Lamb haleem
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A rich, thick and relatively dry lamb dish from the Indian state of Telengana, the sauce for haleem is made by simmering wheat and lentils until tender, then blitzing into a paste.
Will says: ‘Made with four different grains, this is essentially a lamb porridge, but don’t let that put you off! It’s perfect winter comfort food and hails from Hyderabad, where the dish made its name. Serve with a steaming bowl of rice and lightly buttered chapatis.’
This recipe is taken from Kricket: An Indian-Inspired Cookbook by Will Bowlby (£28, Hardie Grant). Photography by Hugh Johnson.
First published in 2021
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Ingredients
Metric
Imperial
- 1 tbsp of vegetable oil
- 1kg lamb, a mixture of shoulder and leg, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 green cardamom pods
- 1 black cardamom pod
- 1/2 tsp cloves
- 2 Indian bay leaves, fresh
- 8 tbsp of ginger-garlic paste
- 2 tsp sea salt
- 100g of wheat grain
- 2 tbsp of split yellow moong lentils, washed
- 2 tbsp of urad dal, washed
- 100g of ghee
- 1 tbsp of ground coriander
- 1 tbsp of Kashmiri chilli powder
- 1 tbsp of ground turmeric
- 4 green chillies, finely chopped
- 1 bunch of coriander, chopped
- 1 bunch of mint leaves, finely sliced
- 1 tbsp of garam masala
- fried onions, to garnish
- ginger, julienned, to garnish
- 1 handful of puffed wheat, to garnish (optional)
SAVE RECIPE
Equipment
- Stick blender
Method
1
Place a frying pan over a medium-high heat and add the oil. Fry the lamb shoulder and leg with the whole spices for a few minutes until lightly browned
- 1 tbsp of vegetable oil
- 1kg lamb, a mixture of shoulder and leg, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 green cardamom pods
- 1 black cardamom pod
- 1/2 tsp cloves
- 2 Indian bay leaves, fresh
2
Add 4 tablespoons of the ginger-garlic paste, season with the salt, then cover and turn the heat down to low-medium. Cook for 1 hour, stirring occasionally, until the lamb is tender
- 4 tbsp of ginger-garlic paste
- 2 tsp sea salt
3
Meanwhile, in a separate saucepan, add the wheat and 2 types of lentils then cover with water. Bring to the boil, then cover and simmer for around 40 minutes, until completely cooked and all the water has been absorbed. Once cooked, use a stick blender to blitz the mixture until smooth
- 100g of wheat grain
- 2 tbsp of split yellow moong lentils, washed
- 2 tbsp of urad dal, washed
4
Heat the ghee in a large, deep saucepan. Add the remaining ginger-garlic paste along with the ground coriander, chilli powder, turmeric and chillies. Mix in the cooked lamb and stir for a few minutes, then add the blitzed wheat mixture and stir thoroughly
- 100g of ghee
- 4 tbsp of ginger-garlic paste
- 1 tbsp of ground coriander
- 1 tbsp of Kashmiri chilli powder
- 1 tbsp of ground turmeric
- 4 green chillies, finely chopped
5
Reserve a little of the fresh coriander and mint to garnish, then stir the rest through the lamb with the garam masala. Taste for seasoning, then garnish with the crispy onions, remaining herbs, fresh ginger and puffed wheat (if using)
- 1 bunch of coriander, chopped
- 1 bunch of mint leaves, finely sliced
- 1 tbsp of garam masala
- fried onions, to garnish
- 1 handful of puffed wheat, to garnish (optional)
- ginger, julienned, to garnish
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