Slow Cooked Lamb Shank Madras Curry with Jeera Rice

I love a traditional Sunday roast, but sometimes, a comforting curry is just what you need to set you up for the week. This recipe will feed an army at a really low cost. Great for a dinner party and also ideal for freezing and keeping on hand whenever you’re in need of an emergency meal fast. I have priced this out to include the rice but not the naan breads which I’ll post as a separate recipe. Lamb shanks are such a good cut of meat - not only are they delicious, but they go such a long way and the bones add so much flavour. As with most rich meat dishes this also really benefits from a night in the fridge.

(Serves 10-12 £2.25 per portion)

1. Preheat the oven to 150C.
2. Fry four large lamb shanks in a large casserole pot in a little oil over a high heat until evenly browned and caramelised all over. Set aside.
3. In the same pan, turn down the heat and add one roughly chopped onion. Spend a good 15-20 mins getting the onion lovely and soft and caramelised, but without taking on any colour.
4. Next add 2 tbsps of finely grated ginger and 1 tbsp finely grated garlic. Stir for a few minutes before adding a cinnamon stick, 2 tsps cumin seeds, one star anise, 5 lightly crushed cardamom pods, 4 cloves, 1 tbsp ground cumin, 1 tbsp ground coriander, 1 tbsp garam masala, 1 tsp turmeric, 1 tsp hot chilli powder and a finely chopped green chilli. Fry for a few minutes until the spices smell lovely and fragrant but taking care not to burn.
5. Return the lamb shanks to the pan and stir to coat the meat in all the spices.
6. Next add 2 cans of chopped tomatoes and enough chicken stock to just cover the shanks. Add a drained and rinsed can of chickpeas and 100g of prunes.
7. Bring the mixture up to a boil, put a lid on and place in the oven for 5 hours at 150C (or place in a slow cooker), stirring every now and then.
8. After 5 hours, remove the lid and return to the oven for a further 1-2 hours to allow the sauce to reduce. Keep an eye on it.
9. Allow to cool fully before refrigerating overnight.
10. The next day, reheat the curry, shred the meat off the bones (leaving the bones in the sauce for flavour and to ensure all the marrows come out). Add 1 tbsp mango chutney, the juice of a lime and taste to correct the seasoning (it will probably need a generous amount of salt).
11. Add 30g roughly chopped coriander before serving and enjoy with some raita, steamed basmati rice, more mango chutney and homemade naan breads.