Vineet Bhatia's Sunday Lamb Curry with Potato

Chef Vineet Bhatia shares the recipe to a lamb curry with potatoes, perfect to pair with tyre-wallah parathas, and ideal for Sunday lunch.

Chef Vineet Bhatia was the first-ever Indian chef to be awarded a Michelin, and was one of the earliest pioneers of progressive Indian cuisine. We meet him at The Oberoi, Mumbai, in the kitchen at Ziya, where he consults as a mentor-chef.

Despite his international acclaim, Chef Vineet's comfort foods remain rooted in the delicious simplicity of home-cooked meals. “My earliest memories of food are Sunday lunches at home. Mom would make lamb with potatoes, cooked with whole spices. There were always thick parathas to soak up the gravy. Fresh tomatoes brought out the flavours of her Punjabi masala, with khatta pyaaz. We’d eat with our hands, of course.”

Here, he shares the recipe for his mother’s homestyle lamb curry. “Meat on the bone is key to flavour,” he explains. We make notes on his pre-soaked baby potatoes, and watch for the blooming of spices. He walks us through the recipe with the ease of someone familiar with teaching young cooks, and leading bustling kitchens.

RECIPE FOR CHEF VINEET BHATIA’S HOMESTYLE LAMB CURRY

Ingredients
1 kg baby lamb (boti+burrah)
250 gm baby potatoes
4-5 tej patta/ bay leaf
2-3 strands javitri
5 gm black pepper corn
4-5 pieces cloves
2 pieces (10 gm) cinnamon sticks
10 gm green cardamom
5 gm black cardamom
2 whole red chilli
5 gm whole jeera
100 ml oil
100 ml ghee
350 gm onion, finely sliced
50 gm green chillies
200 gm coriander
100 gm ginger-garlic paste
25 gm Kashmiri red chilli powder
60 gm coriander powder
25 gm jeera
30 gm garam masala
200 gm tomato puree (fresh)
2 gm kasoori methi

Method
In a heavy-bottom pan, add oil and in the whole spices. Let it splutter, then add the sliced onions. Once the onions are golden brown, add the ginger-garlic paste and stir for five minutes.
Add the pieces of lamb meat and cook for 15 minutes until golden. Then add the dry powdered spices (coriander, cumin, turmeric, red chilli powder) and salt to taste.
Cook for another five minutes on a slow flame and add some water (three tablespoons). Add in the peeled baby potatoes, reduce the flame and add the tomato puree.
Add water accordingly depending on the consistency you would like.
Cover and cook on dum for 45 minutes on slow flame. Switch off the flame and let it rest for 15 minutes.
Open the dum and check that the meat is cooked through.
Finish with a spoon of ghee, garam masala, and garnish with chopped fresh coriander leaves and crushed kasoori methi.

At Ziya, Mumbai, Chef Vineet and his team of chefs showcase evolved Indian cuisine paying homage to flavours from around the Indian subcontinent and the vibrant city of Mumbai, presented in a contemporary style. Ziya is soon to showcase a new menu by chef Vineet Bhatia, open for reservations +91 22 6632 6210.

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