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Lamb Curry

Slow-braised lamb shoulder with deeply cooked onions, garlic and warm spices in a rich curry sauce.

Prep20 minCook110 minTotal130 minYield6 servingsLevelEasy

Source-reviewed. No original CookClue test is claimed unless it is actually recorded.

Rich lamb curry with tender meat, glossy spiced sauce, cilantro, rice and naan

Before you start

What this method is trying to achieve

Brown the lamb first, cook the onion and spice base separately, then simmer until the meat yields easily and the sauce has concentrated without scorching.

Success looks like

Know the target before you cook

The lamb should be fork-tender, the sauce rich and spoon-coating, and the spice profile aromatic rather than bitter or raw.

Ingredients

What you need

Lamb

  • 900 g boneless lamb shoulder, cut into even chunks

Base

  • 2 onions, diced
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced

Spices

  • 2 tsp garam masala
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 1 tsp ground cumin

Sauce

  • 700 ml lamb or chicken stock

Finish

  • 120 g plain yogurt

Method

Cook by the cues, not just the clock

Brown lamb

  1. Brown the lamb in batches and remove.

Cook onions

  1. Cook onions until deep golden.

Bloom spices

  1. Add garlic and dry spices and cook briefly.

Braise

  1. Return lamb with stock and simmer gently until tender.

Finish

  1. Reduce the sauce as needed and add yogurt off strong heat.

Critical checkpoints

Stop here and check

other

Spices fragrant?

Warm spice aroma with no acrid smell.

Lower heat if spices darken too fast.

other

Sauce coating?

The curry coats the lamb rather than pooling thinly.

Reduce gently if watery.

other

Taste failure?

The curry tastes bitter, bland or too spicy.

Use the matching curry diagnosis.

If yours looks different

Route the failure before changing the recipe

The finished lamb curry tastes harsh or burnt.Curry bitter? Diagnose scorched spices and over-reduction.

Why Is My Curry Bitter?

The curry tastes flat despite being cooked through.Curry bland? Diagnose seasoning, blooming and dilution.

Why Is My Curry Bland?

The chile heat overwhelms the curry.Curry too spicy? Diagnose chile dose and concentration.

Why Is My Curry Too Spicy?

After cooking

Storage, reheating & substitutions

Storage

Refrigerate covered after cooling.

Reheating

Reheat gently with a splash of stock if needed.

Substitutions

Use another braising lamb cut of similar size.

Evidence

Sources & methodology

Technical claims and method decisions are tied to sources. Recipe-specific advice is not presented as a universal food-science law.

  1. Lamb CurryFood Network

    Food Network browns lamb, cooks onions and spices, then simmers the curry.

    publisherPassage verified
  2. Lamb Curry with PeasFood Network Kitchen

    Food Network Kitchen braises lamb with spices until meltingly tender.

    publisherPassage verified