Ah..Mutton Curry, God's gift to curry lovers. Making mutton curry can appear tedious, but with some practice, I promise you, it will become easier and highly satisfying.
1. Spices
Mutton curry requires a number of spices to ensure that it does not carry a gamey smell. One thing ammuma taught me (that she learnt from her mother) is to wash it well with turmeric and vinegar and then marinade it overnight. Next is to use a variety of ground spices as listed below to bring out the best flavours and smell of the meat. Do this right and you will be stuffing your face with an aromatic, delicious curry.
2. Time
Because the meat is tough, you do need patience to cook it or like me, get yourself a pressure cooker. Also you will find that mutton tends to release quite a bit of liquid, so slow cooking ensures a thicker curry and seals in the flavours into the meat, or you will find yourself with a very watery curry with flavourless meat.
Ingredients
1.5 kg cut up mutton with bones (consider 500 gm boneless mutton in the mix and make sure that your butcher includes the best bone ever - marrow!)
2-3 medium sized holland potatoes (use firm potatoes that will not disintegrate like russet potatoes ) - cut into quarters (lightly pre-fry)
2 tbsp chilli powder (mine is a spicy variety, so adjust to your spice level)
3-4 tbsp meat curry powder (I use Jaffna curry powder which is spicy, so 3 tbsp goes a long way however any other meat curry powder will work)
1 tsp black pepper powder
1 tbsp turmeric powder
1+1 tsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp yogurt
pinch of asafoetida
2 tsp + 1-2 tbsp salt
3 tsp sugar
1 bunch fresh coriander
3 stalks curry leaves
2 tbsp coconut oil
Grind
2 large onions
5cm ginger
6 pips garlic
Whole Spices
4 cloves
3 cardamons
2 star anise
6cm cinnamon stick
Method:
Wash the mutton well with the turmeric and 1 tsp rice vinegar. Drain well (try to get most of the water out).
Then marinate the meat with the chilli powder, yogurt, 2 tsp salt and sugar.
Leave overnight or at least 6 hours.
Using my Phillips Pressure Cooker
Add the coconut oil and set the cooker to Bake setting.
Once the oil is hot, throw in the whole spices and let them splutter.
Then add in the ground items and sauté for about 3 minutes.
Now add in the curry powder and pepper powder. Sauté well to remove the raw flavours of the curry powder. If necessary add 1 tbsp water.
Add salt (about 1.5 tbsp to start. You can always add more later.)
When you're ready, dump in the marinated mutton.
Coat well with the sauted mixture in the cooker.
Continue to cook at current setting till the meat gets hot.
Now cancel the Bake setting, as we are moving into pressure cooking the meat.
Put on the lid and set the valve to Seal.
Set pressure setting to 'meat' and manually set the timing to 15 minutes. Press Start.
Once it's done, switch off the power and do the necessary for manual release before taking the lid off. (Be sure you know how to do this to avoid unnecessary accidents.)
You will find that there is quite a bit of liquid from the meat and the meat may still be a little tough, so we are going to continue cooking without the lid.
Start up the cooker and set to Bake again. Don't worry about timing.
Give your curry a stir and add in the pre-fried potatoes and 1tsp rice vinegar.
Let it continue to cook until the curry starts to thicken. Timing really depends on how much liquid has been released during pressure cooking.
If you find that the curry is still watery and needs longer cooking, consider removing the potatoes so that they don't start breaking up. You can add them back in when you're about done with the cooking.
Also check that the meat is well cooked and not too chewy.
Adjust salt and sugar if need be.
Crush the curry leaves with your fingers and throw it into the curry.
Add in the asafoetida powder.
Cook for another 5 minutes.
You should be happy with your curry by now, so turn off the cooker and add in the chopped coriander leaves.
Do not put the lid back on otherwise the cooking process will continue for a while longer. Just lightly cover.
Cooking on a stove
Think about investing in a claypot that is great for slow cooking curries but you can also use a dutch oven or any heavy bottom deep pot.
The whole process is the same but the cooking time is longer. So after the meat has been added in, put in about 1 cup of water and bring it to a first boil and then reduce the heat to medium and cook uncovered for about 1 hour or until the meat starts to tendarise.
Check regularly to ensure that bottom is not burning.
Then add the potatoes and continue with the rest of the process for another 15-20 minutes.
For a lighter curry, add some coconut milk.
Enjoy the curry with just about everything and it is a great addition for celebrations.
If you are going to freeze the curry, be sure to remove the potatoes. Potatoes in frozen curry turn into a powdery taste when defrosted.
More gravy in this version below.
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