This is really meant to be done with lamb rib chops. But those are expensive. I've never seen a rack of lamb go on sale for a price that I'd be willing to pay. So, instead of doing that, I found some shoulder chops on sale and just used those. Were they as tender and succulent as rib chops? Probably not. But did $10 worth of lamb feed all three of us + lunch for the Kidlet the next day? Yes. Yes, it did. So I am very okay with that trade-off.

Iyer comments that one should be judicious with the marinade application. I thought about doing that. But then I decided that I'd rather just double the marinade quantity and not have to worry about judicious application.

East Indian-Style Lamb Chops

Slightly adapted from 660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer

Ingredients

• 1/4 c. garlic paste
• 1/4 c. ginger paste
• 1 tsp. ground turmeric
• 1 tsp. groud Kashmiri chilies or ground cayenne
• 1/2 Tbsp. coarse sea salt, divided
• ~700g lamb chops (rib or shoulder)
• 2 Tbsp. canola (or other neutral) oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 12 fresh or frozen curry leaves
• 2-3 tsp. bottle masala¹
• 1/2 c. water
• 1 c. shredded fresh coconut (or 1/2 c. dried coconut, rehydrated)
• 1 tsp. tamarind concentrate
• 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh mint

Directions

1. Combine the garlic paste, ginger paste, turmeric, ground chilies, and 3/4 tsp. of the salt and mix well.
2. Smear the paste on both sides of the lamb chops and set aside to marinate for at least 30 minutes (or chill overnight).
3. Heat the oil over medium heat.
4. Add the onion and curry leaves and cook until onion begins to brown (10-12 minutes).
5. Stir in the masala and cook for another 30 seconds or so.
6. Pour the water into a blender jar and add the onion mixture, coconut, and tamarind.
7. Purée.
8. Pour the sauce back into the pot and stir in the remaining 3/4 tsp. of salt. Keep warm until while lamb cooks.
9. Preheat a grill or broiler to high heat.
10. Brush grill or rack of a broiler pan with a bit of oil.
11. Arrange the lamb chops on the grill or broiler pan and cook over direct heat for 4-5 minutes per side. (You may need slightly longer for shoulder chops or if you like your lamb more well-done.)
12. Serve lamb topped with the sauce and sprinkled with mint.
13. Serve with rice, a vegetable curry, and/or your favourite flatbreads.

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¹ The original recipe only calls for 2 tsp. of masala, but mine is a bit old and slightly stale, so I bumped it up to 1 Tbsp. (3 tsp.) to compensate. ^Back

Pork Do Pyaaz (Pork Tenderloin Strips with Onions and Bottle Masala)

This takes a while to cook but is very simple to put together, if you already have bottle masala handy. And the results are delicious! I've written the recipe as originally presented, but we had 900g of tenderloin and thus made a double batch.

The recipe calls for green bell pepper. We made it with red and yellow and had no complaints. I think it would work with either, but we generally prefer red bell peppers to green. The salt and oil are also reduced relative to the original recipe.

Pork Do Pyaaz

660 Curries by Raghavan Iyer (p. 219)

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp oil
• 2 medium red onions, halved and thinly sliced
• 1 large bell pepper, cut into thin strips
• 450g pork tenderloin, cut into 5mm discs and then the discs cut into 5mm-wide strips
• 2 tsp bottle masala
• 1 tsp coarse salt
• ¼ C chopped fresh cilantro

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
2. Add onions and bell pepper, stir together, and cover.
3. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are deeply browned and the peppers tender, 25-30 minutes; as the liquid cooks off you will need to stir more often.
4. Stir in the pork, bottle masala, and salt.
5. Increase heat to medium-high and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until browned, ~10 minutes.
6. Remove from heat and stir in cilantro.