Life is settling down. John’s family has gone, my cough is nearly gone and that thingo on my head is only just a scabby thing that will go away over the next week or so. The weather is getting warmer, the sun is out and I have a big smile on my face. No special reason, it’s just nice to be alive.
If you want to serve a spectacular meal to family or friends that you can prepare most of beforehand, this is it. I learned the technique at The Golden Pig cooking school in Brisbane but the directions are really easy to follow.
In my previous post I shared how to make Massaman curry paste from scratch. It’s one of the best things I’ve ever made. Yes, it’s work and it takes some time but lordy, the difference in the taste is gigantic.
When I read the menu and saw that the lamb was slowly braised in thin coconut milk for hours and then cooled and broken apart, I knew this would be a dinner party meal. You’re probably like me, when you invite friends over, you don’t want to be playing cook the whole evening and with this meal, you don’t have to. You do all that work in the days beforehand. The curry paste can be made up to a week ahead of time and the lamb a day or so ahead.
Then on the day, roast the vegetables and cook some rice. You’ve got your curry paste made, the lamb cut into chunks and it takes 15 minutes from walking into the kitchen to serving to put the curry together.
There were NO leftovers at our house.
- 1 lamb shoulder
- 1 tablespoon ras el hanout spice (not required but this is what I used)
- 1 litre coconut milk
- 500 grams sweet potato, peeled and cut into chunks
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil (I used rice bran oil)
- 10 small golden shallots (or small onions)
- (or you could use any roasted veg you really like - I added some butternut pumpkin to mine)
- 500 ml coconut cream (not shaken or stirred)
- 4 tablespoons curry paste
- 1 tablespoons shaved palm sugar
- 1 - 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 750 grams boned lamb cut into chunks
- 2 tablespoons thick tamarind water (made from 1 tablespoon tamarind paste soaked in ⅓ cup hot water and rubbed with fingers to make a paste - push through a sieve)
- 2 tablespoons deep fried cashews
- Coriander leaves and red chilli strips to garnish
- Rub spice all over the lamb shoulder and place in a roasting pan. Pour coconut milk around the lamb and cover tightly with foil.
- Place in a pre-heated oven at 165C and cook 4-5 hours depending upon the size of your lamb shoulder. The lamb should fall off the bones.
- Add the oil to a roasting pan and place in the oven at 180C until hot.
- Add the vegetables and toss to coat in the oil.
- Roast for about 45 minutes until nicely caramelised. Keep warm until ready to serve.
- In a small pan of vegetable oil, deep fry the cashews and drain on paper towel and set aside.
- Open the tin of coconut cream and remove ½ cup of the really thick cream at the top and place in a large pan or wok on medium-high heat.
- Stir constantly until the coconut cream starts to split and the oil begins to separate from the coconut cream.
- Add the curry paste and cook until fragrant.
- Add the palm sugar and cook just a minute before adding the fish sauce and the rest of the tin of coconut cream.
- Stir well and add the lamb.
- Place the roasted vegetables on a serving platter and spoon over the curry.
- Garnish with the deep fried cashews, coriander leaves and chilli strips. (if you want to leave out the heat, serve the chilli strips on the side)
My lamb shoulder provided more than 750 grams of boneless lamb so I used the remainder in a wonderful shepherd’s pie.
Wow I have never heard of lamb slowly braised in coconut milk before, sounds fascinating and looks like it tastes amazing! I love lamb that has been cooked until it is fall apart tender.
With cooking that good, I’m not surprised there were no leftovers :). The lamb looks sooo good!
Julie
Gourmet Getaways
What an exquisite dish! I can see why there were no leftovers. 🙂
Man that looks amazing M! 😮 I mean you had me when you mentioned coconut. The fact that there were no leftovers means that it was amazing as it looks!
Maureen, the photos make me want to taste this Lamb Curry. Utterly delicious looking meal. I saw you from Cook Republic blog and I thought I want to meet you and your blog. Take care. You and your hubby.
Massaman is one of my favorite curries! Never had it with lamb before though, just chicken.
Well, of course, there weren’t any leftovers! This looks amazing Maureen – can’t wait to try it.
