Entertain at home: Cape-style lamb curry potjie with Spier 21 Gables Pinotage
Pinotage and potjiekos go together like campfires and tall tales. This is a mild and fragrant Cape curry made with boneless lamb cubes. If you prefer more heat, use hot curry powder or add a teaspoon of ground chilli powder to the list of spices.
Serves 6
You’ll need: 45ml vegetable oil; 1 onion, finely chopped; 2 cinnamon sticks; 3 whole cloves; 15ml medium curry powder; 10ml garam masala; 10ml fennel seeds; 5ml ground cumin; 5ml ground turmeric; 15ml fresh ginger, finely chopped/ grated; 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped/ grated; 15ml tomato paste; 1kg boneless lamb cubes; salt & pepper; 250ml water; 1 can chopped tomatoes; 1kg baby potatoes; a handful of fresh coriander leaves, for serving.
How to:
Heat the oil in a medium-sized potjie over medium-high heat (fire or gas).
Add the onion, cinnamon sticks and cloves, and fry until soft and light brown. Add the curry powder, garam masala, fennel, cumin, turmeric and fry for a minute.
Add the ginger, garlic and tomato paste and fry for another minute. Add the meat chunks and stir well to coat, seasoning the meat with salt and pepper.
Now add the water and stir to loosen any sticky bits on the bottom of the pot. Add the chopped tomatoes, stir well and bring to a simmer.
Cover with a lid and bring the heat down to very low, then simmer for 30 minutes. Add the potatoes and stir to coat in the sauce, then cook for another 30-45 minutes with a lid on until the meat is really tender and the potatoes are cooked.
Keep an eye on the heat throughout – the curry will burn if the fire is too hot.
Serve hot, scattered with fresh coriander, with or without rice and vegetables, with a glass of Spier 21 Gables Pinotage.
Spier Signature wines can be tasted and purchased at the farm in Stellenbosch and are widely available at retail outlets and supermarkets and online at shop.spier.co.za.
* Recipe: Ilse van der Merwe. Image: Tasha Seccombe. Recipe sourced via Spier.
