saturday kitchen recipe

Marinated lamb chops with paneer

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Preparation time
over 2 hours

Cooking time
30 mins to 1 hour

Serves
Serves 4

Spiced lamb chops and warm paneer make a delicious sharing platter for friends and family.
See step-by-step videos how to make your own paneer in 30 minutes.

By Angela Hartnett
From Saturday Kitchen

Ingredients

For the paneer

  • 1 litre/1¾ pints full-fat milk
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice

For the lamb chops

  • 5 large onions, thinly sliced
  • 6 tomatoes, roughly chopped
  • 600ml/1 pint plain yoghurt
  • 100g/3½oz fresh root ginger, grated
  • 8 garlic cloves, grated
  • 1 tbsp garam masala
  • 1 tbsp ground cumin
  • 1–2 tsp chilli powder, to taste
  • 2 tsp smoked paprika
  • 2 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1 tbsp runny honey
  • 1 unwaxed lemon, juice and finely grated zest
  • 12 lamb chops

For the cooked paneer

  • 3 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 dried chilli
  • ½ tsp cumin seeds
  • 5cm/2in piece fresh root ginger, thinly shredded
  • 3 small onions, thinly sliced
  • 1 fresh green chill, chopped
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ½ tsp ground turmeric
  • 1½ tsp chilli powder
  • 200g/7oz cauliflower, cut into florets
  • 250g/9oz paneer (from above), cut into 2.5cm/1in cubes
  • 4 tomatoes, seeds removed, cut into strips
  • ½ tsp ground cumin
  • ½ tsp garam masala

Method

  1. For the paneer, line a large sieve with a double layer of muslin cloth.

  2. Heat the milk in a large saucepan over a low heat for about 20 minutes, until it comes to the boil. This must be done slowly. As it starts to bubble add 1 tablespoon lemon juice. When the milk starts to split, remove from the heat, add the rest of the lemon juice and stir until the liquid separates from the curds.

  3. Pour the mixture into the lined sieve and leave the whey to drain away. Run some cold water over the curd to rinse off any excess whey, then bring the muslin together and squeeze to remove any moisture.

  4. Place into a plastic container, place another plastic container on top and use heavy weights such as tins of tomatoes to weigh it down. Leave for 2 hours to set.

  5. For the lamb chops, combine all the ingredients apart from the lamb in a bowl. Coat the chops with the marinade, cover and set aside.

  6. For the cooked paneer, heat the oil in a saucepan over a medium heat. Fry the chilli, cumin seeds and ginger for 1 minute. Add the onions, green chilli and salt and fry for 5 minutes, or until the onions are soft but not coloured. Add the turmeric, chilli powder and cauliflower and fry for 4 minutes. Lower the heat and add the paneer and tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the ground cumin and garam masala and set aside.

  7. For the lamb chops, heat a large griddle pan over a high heat. Cook the chops for 2–3 minutes on each side, depending on how you like your lamb cooked.

  8. Place the cooked paneer and cauliflower in the centre of a large serving platter, top with the lamb chops and serve.