This Indian lamb curry recipe is as simple as putting everything in the slow-cooker and forgetting all about it. The meat is cooked along with the wonderful aromatics of curry powder and coconut milk until it's fork-tender.
Most of my friends complain that Indian food is not easy to cook. Obviously, it is a labor of love and does include not just a few extra steps but often a long list of ingredients. Unlike my authentic slow-cooker lamb curry, where I used a long list of spices, this one uses only curry powder and garam masala. I'm sure those of you who love Indian food but don't have an Indian pantry will appreciate this recipe.
Table of Content
About this curry
The few important things to remember about making a simple Indian curry like this is that it really all depends on the brand of curry powder and garam masala you use. There are no good or bad brands, but rather every brand uses a different blend of spices. So, experiment with the one that you like most. Or make your own. I bet you may even have the spices in your pantry.
I'm using the slow-cooker today, but you can certainly make this on the stovetop and I will give the instructions below.
Ingredients and substitutes
- Lamb - I prefer to use a lamb shoulder or leg for slow cooking. The meat does take longer to cook, but it comes out tender and juicy.
- Onions - When making things in the slow-cooker, I prefer shallots because they cook down nicely. Or, I prefer to use sautéed onions.
- Ginger and garlic - Indian food is all about fresh flavors, so yes, please use fresh ginger and garlic.
- Coconut milk- Coconut adds richness to the lamb. If you do not want to use coconut milk, you can also use Greek yogurt similar to my lamb masala.
- Curry powder - Of course, I'm using my homemade curry powder. And yet, you can use store-bought as well.
- Garam Masala - Again, I am using my homemade garam masala, but you can use store-bought just as well.
Step by step instructions (pin)
Slow cooker
- Cut the lamb into large chunks.
- Add all ingredients into the slow cooker and combine well.
- I start with the oil, shallots, ginger, garlic - combine well.
- Then, add the curry powder, cayenne, salt, and pepper - combine well.
- Next, add the coconut milk, meat, lemon juice, and water. Combine well.
- Set the slow-cooker or crockpot on low for 6 hours or on high for 4 hours until the meat is fork-tender.
- Taste and adjust seasoning.
- Garnish with fresh cilantro.
Stovetop
- Use a heavy bottom saute pan or Dutch-oven.
- Saute onions in oil for a minute.
- Then, add the garlic and ginger - sauté a minute.
- Next, add the meat and saute for 2 minutes.
- Then, add the curry powder, garam masala, and lemon juice.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Add the coconut milk and water.
- Cover and simmer on low for 1 ½ to 2 hours until the meat is fork-tender.
- Stir occasionally to prevent it from sticking at the bottom. Also, if necessary, add ¼ to ½ cup water at a time to ensure it has enough liquid to cook.
- Taste and adjust seasoning.
- Garnish with fresh cilantro.
Frequently asked questions
Lamb curry can be spicy, but my curry powder is quite mild, which is why I add cayenne when required. You can add less or omit the cayenne if you prefer it mild.
Yes, you can use the same amount of yogurt instead of coconut milk.
Yes, if you want you can omit the garam masala powder. Garam masala is similar to pumpkin spice or gingerbread spice. It does add a nice flavor and aroma to the dish.
Yes, if you have Indian spices on hand you can use this slow-cooker lamb curry, which uses individual spices or this slow-cooked lamb curry, which is slightly different than this one.
You can use lamb, mutton, beef, chicken or pork. You must try my slow-cooked chicken curry, slow-cooked beef curry, lamb masala or Lamb rogan josh.
You can eat Indian lamb curry with Stovetop Indian Naan or garlic naan, Indian Chapati, Sweet potato chapati. Steamed rice or try my Rice pilaf with fruit and nuts. Today, I serve it with some homemade roti and steamed rice.
Oh, lamb is such a versatile dish. Here are some Indian as well as non-Indian lamb recipes I have shared on this blog.
Lamb Biryani
Grilled Lamb Chops with Cilantro Chutney
Lamb Rogan Josh
Slow-cooked lamb with creamy polenta.
Roast Lamb shoulder in Red Wine sauce
Herb crusted roast leg of lamb
Slow-cooked Lamb masala
Troubleshooting
My curry does not have a red color?
The spices used gives the curry it's color. In this case, my rich curry powder and cayennes give this curry it rich color. The curry powder you use will decide the color of your curry.
My lamb is over-cooked
You want to cook the lamb curry recipe until its just fork-tender. Otherwise, it will break apart and you won't have pieces of lamb just pulled lamb meat in the recipe. I suggest you check at 4 hours on low and 5 hours on high. Turn the heat off and keep warm.
My curry is too oily
The fat on the meat will be rendered during the process of slow cooking. This fat will float above the curry. You can remove it if yo you want. Alternatively, you can remove as much fat from the meat before cooking. Having said that, you do want some fat for flavor.
