Baby turnips

Mid-October baby turnips start appearing at the market; which means that there are a few weeks for me to make on of my favourite curries.


Moghul Lamb with Turnips

Serves 4

Adapted from Food of India by Priya Wickramasinghe

2 brown onions

4 cloves of garlic

5 cm piece of ginger

2 green chillies

1/4 cup oil

2 cassia (Indian bay) leaves

1 kg boneless lamb shoulder or leg chopped into a 2.5 cm dice

Pinch asafoetida

1 tsp chilli powder

2 tbsp ground coriander

2 tbsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp ground turmeric

1/2 tsp garam masala

1 tbsp tomato paste

2 tbsp thick plain yoghurt

1 tsp salt

1 tsp ground black pepper

450 g baby turnips, halved

Put the onion, garlic and ginger in a food processor and process in to a paste.

Heat the oil in a large shallow pan and add the onion mixture and the cassia leaves. Fry until golden then add the meat and stir until everything is thoroughly coated. Fry for a further 15 minutes until the oil begins to separate from the meat.

Add the spices and cook for 1-2 minutes, then add the tomato paste and yoghurt and fry for another minute. Add the salt and pepper then pour in  2 sups of water a little at a time stirring after each addition. When the sauce is thick cover with a lid and leave to simmer for 30 minutes.

Add the turnips and allow to simmer for a further 45 minutes or both the lamb and turnips are soft.