Meat Cooked with Cardamom

The Hindu Sindhis migrated from Sindh to India in 1947 (Sindh is now part of Pakistan) and the largest number of them settled in Bombay, now known as Mumbai. Sindhi food is not found outside Sindhi homes. This is my mother’s recipe and is extremely simple to make, involving just a few ingredients.

A very delicate mutton dish with a thin gravy full of the flavor of cardamom (elachi) and black pepper, this is a favourite  of the Sindhis. Dishes with pepper seem to be a standard prescription in many parts of India for women after childbirth, and in the region around Hyderabad town in Sindh this dish was given every day to new mothers. It is traditionally eaten with chapatis though it is equally good with rice.

Serves: 6

Ingredients:

1 kg lamb, on or off the bone

100 ml full-fat yogurt

35 green cardamoms

100 ml oil

2 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 teaspoon chilli powder

2 teaspoons coriander powder

3 medium tomatoes ( sourish variety), finely chopped

Salt

Method:

1. If the lamb is on the bone, wash it in warm water. Whisk the yogurt with a fork in a bowl.

2. Grind the whole green cardamoms in a blender with a little water, or in a coffee grinder without water and then mix with a little water to make a paste.

3. Heat the oil in a cooking pot. Add the cardamom paste and the pepper and fry over a low heat for 2-3 minutes. Add the meat and the turmeric, chilli and coriander powders and sauté for 10 minutes, stirring all the time to prevent the mixture from sticking to the bottom of the pot, adding water if necessary.

4. Lower the heat and add yogurt, tomatoes and salt to taste and continue to sate for a further 5 minutes. Add about 800 ml of water, cover the pot and leave to simmer over a low heat until the meat is tender.

The secret of success with this dish lies in making sure that the meat and spices are fried for a full 10 minutes (step 3) without allowing the spices to burn. Therefore it is essential to keep the heat low and use the recommended amount of oil.