Rogan Josh – A signature Kashmiri Lamb Curry

Among the various staples across Indian restaurants is Roghan Josh. Versions vary from the good, bad, and ugly. Here I have even given you a version that I created a while ago. My prior version includes a small faux pas, the use of tomatoes. Indeed, good Roghan Josh, has a signature bright red gravy. It is however developed with a variety traditional finds such as Ratan Jot, a bright hued flower. In addition, also we find the use of a mild and vibrant Kashmiri Red chili powder. So, with a bunch of trial and error, this version gets you even closer to the real deal, without any wild and crazy ingredients.

A little bit about Rogan Josh

As mentioned earlier, it is a bright hued signature curry from Kashmiri. While there are a lot of similarities in the versions, depending on where in Kashmir this is being prepared there are variations as well. The word Rogan means rich, and josh literally translates to passion. The preferred cut of meat usually has the fat untrimmed, hence the “rogan”. The essentials in my recipe can be boiled down (no pun intended) to, shallots lots of them, Kashmiri Red Chili powder, and cooking the marinating meat, low and slow. Yes, I actually do this on the stove top, no cheating here.

Kashmiri cooking is elegant, well thought out, and is the best of everything that the valley offers. It meshes influences from Persia and Central Asia.

My Rogan Josh Story

Honestly, not a lot here. I misplaced a recipe for a class, and needed to recreate it, to one that I could stand behind. And low and behold, two to three iterations later, I have a flavorful and pretty easy recipe. Goat meat or mutton would probably be a good idea, but, I tend to make this more often than not with readily available lamb. My favorite cuts of meat tend to be bone-in loin lamb chops, or lamb shanks. Whatever the butcher (LOL!) as in my favorite grocery store carries that week.

Absolutes

Do marinate the meat, it both tenderizes and infuses a lot of flavor into it.Do slow cook it, again the essence of the dish is that it is slow braised flavorful meal of perfection.Serve this with perfectly cooked fluffy Basmati rice.

PrintRogan Josh – A signature Kashmiri Lamb Curry

Prep Time: 6 hours, 15 minutes

Cook Time: 2 hours, 30 minutes

Total Time: 8 hours, 45 minutes

Yield: Serves 4

A simple and authentic take on Rogan Josh, an authentic lamb stew from the Northern State of Kashmir.

Ingredients

To marinate

3/4 cup natural yogurt
1 teaspoon freshly minced ginger
1 tablespoon Kashmiri Chili powder
1 and 1/2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1 and 1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon powdered coriander
2 pounds of bone in lamb (preferably with the fat left on)

For cooking
1/4 teaspoon asafoetida
2 tablespoons mustard oil
1 tablespoon ghee
1 bay leaf
2 to 3 black cardamoms
2 to 3 cloves
2 to 3 green cardamoms
1 large stick cinnamon
2 medium sized shallots thinly sliced
1 teaspoon powdered fennel
1 teaspoon powdered ginger
Additional salt if needed
Chopped cilantro to garnish

Instructions

Mix in the yogurt with ginger, Kashmiri Chili powder, sweet paprika, salt, coriander and the bone in lamb. Set this aside for 6 hours or overnight in the refrigerator.
In a large heavy bottomed pan heat the mustard oil and the ghee. Add in asafetida, the bay leaf, cloves, cardamoms and cinnamon.
Add in the shallots and cook the shallots on medium low heat stirring constantly until the shallots soften and turn gently golden. This will take anywhere between 20 to 25 minutes.
At this point add in the lamb with the marinade and stir and mix well. Stir in the powdered ginger and the fennel.
Cover and cook the lamb for at least 2 hours, occasionally removing the lid and stirring. You may need to add in up to a half cup of water during the cooking process. The goal here is to get a soft and comforting bright hued clingy sauce coating fall of the bone tender meat.

Notes

The dish does take a while to get the results expected, however, most of the cooking time is for marinating and allowing the stew to stew to simmer, so it is somewhat hands off.

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