I often make curries using chopped up beef or chicken, but this one is made using a whole lamb shoulder.
What is the best cut of lamb for a curry?
I recommend using Lamb that is on the bone. Using Lamb on the bone gives the curry such a wonderful flavour and, after slow cooking, you get that amazing tender fall apart meat. Cooking the curry slowly with the meat on the bone, means you get SO MUCH flavour in the sauce. I’m using a lamb shoulder for this recipe but you could also use a half shoulder of lamb (for a small curry), a leg of lamb or lamb shanks.
How to Make this Slow Cooker Curry
We start by searing the lamb with a little oil. If your slow cooker has a searing function like my crockpot (<– affiliate link), you can do it right in the slow cooker. If not, you can do this bit in a large frying pan (skillet) over a high heat. Once it’s seared on all sides, add a diced onion around the sides of the lamb and cook for about 5 minutes until softened. Add in garlic, ginger, salt, garam masala, curry powder, paprika and cinnamon and stir together. Then add in chicken stock or lamb stock and a tin of chopped tomatoes. Next in goes tomato puree and a little sugar, then a tin of coconut milk and 6 cardamom pods (check out the video to see my tip on sewing the cardamom pods together for easy retrieval later). Stir it all up and cook on high for about 5 hours, or low for about 8 hours. After that time, remove the lamb and pull all the meat of the bone. Shred it with two forks. Remove the cardamom pods too. I like to remove some of the fat from the slow cooker, and then stir in a little cornstarch slurry to thicken the sauce slightly. Add the lamb back in and stir it all together. Serve it over boiled rice with a sprinkling of fresh coriander (cilantro) and some homemade chapatis! BTW, If you love this slow cooked lamb, try my slow-cooked Lamb Barbacoa carnitas. The very first time I made this curry (about 4 years ago), I remember how quickly it was gobbled up. And when I say gobbled up, I mean practically inhaled. Chris and I actually had to have a word with the kids about their shocking lack of table manners (both kids and table covered in curry sauce!!). We threatened to send Gracey to finishing school – which, instead of a punishment, she found really exciting. Then we had to break it to her that she wouldn’t be going to finishing school. Don’t you just hate it when punishment threats backfire? Like when you threaten them with no telly, and you regret that hour of peace later on when they’re covering every carpet in the house with toys whilst yelling at each other? She was so gutted that we ended up creating our own finishing school at home. Cue two children walking around with books on their heads and sticking their little fingers out whilst drinking pretend tea. I thought that was going to be the end of it, until Gracey requested a ‘proper posh meal with lots of knives and forks’. I’m such a sucker for that kind of thing, I actually agreed! So that resulted in us making a 7-course dinner with us all dressed up to the nines, drinking wine (ok, ginger ale) and enjoying the entertainment (Lewis’ robot dancing). Great fun, but a million times more effort than this crockpot curry. I’ve since been much happier to put up with two grubby children and a table cloth covered in orange-coloured-sauce spots when I make it…..
The Lamb Curry Video:
Serving Suggestions
This post was first published in August 2015. Updated in September 2019 with new photos, video, tips and a couple of recipe improvements. Updated in Oct 2020 with extra info and for housekeeping reasons.
Healthier Slow Cooked Spicy Beef Curry Slow Cooker Spicy Chicken Curry Healthier Slow Cooked Spicy Chicken Rogan Josh Crock Pot Butter Chicken
Or these hob or oven-cooked low and slow curries:
Slow Cooked Beef Massaman Curry Spicy Beef Rendang
More Delicious Curry Recipes
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