish is inspired by the King’s love of lamb, so it is both celebratory and comforting at the same time.
Serves: 8-10
Ingredients
For the filling
• 500g boneless lamb, preferably from the leg, diced
• 1kg minced lamb
• 1 cup ghee
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• ½ tsp cloves
• 2 x 2” cinnamon sticks
• ½ tbsp green cardamom, and ½ tbsp fennel seeds
• 3 blades of mace
• ½ tbsp royal cumin
• 3 star anise and 3 bay leaves
• 1kg white onion, 15g ginger and 15g green chillies, chopped
• ½ cup ginger garlic paste
• 1 tsp turmeric powder, 4 tsp red chilli powder, 1 tbsp coriander powder, 1 tbsp cumin powder, 1 tbsp salt, ½ tbsp sugar
• 250g tomato paste
• 250g sweet potato, peeled, diced and fried and 250g celeriac, peeled, diced and fried
• 1 tbsp Garam masala, 1 tbsp dried rose petals, crushed
For the topping
• 800g floury potatoes such as Desiree, peeled and cut into chunks
• ½ teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 100g butter
• 100g Cheddar, grated
• 2 tablespoons single cream
• 1 tablespoon fresh chopped coriander
• 1 red onion, cut into rings
• 250g green peas
• ½ tsp salt
Method
1. In a thick-bottom pan heat ghee and oil, add the whole spices and when they splutter, add the onions and fry until golden.
2. Add the ginger garlic paste and stir for two minutes.
3. Add the diced lamb and stir for about five minutes till the lamb is well seared and brown.
4. Now add the ground spices followed by the minced lamb and seasoning and cook for about 5 minutes.
5. Now add the tomato paste and cook covered on a low heat for about 45 minutes till the lamb is cooked through.
6. Add the fried root vegetables and stir well. Sprinkle rose petals and garam masala and remove from heat.
7. Boil the potatoes with turmeric and salt until tender. Drain and pass through a fine sieve and mix with the butter, cheese, cream and coriander leaves.
8. To prepare the pie, spread 200g of meat in an ovenproof dish, around 15cm in diameter, and pipe 150g of the potato cheese mixture on top of it to cover the entire surface.
9. Bake in an oven at 200°C for about eight minutes until it caramelises on top.
10. Meanwhile, toss the green peas in the oil with cumin, onion rings and salt. Sprinkle some of it on top of the pie and
serve hot.