What would any sane person do if they came across a package of nicely trimmed lamb in their freezer? Have a dinner party, of course, which is more of a necessity in our household, as I myself don’t eat lamb. The next question, what to do with it, is also very obvious to us: make lamb curry.

Now, when I make curry, I usually just pull out the jar of Patak’s Mild Curry paste that resides permanently in my fridge; back-up in the panty. I can hear the Slow Food Movement grinding to a halt right now.

Hold on; don’t get your knickers in a twist. This time we did embellish and add to and actually follow a recipe for curry from a true food lover, Nigella Lawson, a woman who is definitely not afraid of a little extra double-cream or exotic spice in her life.

Curry itself is a rather broad and probably much abused cooking term. It was coined by the British after their lengthy stay in India; likely by some guy named Major Grey. The English word curry comes from the Tamil word for sauce, kari. (I guess that makes me a saucy chick?) Although there are literally hundreds of versions of “curry” in India, the English tried their best to reduce them all into one convenient shaker jar.

As a general rule of thumb, all curry mixtures will include coriander, cumin, red chilli, and fenugreek. Fenugreek is one of those seasonings that we use very little of in North America. In India, it is also a common addition to all pickles and chutneys. It is somewhat like celery seed and said to have a bitter flavour, and is perhaps the most predominant aroma in a curry powder.

After these 4 ingredients, it gets rather messy. The list of additions can include: turmeric (for its bright yellow colour), fennel seed, cloves, anise, cinnamon, mustard seed, black pepper, and ginger. In India, these types of ground or whole spice mixtures are known as masala, and there are numerous variations of these, generally named for the dish they are most commonly used in. You can see that using “curry powder” in no way can possibly provide an “all-inclusive” tasting tour of Indian cooking.

Depending upon my mood and feelings about fats for that day, I may mix the curry paste with tomato sauce, vegetable broth, yogurt, or coconut milk. I like Patak’s paste. It has all the classic curry ingredients including fenugreek. I admit that it does have a number of additives such as sugar and preservatives, but it tastes great.  I prefer the mild because you can always add more red chilies for extra heat.

Nigella uses a compromise of whole spices and a commercial powder. While she begins her curries by making a fragrant mirepoix of onions, garlic, bruised cardamom pods, cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, cumin and coriander seed (A mirepoix is a mixture of diced vegetables, usually onion, carrot, and celery, sautéed in oil and seasoned), she also uses commercial garam masala. Garam masala is a mild seasoning mixture of the sweeter spices such as ginger, cinnamon, clove, coriander, and nutmeg.

Of course, she then encourages the use of double-cream and thick yogurt (none of this low-fat stuff for her) Double cream, by which we assumed she meant Devon cream, was used to make our sauce rich and thick. I was just glad that I don’t eat lamb; I told J that he could add all the cream he wanted as long as I stayed out of it.

I was in charge of the side dishes; and the natural choice for a side to lamb curry is basmati rice pilaf. Now, a pilaf is just a fancy term for rice that starts with a mirepoix and then the rice, or other grain such as bulgur, is browned in the oil mixture. A broth (chicken or vegetable) is then added to cook the rice.

I came pretty close to having all of the spices called for. It isn’t a stretch for me to come up with cardamom seed, cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, whole cumin or coriander seed.  What I don’t have…I can’t believe this…is nigella seed. I know; I didn’t believe Nigella either, so I had to look it up.

It turns out the nigella seed is a common ingredient in both Indian and Middle Eastern cooking, although not necessarily in curries. It comes from a plant that is sometimes used as an ornamental in dried arrangements, called Devil-in-a-bush. The seeds are tiny and black and sometimes called incorrectly onion seeds or black cumin. The flavour is said to be a bit like pepper and it is often used as part of seed mixtures for sprinkling on breads and salads. Nigella (the cook) lists this ingredient in her Indian dishes, but also adds that it is optional. I may go looking for it the next time I am in a spice shop in Vancouver, but I think that until then, I can live without it.

There is only one other ingredient that would make our curry authentic, and that is the curry leaf. Sometimes called the Indian Bay Leaf, this leaf is used like our bay leaves in soups and stews. It comes from a tree native to India that is a member of the citrus family. It got its name because it was always used in curries, not because it smells like curry.  I know that some people here on Gabriola grow a curry plant that looks a bit like sage, but it is not the same as the curry leaf which is from a tree and has a citrus aroma. It is said that unless it can be used fresh, it shouldn’t be used at all, so I guess that sort of nips that ingredient in the bud, so to speak!

The next time we have a curry dinner, however, I am going to insist that we make a traditional vegetarian curry with chick peas, using the same sauce. I apparently missed a truly great dinner, double-cream be damned!