With culinary inspiration relationship again to 1935, our restaurant model Madhu’s specialises in South Asian delicacies with an East African affect. It’s because of the key recipes handed down throughout eight a long time that we have now develop into caterers for royalty, dignitaries and Asian weddings – and that our authentic Southall location has been named Greatest Indian Restaurant a number of occasions by Pat Chapman’s Cobra Good Curry Information.
Over the previous few years I’ve been engaged on inventive combos to search out the proper wine and Champagne pairings for the particular spices in our recipes. Traditionally, wines had been matched to French delicacies, and so it may very well be stated that pairing wine with Indian spices is sort of uncharted territory. Now we have devoted numerous hours to wine-pairing classes to search out the proper combos for the differing ranges of warmth, candy and bitter.
Indian meals shouldn’t be simply matched because it makes use of quite a lot of spices, and every most important course has quite a lot of accompaniments which are additionally spiced. Non-vegetarian proteins are typically all eaten collectively, and discovering one wine to work with all proteins in play is sort of unattainable. So my rule of thumb is to match the wine to the predominant spices, and never the protein. It’s an idea that got here from years of experimenting – and though some take just a little convincing, as soon as tried and examined our diners have been enormously appreciative of the outcomes.
Cardamom, cloves, dried fenugreek, cumin and cinnamon can all be beautifully paired. Usually, heavy reds or oaky Chardonnays aren’t wines that swimsuit my menus, though I’ve chosen a New World Syrah to pair with this lamb dish. What has been probably the most stunning discover is that the perfect match for Indian menus is rosé. Whispering Angel from Provence is successful with most of the spices I take advantage of.
Though beer is usually related to curry, I a lot desire Champagne as a match. The bubbles at all times assist deliver out the spice, and the sweetness of Champagnes with the next dosage helps steadiness the warmth. Laurent-Perrier’s Rosé (£59-£62 Broadly accessible), for its candy fruit, or the identical producer’s Blanc de Blancs Brut Nature (£80 Champagne Direct), for its clean-as-a-whistle freshness, can be my first decisions.
Madhu’s masala lamb recipe
That is my father’s recipe, and a dish very near my coronary heart. I like to recommend cooking the meat on the bone as this provides a lot flavour to the curry sauce.
Serves 8
Preparation time 25 minutes
Cooking time 1 hour quarter-hour
Substances
- 1kg spring lamb on the bone
- 175g butter or ghee
- 150g onions, sliced
- 100g ginger paste
- 100g garlic paste
- 350g tomato paste
- 8-12 inexperienced chillies blended right into a paste
- 1 tsp heaped turmeric
- 1 tsp pink chilli powder
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 6 cloves
- 2 bay leaves
- 8 peppercorns
- 6 inexperienced cardamom pods
- 1 black cardamom pod
- 2-3 tsp salt
- 1⁄2 tsp garam masala
- 1⁄3 tsp ajwain powder
- 50g chopped coriander
Technique
1. In a big pot warmth the butter or ghee and caramelise the sliced onions. Mix the caramelised onions right into a paste. Add ginger and garlic paste and cook dinner additional with the blended onions till the combination turns a darkish brown.
2. Rigorously add the tomato paste and inexperienced chilli, pink powder chilli and turmeric. Cook dinner till the sauce thickens and releases oil. At this level add the entire spices, each cardamoms, peppercorns, bay leaves, cloves and cinnamon stick. Go away these to simmer and take away from the sauce when prepared.
3. Add the lamb into the sauce and stir in. Add salt and ajwain. Cook dinner till the meat is sealed on all sides. Flip the warmth onto a medium to low setting and canopy and slowly simmer for 35-40 minutes. Regulate the dish and stir recurrently in order that the sauce doesn’t catch (if it does, shortly deglaze the pan with water). Add the garam masala and cook dinner for an additional 8-10 minutes.
4. Make sure the lamb is mushy and tender. Take away the entire spices, garnish with coriander and serve with sizzling chapatis or pilau rice.
The wines to drink with Madhu’s masala lamb
Late-harvest German Riesling
Off-dry white wines, similar to Riesling, are sometimes touted as match for spicy meals, as a result of the slight sweetness might help to steadiness the warmth on the palate.
Dr Loosen, Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Spätlese, Mosel, Germany 2020
It is a single-vineyard, late-harvest Riesling from one of the prestigious winery websites for Riesling on this planet. Ripe and simply off-dry, it’s a curious concoction of yellow peach, pear, candied citrus and camomile that’s glazed by tangerine-jam notes. It’s a powerful match for all that spice. The sweetness of peach and pear provides the steadiness and the citrus clears and cleanses the palate. 92 factors.
Drink 2022-2030 | Alcohol 9.5%
Daring and fruity reds, similar to New World Syrah/Shiraz, generally is a good choice for these in search of a extra strong type to pair with curry. A number of the herbs and spices utilized in Indian cooking, similar to cardamom, ginger, pepper, clove and coriander, are sometimes current within the fragrant profile and flavour of the wine.
Te Mata Property, Syrah, Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand 2019
Darkish crimson with notes of raspberry, pink plum, lavender, cinnamon and 5 spice. Concentrated and wealthy with agency tannins and an extended, candy berry fruit-flavoured end. The berry candy flavour balances the spice ranges, whereas the cinnamon word lifts the spice flavour, making for a wonderful pairing. 96 factors.
Drink 2022-2027 | Alcohol 13.5%
Chef Poonam Ball
Host of Sony TV’s Spice Up, head inventive chef Poonam Ball is the daughter of the late chef ‘Madhu’ and has designed menus and catered for personal occasions hosted at Buckingham Palace, Windsor Fort and 10 Downing Road. The model has been in operation for the previous 42 years and has 5 London eating places. Their first worldwide undertaking opens on the Swissotel in Istanbul later this 12 months.
