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Chaanp na cutless (lamb cutlets with potatoes)
Serves 4 Starters and mains
Ingredients
- 4–5 large, fairly floury all- purpose potatoes, peeled and sliced
- 1⁄2tsp ground turmeric
- 1 heaped tsp ground cumin
- 2 heaped tsp ground coriander
- 1 heaped tsp chilli powder
- 2tbsp ginger and garlic paste or 6 garlic cloves, crushed, and 1tbsp grated fresh ginger
- 8-12 French-trimmed lamb cutlets
- 3 long, thin green chillies vegetable or rapeseed oil, to fry
- 2 × 5cm cinnamon stick pieces
- 1 onion, very finely chopped
- 4-5 tomatoes, finely chopped
- 2tbsp chopped coriander
- 1 level tsp cumin seeds, lightly toasted
- 100-150g plain flour
- 3-4 eggs, beaten
- 100-150g fine semolina or breadcrumbs (see Cook’s note) salad or sliced tomato, to serve (optional)
Method
A few hours, or up to a day,
before, boil the potatoes in
a pan of water for up to 10
minutes until really tender, then
drain and return to the pan over
a medium heat.
Stir continuously, scraping
from the bottom with a wooden
spatula, until the potatoes are totally dry, then mash or
pass through a ricer. Transfer
to a wide dish to cool to room
temperature (if the bowl istoo small the sides will sweat
and that will make your mash
wet), then transfer to the fridge uncovered.
Blend the ground spices with a little salt and the ginger and garlic paste (or crushed garlic and ginger) and rub all over the cutlets. Leave in a covered container in the fridge for at least 2 hours or overnight.
When ready to cook, split 2 green chillies in quarters lengthways. Heat approx. 11⁄2tbsp oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat and, when hot, add the cinnamon and the split chillies. When the cinnamon darkens and the chillies change colour, scrape off and reserve the excess marinade from the lamb cutlets, add the meat to the pan and brown on both sides, taking care not to keep the oil too hot as this will cause the marinade to burn. Be careful not to agitate the pan too much, either, or the pan will cool down and the chops will begin to stew rather than sauté.
When the chops are coloured and sealed, remove them and add the onion to the pan along with the marinade that was scraped off the chops. Add a little water to deglaze the pan, stir and scrape up any sediment. The water will evaporate as the onion sautés.
After around 5 minutes, when
the onion is soft, add the
tomatoes and cook until both
the onion and the tomato are
thoroughly cooked. Add a bit
more water from time to time
so as to get a sauce of pouring
consistency. Check the
seasoning and discard the
cinnamon sticks and the green
chillies. Set aside.
Stir half the chopped coriander into the mashed potatoes and the rest into the sauce. Mince or finely chop the remaining green chilli with the toasted cumin seeds, mix into the mashed potato and season to taste.
Divide the potato into the same number of portions as there are chops. Press a portion of potato around the meat end only of the cutlets, leaving the bone ends free. Coat each chop in flour, then in beaten egg and then in the semolina.
Pour oil into a deep frying pan to approx 2.5cm depth and heat. Add the chops and fry for around 6 minutes until golden and crisp, turning once.
Meanwhile, reheat the tomato
and onion gravy to serve with
the cutlets, along with salad or
sliced tomatoes, if using.
COOK’S NOTE
If you only have coarse
semolina, whizz in a food
processor to refine. Alternatively,
you can use breadcrumbs.
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