This is the curry most Durban households cook on a Sunday, and the one people judge a kitchen by. It needs bone-in mutton, time, and a masala fried properly at the start.
Serves 6. About 2 hours 30 minutes, mostly unattended.
You need
- 1.2 kg mutton, bone in, cut for curry
- 3 medium onions, sliced fine
- 4 tomatoes, grated, or a tin of chopped tomatoes
- 4 medium potatoes, halved
- 2 tbsp ginger and garlic, crushed together
- Curry leaves, a sprig
- 60 ml oil or ghee
From the shelf: 3 tbsp Masala, 1 tsp Haldi, 1 tbsp Dhania Powder, 1 tsp Jeera Powder, 1 tsp Jeera (whole), 1 piece Cinnamon, 3 Cloves, 2 Green Elaichi pods, 2 Bay Leaves, 1 tsp Garam Masala to finish.
Method
1. Heat the oil in a heavy pot until it shimmers. Add the whole jeera, cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and bay. Wait about fifteen seconds — the jeera should darken a shade and you should smell the cinnamon. If anything turns black, throw it out and start again; burnt whole spice will make the whole pot bitter.
2. Add the onions and cook them properly. This takes twelve to fifteen minutes on medium heat, not three. They should go past translucent to a real golden brown. This is where the body of the curry comes from and it cannot be rushed later.
3. Add the ginger and garlic, fry for a minute until the raw smell goes.
4. Turn the heat down. Add the masala, haldi, dhania and jeera powder with a splash of water so they do not catch. Fry for thirty to forty seconds. The oil will start to separate at the edges — that is the sign the spices are cooked and not raw.
5. Add the mutton and turn it in the masala until every piece is coated. Let it seal for five minutes.
6. Add the tomato and curry leaves, and about a cup of water. Bring to a simmer, cover, and leave it alone for 90 minutes on low heat. Check once at the hour mark and add water only if it is catching.
7. Add the potatoes and cook for a further 25 to 30 minutes, until they take a knife easily and the mutton comes off the bone with a spoon.
8. Take it off the heat. Stir in the garam masala and let it stand, covered, for ten minutes before serving.
Notes
The resting step matters. A curry served straight off the stove tastes sharper and less settled than the same pot ten minutes later, and better still the next day.
If it is too hot for the table, a spoon of plain yoghurt on the plate does more than adding sugar to the pot.
Serve with rice, or with roti and a bowl of the gravy on the side.
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