Jonny – this one’s for you!
I love a good butter chicken (not that sickeningly sweet version – I’m talking about the deeply aromatic and creamy type). Sometimes, though, you’ve got to mix things up and get spicy with meat choices. This one isn’t really a butter chicken at all, apart from sharing some of the flavour profiles.
There’s actually no ‘butter’ in this curry – or any dairy at all, for that matter. The lamb provides all the fatty richness needed. I actually skimmed some of the fat after the sauce had been simmering for a good few hours, and used light coconut cream to keep things a little less heavy.
If you’re a cheater (and no judgement from me here), substitute the spice blend with a packet of “butter chicken spice mix” from your supermarket. If you do this, however, I do recommend adding an extra sprinkle of garam masala!
Serves 2-3, depending on the size of lamb shank used
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 4-8 hours
Ingredients:
- 1 onion, sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, smashed (not chopped)
- 1 large piece ginger, peeled and sliced
- 2 large lamb shanks
- 1 Tablespoon neutral oil
- 2 teaspoons garam masala
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon ground paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1/2 teaspoon dried chilli powder (or more, if you’re a spicy fiend like myself)
- 100 grams tomato paste
- 2 chicken stock cubes
- Boiling water, as required
- 1/2 can light coconut cream
- 2-3 teaspoons stevia, to taste (optional)
- Salt, to taste
- Steamed rice, to serve
- Fresh coriander, to garnish
Method:
- Pre-heat the grill in your oven to 200 degrees Celsius. In a large bowl, mix together the onion, garlic, ginger, lamb, spices, and oil. Spread out on the baking tray and grill for ~10 minutes, flipping mid-way. You just want to develop a nice layer of colour – you’re not trying to cook the ingredients through.
- Transfer the burnished lamb and spiced onion mix to a slow cooker. Add the tomato paste, crumbled stock cubes, and enough water to cover around 3/4 of the lamb shanks by height.
- Pop a lid on your slow-cooker and cook for ~3-4 hours on low (or ~1-2 hours on high). Flip the lamb shanks over and coat with sauce. Repeat the process after another ~1-2 hours. (I’ll be honest – I end up doing this more often that just twice!)
- When the lamb has become tender but isn’t quite falling off the bone, remove from the slow cooker. At this stage, you can use a large shallow spoon to skim off some fat, if desired. Then, use an immersion blender to blitz that sauce until smooth.
- Stir in the coconut cream, stevia, and salt (to taste). Adjust the spice levels and coconut cream/liquid, if required. If you want it thicker, keep the lid off. If you need to thin it, add some more water. If you want it creamier, add coconut cream.
- Return the lamb to your slow cooker and cover again. Let it continue cooking for as long as you like. I’m partial to lamb that’s so soft you can hardly pick it up without the bone slipping away – however, some prefer a bit more bite. Whatever suits you!
- Serve the lamb with freshly steamed rice and fresh coriander, if desired. Enjoy! 🙂