Just the shot of that lamb shoulder was enough to make me salivate. I haven’t managed to find any ras el hanout yet but I’d like to try the spice blend. Wonderful dish as a whole.
What’s for dessert?
Glad things are getting back to normal! What a great dish this is. I’d miss not having leftovers, just to get another chance to eat it, but there wouldn’t be leftovers at our house, either. Although I’m a big fan of rare lamb, I think it’s actually at its best when long-cooked like this. And I’ll never turn down lamb and curry — wonderful combo.
I’m totally drooling! We never have a lot of leftovers when lamb is involved!
So good to hear that things are settling down for you, my friend… take care and thank you for sharing this delicious recipe! My mouth is watering!
Maureen I am so glad you are feeling better and smiling!! 🙂 I love lamb and your dish looks wonderfully delicious!!! There wouldn’t be any loft overs at our house either!
What a feast! I bet your house smelled amazing while this was cooking away!!!
This look absolutely delicious!!
Amazing dish Maureen! full of flavor – what a treat. So glad you are on the mend:)
Mary
Wow that looks bloody fantastic. That would earn me serious brownie points – I hope you’re banking some 🙂
I am a MAJOR curry lover. That class at the Golden Pig was certainly worthwhile. Totally delicious treatment of this lamb. In fact mouth watering delicious would not be exaggerating. I am pleased your life is in a calm spot. You certainly have had some rough spots over the last few months.
G’day! Sign me up for some of your lamb curry Maureen!
I am very glad to hear things are settling down and always look forward to what next you do!
Cheers! Joanne
This is my kind of meal, Maureen, and you’ve photographed it beautifully. I wish I’d been on your dinner party list! I think a shoulder of lamb cooked this way would be magnificent and it sure must have sent a wonderful aroma through your kitchen as it was cooking. I also make my Thai curry pastes after buying the Spirit House cookbooks. You’re right in that they do make such a difference. (I never add the shrimp paste though!) xx
Oh My!! YUM! Why you are not ion Food Network is a mystery to me.
Oh wow, your lamb looks incredible! I showed my dad and he thought it was from a restaurant 😀
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Please wait a moment while I clean off the computer screen. WOW! My saliva glands just went into an overactive mode. What a meal!!! This is a lamb lover’s dream so I can see this lamb on the menu as soon as it gets cold enough to have the oven on for a few hours. I’m sharing this with my sister as well, since I know that her family loves lamb as much as we do. I can already taste it!! Thank you so much Maureen for sharing this recipe!!
I am so glad to hear things are settling down and you are feeling better and that the sun is starting to shine again 😀 I do love a homemade curry you can really taste the difference to the stuff out of a jar!
Oh luv, I’m SO glad that you’re enjoying a reprieve from all the hard stuff that’s been plaguing you for so long. And what a meal to celebrate that with! Delicious!!
OMG! What a delicious meal…yes, I totally understand why you made this lamb after seeing the recipe…it really called my attention as well… slowly braised in thin coconut milk and being able to brake apart…oh!
Thanks for sharing this amazing recipe Maureen. Hope you have a great week 😀
So glad that things are getting back on track for you Maureen. I can totally relate to your panic – I went through something similar a year ago that had me certain I would be dead in 6 months [thank you internet].
I love dishes like this, that you can do all the heavy lifting ahead of time, and then just enjoy your guests when they arrive – beautiful!
Yum! Looks so good Maureen – photos, presentation, dish and all. Love home-made curry pastes and massaman are one of my favourite currys – sweet and just delicious! I agree that when entertaining guests, you want to spend time with them and not in the kitchen. Great time-saving recipe! Thank you for sharing it. 🙂
Glad you are feeling better! What a tasty meal, I love these flavors! You know a dish is a hit when there are no leftovers :).
What a great idea to simmer the lamb in coconut milk. I want to try that with some celery root too. Really, really nice idea. And glad things are settling down!
Ohhh my look at that creamy looking lamb curry.
I love massaman curry, and this lamb looks so tender and delightful. Have to make this 🙂 Glad you are feeling so upbeat .
This is one of those spectacular meals that I would want to make but would be afraid that it was way too complicated for me. I love how you break it down and make it seem so doable. And wow I love it, love the flavors!