Instant Pot Lamb Khalia (Tangy Lamb Curry) Mamas Secret Recipes

This is a hot, spicy and tangy curry deliciously flavoured with aromatic spices and curry leaves. It is a traditional south indian dish originally prepared with mutton (but you could use lamb too) and served with steamed rice and papadums. Though this curry suits warmer climates, still eating it here makes me feel that warmth and reminds me of home. The tangy sweet taste of tamarind with the aromatic whole spices and curry leaves is enough to transport you to a warmer place.

I used the Instant Pot to make this curry and it was really convenient and easy. You could also use a pressure cooker for stove top if you don’t have the Instant Pot.

Ingredients:
2 lbs Lamb with bones
1/2 large onion sliced
1 large onion ground
1 large plum tomato
1 heaped tsp coriander powder
1 heaped tsp red chilli powder(deggi mirch)
1 tsp roasted ground cumin & fenugreek
25 gm seedless tamarind
10-15 fresh curry leaves
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
1/4 cup canola oil

Tools I used for this recipe:

Instructions:
1. Clean and wash the lamb meat with the bones, drain and set aside.
2. Switch the Instant Pot on. Heat oil on sauté normal setting and fry the sliced onions to a caramelly brown. Add the onion paste and continue frying till the onion mixture looks evenly browned and not burnt. You can achieve good results by stirring continuously taking care not to let it stick to the bottom of the pot.
3. Add the ginger garlic paste, deggi mirch, coriander powder and *roasted cumin fenugreek powder (check the notes below on how to make this).
3. Add the lamb meat, 1 tsp salt and sauté well.
4. Toss in the deseeded chopped tomatoes and sauté with the lamb. Snip the green chillies with your hands and throw them in too along with some fresh curry leaves and chopped cilantro.
5. Rinse the tamarind and squeeze it with some water to extract the juice. Repeat the process 2 or 3 times each time adding a little water to extract more juice until nothing is left of the tamarind pulp. Add all the extracted tamarind to the Instant Pot.
5. Now press the ‘cancel’ button to switch off the sauté setting, then press ‘meat/stew button and set the time for 20 minutes.
6. When the time is up the IP beeps. Let the pressure release naturally (NPR) which takes another 10 mins at least.
7. Open the lid and check to see if the meat is tender enough, if not then pressure cook for another 5 minutes(which happens in case of very tough meats.
8. The sauce may be a little runny. So simmer to reduce the sauce on ‘sauté less’ until the oil comes on top. Throw in a few more fresh curry leaves, 1/4 tsp roasted cumin and some chopped cilantro. Simmer for 2 more minutes and serve hot with some steamed rice and fried Papadums. Enjoy!