Lamb Curry [Attempt #1]

Recipe Source: http://www.recipezaar.com/Authentic-Lamb-Curry-from-Kerala-298070
Recipe Result: Rather tasty





This recipe turned out great, and with minimal changing of the cooking steps. I just had to modify the measures of the ingredient list, since I’m obviously not going to work with 4lbs of lamb. Speaking of the lamb, the Sunset Valley Farmer’s Market has a vendor of some great, local, grass-fed lamb. Check it out, it was great quality and at a pretty good price. One thing I should have done with the lamb, though, was tenderize it and then season it with some salt and let it sit for a while. The meat came out a little bland in the end. But the curry sauce was perfect.

Changes:
- I omitted the lemon juice. People usually put in a little lemon juice or vinegar into a recipe to add acid, because the tartness “brightens up” the savory flavors. I don’t usually look for that kind of acid in a curry. Besides, I think the fresh tomatoes added enough of that.

Ingredients:
1 lb lamb (stew-cut)
1 Tbsp veg oil
2 large cloves of garlic (crushed)
1 tsp grated fresh ginger
1 yellow onion (3” diameter), sliced thin
1 black cardamom pod
4 green cardamoms
1 cinnamon stick (2 inches)
10 black peppercorns, coarsely crushed
1.5 tsp cumin seed
2 large bay leaves (dried)
2 vine-ripe tomatoes (blanched, peeled, seeded, diced)
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp turmeric
1.5 tsp coriander
2 Tbsp plain yogurt
Salt to taste

Served with rice and naan
Yielded 3 servings

Tarka Dal (Spiced Lentils) [Attempt #1]

Recipe source: http://www.punjabi-recipes.com/recipes/174.aspx

Recipe result: Success

I eat meat, and I'm damn proud of it. But at the same time, I'm a firm believer in a balanced diet. So when stuff myself on TX barbecue one day, I try to balance it out with a night or two of eating vegetarian-ish. Lentils are perfect for those meals; they cook pretty quickly, and they're relatively hearty and high in protein.

Some minor alterations to the recipe:

1) I don't have a pressure cooker. So I put the lentils and water in a regular stainless steel pot, brought it to a boil, lowered the heat to medium and put the lid on for about 10 minutes.
2) I don't have ghee (clarified butter), so I just used a tablespoon of vegetable oil.
3) I forgot to add turmeric to the water when I boiled the lentils, so I just added the turmeric to the oil around the same time as the minced ginger and garlic.
4) The writer basically decided to let the reader figure out on his/her own what to do with the hing (asafoetida). I learned a while ago that in Indian cooking, a small pinch of asafoetida is the first thing you put into the hot oil. It doens't add anything to the flavor or aroma of the finished product, but word on the street is that asafoetida has antiflatulent properties. So, it's up to your discretion.
5) Similar to the asafoetida, the writer preferred to shroud the end use of the lime juice in total mystery. I just cut it out completely.

Aside from these, I followed the recipe as given.

My ingredient list:
1.5 cups of Masoor dal (pink lentils)
4 cups of water
about 1 Tbsp vegetable oil
pinch of asafoetida (optional)
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp black mustard seeds
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp grated fresh ginger
1 medium yellow onion (about 3" in diameter), finely diced
1 Tbsp garam masala
2 vine-ripe tomatoes, blanched, peeled, seeded and diced
Salt to taste

Yields 5 or 6 servings.

Aside from a couple of items from the original ingredient list being overlooked, it was a straight-forward recipe and the end result turned out great. I guess the lesson learned this time is that lentils are surprisingly simple to work with. Basically, boil them and toss them into whatever you want to flavor them with.