Saag Gosht Food

SAAG GOSHT

Steps:

• Heat butter and oil in large pan.
• Add onions, garlic and spices and fry over gentle heat until onions are soft.
• Add meat and fry, stirring occasionally, until evenly browned.
• Stir in spinach and 1/2 of the yogurt.
• Cover and simmer over low heat for 2 hours or until meat is tender.
• Add a little water during cooking if the curry becomes dry.
• Before serving, add remaining yogurt.
• Serve with plain rice.

LAMB WITH SPINACH SAUCE (SAAG GOSHT)

Steps:

• Heat a heavy non-stick pan over high heat. Add the lamb and 3 tablespoons of oil. Sear the meat, turning and tossing, until nicely browned all over. Transfer meat to a plate. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil and the onion to the pan and cook, stirring often, until the onions are browned, about 15 minutes. Stir in the ginger, garlic, cumin, coriander, red pepper, paprika, and turmeric and cook for 3 minutes. Add the tomato puree, meat, salt, and enough water to fully cover the meat, about 1 1/2 cups. Bring contents to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 1 1/2 hours or until the meat is cooked and very tender. Fold in the spinach and garam marsala. Serve sprinkled with cilantro.

SAAG PANEER

Steps:

• In a large bowl, whisk together the turmeric, cayenne, 1 teaspoon salt and 3 tablespoons oil. Gently, drop in the cubes of paneer and gently toss, taking care not to break the cubes if you're using the homemade kind. Let the cubes marinate while you get the rest of your ingredients together and prepped.
• Thaw the spinach in the microwave in a microwave-safe dish, 5 minutes on high, then puree in a food processor until smooth. Alternatively, you can chop it up very finely with your knife.
• Place a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, and add the paneer as the pan warms. In a couple of minutes give the pan a toss; each piece of paneer should be browned on one side. Fry another minute or so, and then remove the paneer from the pan onto a plate.
• Add the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons oil to the pan. Add the onions, ginger, garlic and chile. Now here's the important part: saute the mixture until it's evenly toffee-coloured, which should take about 15 minutes. Don't skip this step - this is the foundation of the dish! If you feel like the mixture is drying out and burning, add a couple of tablespoons of water.
• Add the garam masala, coriander and cumin. If you haven't already, sprinkle a little water to keep the spices from burning. Cook, stirring often, until the raw scent of the spices cook out, and it all smells a bit more melodious, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Add the spinach and stir well, incorporating the spiced onion mixture into the spinach. Add a little salt and 1/2 cup of water, stir, and cook about 5 minutes with the lid off.
• Turn the heat off. Add the yogurt, a little at a time to keep it from curdling. Once the yogurt is well mixed into the spinach, add the paneer. Turn the heat back on, cover and cook until everything is warmed through, about 5 minutes. Serve.
• Line a large colander with a large double layer of cheesecloth, and set it in your sink.
• In a large wide pot, bring the milk to a gentle boil over medium heat, stirring frequently to avoid burning the bottom (a nonstick pot works really well for this purpose). This will take a little while so be patient!
• Add the lemon juice and turn the heat down to low. Stirring gently, you should almost immediately see the curds (white milk solids) and whey (the greenish liquid) separate. Don't fret, this is perfect!
• Remove the pot from the heat and carefully pour the contents into the cheesecloth-lined colander. Gently rinse with cool water to get rid of the lemon flavor. At this point, you could squeeze out some of the liquid, and serve with some honey and some nuts, almost like a fresh ricotta!
• Grab the ends of the cheesecloth and twist the ball of cheese to squeeze out the excess whey. Tie the cheesecloth to your kitchen faucet and allow the cheese to drain for about 5 minutes.
• Twisting the ball to compact the cheese into a block, place it on a plate with the twisted part of the cheesecloth on the side (this will ensure your block of cheese is nice and smooth!) and set another plate on top. Weigh the second plate down with cans of beans or a heavy pot. Move to the refrigerator and let it sit about 20 minutes.
• Combine the cinnamon sticks, cloves, green cardamom seeds, black cardamom seeds, if using into a spice grinder or coffee grinder and grind until fine. Store the spice mix in an airtight container away from direct sunlight.

LAMB SAAG

Steps:

• Put the garlic, ginger, chillies and onion into a small food processor and whizz to a purée adding 1 tbsp water if you need to.
• Heat 1½ tbsp oil in a large flameproof casserole or sauté pan. Brown the lamb all over in two batches, then lift onto a plate and put to one side.
• Add the remaining oil and fry the spices in the same pan for 2 mins, adding a splash of water if they start to catch. Then add the onion purée and cook for 2 mins.
• Add the lamb, tomatoes and stock. Stir, cover and cook for 45 mins.
• Stir in the spinach then cook for another 45 mins or until the lamb is tender. If the sauce is looking thin, take the lid off for the last 20 mins of cooking to reduce it.
• Scatter over the coriander. Serve with naan or rice.

INDIAN SAAG

Steps:

• In a large skillet or wok, melt butter over medium-high heat, and cook and stir cumin seed, chile pepper, garlic, and turmeric until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
• Stir in the chopped mustard greens and spinach a little at a time, adding the tougher parts first (the stems and thicker leaves). Continue to add greens, and cook and stir until all greens have been added and all are thoroughly wilted. Stir in the cumin, coriander, and salt. Cover; reduce heat and simmer until greens are tender, about 10 minutes, adding water as needed to keep the greens moist.

LAMB IN PUREED SPINACH (SAAG GOSHT)

Steps:

• Remove fat and cut meat into cubes.
• Seal the meat by lightly browning in a saucepan (stir to prevent sticking) and then remove.
• At the same time, in a separate pan or wok, fry onion until golden in some ghee or oil, then add ginger, garlic and Spices 1.
• Add tomatoes after 5 minutes.
• Add the browned meat, add Spices 2 and the spinach.
• Stir it all about ensuring it doesn't stick and that the spinach is distributed throughout. (If it seems too dry add a little water.).
• Simmer until the meat is tender- about 45 to 60 minutes (although it will improve if cooked longer- just make sure it doesn't dry out, by adding water.).
• Add Spices 3 and fresh coriander and cook for at least another 10 minutes.
• Serve with Pullao/Basmati Rice.