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Recipe
Description
Video
Ingredients
- 2 lbs (900 g) Lamb shoulder cut into large chunks
- 2 tbsp Cooking oil
- 8 Shallots halved
- 1 tbsp Ginger grated
- 1 tbsp Garlic minced
- 4 tbsp Curry powder
- 1 tbsp Cayenne powder
- ½ tsp Garam masala
- 1 tsp Salt
- ½ tsp Black pepper
- 2 tbsp Lemon juice
- ½ cup (120 ml) Coconut milk
- ½ cup (120 ml) Water or broth
- ¼ cup Cilantro for garnish
Instructions
Slow cooker
- Cut the lamb into large chunks.
- Add all ingredients into the slow cooker and combine well.
- I start with the oil, shallots, ginger, garlic - combine well.
- Then, add the curry powder, cayenne, salt, and pepper - combine well.
- Next, add the coconut milk, meat, lemon juice, and water. Combine well.
- Set the slow-cooker or crockpot on low for 6 hours or on high for 4 hours until the meat is fork-tender.
- Taste and adjust seasoning.
- Garnish with fresh cilantro.
Stovetop
- Use a heavy bottom saute pan or Dutch-oven.
- Sauté onions in oil for a minute.
- Then, add the garlic and ginger - saute a minute
- Next, add the meat and saute for 2 minutes.
- Then, add the curry powder, garam masala, and lemon juice.
- Season with salt and pepper.
- Add the coconut milk and water.
- Cover and simmer on low for 1 ½ to 2 hours until the meat is fork-tender.
- Stir occasionally to prevent it from sticking at the bottom. Also, if necessary add ¼ to ½ cup water at a time to ensure it has enough liquid to cook.
- Taste and adjust seasoning.
- Garnish with fresh cilantro.
Recipe Notes
Pressure Cooker or Instant Pot Lamb Curry
- The only other way to cook these cuts of meat quicker would be to use a pressure cooker or Instant Pot.
- You can make this dish using the pressure cooker or IP.
- Follow the stovetop method and pressure cook for 20 minutes
The secret to lamb curry
There are two secrets to making a good lamb curry.- The meat you use to make a lamb or mutton curry is very important. The shoulder or leg is the part of the lamb that gets most exercised which means it's tougher. It takes longer to cook, but also has the opportunity to absorb more flavor. So, don't skip on the slow cooking.
The only other way to cook these cuts of meat quicker would be to use a pressure cooker or Instant Pot. You can make this dish using the pressure cooker or IP. Follow the stovetop method and pressure cook for 20 minutes. - When possible, use meat with bone or ask your butcher to give you a few spare bones that you can throw in while the curry is cooking. Later you can discard them before serving. The bones add flavor to the curry.
Nutrition Information
The nutrition information and metric conversion are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee its accuracy. If this data is important to you please verify with your trusted nutrition calculator. Thank you
Don
This was absolutely fantastic! I halved the amount of cayenne, as my family does not like things too spicy. It was just the right amount for them, and I could sprinkle a bit more on my portion to bring the heat up a bit more. Yes, there was a lot of liquid in the crock pot, but I didn't mind. I took a bunch of it and froze it for future use. Will definitely make this again!
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Don. I am so happy you enjoyed this.
Len
Thermometer hovering between 1 and 3 degrees here today so this went down an absolute treat. Easy to cook and even easier to eat.
Veena Azmanov
I am so happy to hear that Len. Wow, that's cold. We are still enjoying some warm days and cooler evenings. But, our winter never gets to below 10 C degress
Jude
Hey thanks so much for the beautiful recipe.
One question, before I put everything in the slow cooker the gravy was at a good thick consistency but after I cooked in the slow cooker on low for 8 hours the gravy became very liquidy and watery. How did you get your gravy so nice and thick at the end?
Thanks
Veena Azmanov
Jude. Yes, cooking in the slow cooker can lead to lots of liquid which is why the liquid in the recipe is not much. As you can see in the video when I covered the pot for slow cooking all the meat was not in the liquid.
I notice that when I use frozen/thawed meat the meat tends to hold on to more moisture so you have more liquid in the recipe.
What you can do is - remove the liquid in a saucepan and reduce it on the stovetop.
Logan
Hi Veena, thank you for this recipe! We are excited to try it out. I’m in the middle of making it now- how much lemon juice needs to be added? I don’t see the amount in the ingredients list. Thanks!
Veena Azmanov
Logan, I am so sorry I forget to list the lemon juice. Its 2 tbsp. I hope my reply was not too late.
Veena Azmanov
Sorry, Logan. I apologize I just saw your comment.
Eileen Kelly
I LOVE lamb and oh my, I'm loving this wonderful curry recipe. It is super flavorful and so easy to prepare. I will be making this one for the family over and over.
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Eileen. Let me know how it was.
Jenny
I can not resist a good curry and this lamb curry looks fabulous. Pinned and bookmarked, I am making it this week. Thanks so much for the great recipe!
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Jenny. Let me know how it was if you try it.
Marisa F. Stewart
Thank goodness we have a lamb roast in the freezer waiting for me to find a recipe. This is it!! So much flavor, you have my mouth watering as I'm reading all about it. The meat I can tell is fall off the bone tender. Just the way we like it. For us the perfect dish to go along with it is polenta. I'm making this recipe next weekend.
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Marisa. I hope you try this soon. Its so easy to make