Hyderabadi Lamb Shank

I was a little disappointed with this recipe. It promised much, but didn't really deliver on flavour, it may possibly be a bit more flavourful cooked in stock rather than water. The meat was lovely and tender however; although I had to adjust the cooking time from 1 to 2 hours as my lamb shank was rather large and didn't look cooked enough after 1 hour. I served it with boiled rice and Indian spiced cabbage, fennel and green beans.

Hyderabadi Lamb Shank (from Great British Chefs)
(Serves 4)

4 tbsp vegetable oil

4 cinnamon sticks

4 cardamom pods

6 cloves

3 small onions, peeled and finely sliced

4 lamb shanks

1 1/2 tbsp of ginger paste

1 1/2 tbsp of garlic paste

1 tsp of ground turmeric

1 tsp of chilli powder

2 tsp of ground cumin

2 tbsp of ground coriander

4 tbsp of plain yoghurt

3 large ripe tomatoes

 

Heat the oil in a large saucepan. Add the cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves and sauté for half a minute. Add the sliced onions and sauté over a medium heat, stirring occasionally, until golden brown

 

Add the lamb shanks and cook over high heat for five minutes, stirring constantly

 

Add ginger and garlic paste, stir well for a couple of minutes and then add the turmeric, chilli, cumin and coriander powders and salt. Sauté for a further five minutes. Add the yoghurt and sauté for a further 5 minutes over high heat

 

Add the chopped tomato, stir and allow to simmer for 5 minutes or until the oil separates from the masala

 

Add enough hot water to cover the shanks and bring to a boil. Cover with a lid, simmer and cook until the lamb is done, approximately 2 hours or until the meat just starts to come away from the bone

 

Remove from the flame and allow the lamb shanks to cool in the liquid. Remove the shanks using a pair of tongs and strain the cooking liquid into a clean pot

 

Cook the strained liquid for a further 10 minutes or until reduced to the desired consistency and season to taste with salt

 

To finish, add the cooked shanks back into the sauce, cover and simmer for a further 15 minutes.