Ever since a friend of mine made this for me when I was pregnant with my son (who’s now 23) it has become my firm favourite – even now she phones me to tell me ‘Mel, come for lunch I’m making SQUASH CURRY’
Ingredients
+ 800 gr lamb knuckle
3 onions diced in processor
2 tomatoes diced in processor (not pureed)
4 green chillies slit
1 heaped TB garlic ginger paste
A branch of curry leaves
Hot water as needed
1 large cinnamon stick
1 tsp black mustard seeds
4 cloves
1 tsp fennel seeds
1 tsp coriander seeds
1 star anise
1 tsp fenugreek seeds
4 green cardamom
1 black cardamom (2 if they small – they’re usually big)
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp dhania jeera powder (reserved for the end)
1 ½ tsp garam masala
2 tsp kashmiri chili powder
3 TB kashmiri curry powder/mixed masala
4 large UTD potatoes quartered + 1 grated
4 gem squash pierced, and either boiled or steamed till halfway, deseeded cooked then quartered
1 bunch dhania half chopped, ½ for garnishing
Method
Rinse meat and leave in water and a bit of vinegar while preparing onions and seeds.
Dry roast and then grind all seeds in grinder till finely coarse but not to a powder (except mustard seeds and cinnamon stick).
Heat just enough oil to coat bottom of pot. Add onion and leave to braise with 1 tsp turmeric for about 15 minutes on very low, then add chili, cinnamon stick and mustard seeds.
When mustard seeds pop add other seeds. Rinse and drain meat and pat dry. Add all masalas and stir for 10 minutes, adding a splash of boiling water from the kettle. Add the lamb knuckle and stir coating the meat.
Add garlic and ginger and curry leaves, salt, tomatoes and tomato paste, stir to coat. Check liquid content if it requires water add some hot water from kettle (cold water lowers the temperature of your food).
Cook for until meat tender.
Add potatoes and stir, add dhania jeera powder, coriander and place squash on top and simmer until potatoes are soft. Garnish with coriander leaves.
Prepared, tried and tested by: Melanie Kramar
