Lamb tikka

---

Lamb tikka, grilled

Lamb tikka marinaded, ready to cook

Another recipe from my early Indian cookery courses.

Ingredients

• 450 g lean lamb (fillet or neck), cut into thickish strips
• 175 ml natural or Greek-style yogurt
• ½ teaspoon white cumin seeds
• ½ teaspoon black cumin seeds
• 1 teaspoon corander seeds
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
• 1 level teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 2 tablespoons coriander leaves and stalks, chopped
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• Grated zest of ½ a lemon
• 1 tablespoon tomato puree
• 1 green chili pepper, deseeded and sliced into thin rings
• 3 red chillies, deseeded and sliced into rings

Mise en place

• Grind all of the whole spices in a coffee grinder or mortar and pestle.
• Mix all of the ingredients into the yogurt to make a marinade.
• Marinate the lamb strips for at least 4 hours, overnight if you have planned well enough in advance!
• Preheat the grill.

Method

1. Line a grill tray with silver foil and place the lamb strips together with a little of the marinade on the grill tray (see picture)
2. Grill for about 7 minutes
3. Turn the slices over and grill for another 7 minutes. Check regularly and test to see if they are done to your liking. Don't be over-worried about the marinade burning, it gives it great flavour and does not taste the least bit burnt. Do worry about the lamb drying out, see Chef's Notes.

Serving suggestions

Serve with naan breads, pillau rice and a green salad.

Chef's notes

If you don't have black cumin, just use white cumin instead.

Adjust the chili levels to suit your tastes, this can be fairly hot with these quantities, depending upon the types of chili you use.

When I originally made this dish, I had planned to make Balti lamb tikka, but changed my mind half-way through. I would not have sliced the lamb so thinly if I had known I was to grill it. Delicious even so!