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West Indian* Lamb Curry

Course Main Course
Cuisine Antilles
Keyword Lamb
Servings 6

Ingredients

  • 1.5 kg lamb boneless stew meat, cut into 5 cm chunks
  • 1 tbsp curry powder plus 2 tsp curry powder
  • 1 tbsp salt more to taste
  • 1 tsp ginger ground
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 2 onions white, large, coarsely chopped
  • 2 scallions coarsely chopped
  • 5 cloves garlic smashed and peeled
  • 2 cm fresh ginger peeled if desired and coarsely chopped
  • 4 whole allspice berries **
  • 2 thyme sprigs leaves stripped
  • 4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil more as needed
  • 250 gr potato diced
  • 175 gr carrots diced
  • 2 Scotch bonnet peppers*** small, seeded and chopped
  • white rice or coconut rice for serving
  • lime wedges for serving
  • mango chutney or mango pickles for serving
  • cilantro leaves fresh, for serving

Instructions

  1. Patthe lamb dry with paper towels and place in a large bowl.

  2. In a small bowl, combine 1 tbsp curry powder, the salt, the ground ginger and the black pepper. Add the spice mix to the large bowl and toss it with the lamb.
  3. Combine the onion, scallion, garlic, fresh ginger, allspice, thyme leaves and 2 tbsp oil in a blender; purée until smooth.
  4. Scrape the mixture over the lamb and toss to combine all. Cover with the bowl wit a plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
  5. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat.
  6. Stir in 2 teaspoons curry powder and heat until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Working in batches to avoid overcrowding the pot, brown the meat on all sides. Drizzle in additional oil, if needed, to prevent the meat from sticking to the bottom of the pot. Transfer the browned meat to a plate as it browns.
  7. Once all the meat has been browned, return it to the pot, along with any juices on the plate.
  8. Add enough water to just cover meat. Bring the liquid to a simmer, covered, then uncover the pot and cook gently for 45 minutes.
  9. Stir the potato, carrot and pepper into the pot. Simmer until the vegetables are fork tender and meat is cooked through, about 30 to 45 minutes longer.
  10. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the meat and vegetables to a bowl. Simmer the cooking liquid until it has reduced and thickened to a saucy consistency (to taste), about 15 minutes. Taste the sauce and add more salt if needed.
  11. Pour the sauce over the meat.
  12. Serve over rice, topped with a squeeze of lime, a dollop of mango chutney or pickle and fresh cilantro.

Tip

  1. To make coconut rice, substitute coconut milk for half the water in your favorite rice recipe.

  2. If you can procure goat, use it here in place of the lamb.

Recipe Notes

*The West Indies is a region of the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean. The region includes all the islands in or bordering the Caribbean Sea, plus The Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands, which are in the Atlantic Ocean. This term also includes modern-day Belize, Guyana, Suriname, and French Guiana.

** Even though its name suggests a mixture of spices, allspice is a single berry from the Jamaican bayberry tree. Whole allspice is used in poached fish stock, vegetable and fruit pickles, and for wild game. Ground allspice is found in spice cakes, puddings, cookies, gravies, barbecue sauce, and Caribbean jerk dishes.
** *Scotch bonnet, also known as bonney peppers, or Caribbean red peppers, is a variety of chili pepper named for its resemblance to a tam o' shanter hat. It is ubiquitous in West Africa. Most Scotch bonnets have a heat rating of 80,000–400,000 Scoville units.

Recipe the New York Times
Photography by https://www.alicaspepperpot.com/