Roasted Goats Leg with garam masala

"A very old family recipe, handed down from the British-Raj days, which takes a leg of goat meat,  marinated with garam masala and finished off with a mustard - Worcestershire sauce gravy. I remember, salivating as kids over this and even now, its sooo yum that my kids, family and friends, love it too. This is one of the recipes, that is the 'Raison d'etre' of this blog. Even now, its only made in my house in my generation, so do want to save it for posterity for all family and friends for now and future..."

Servings : 5-6

Ingredients:

Marination

• 1 goat leg (or lamb)
• 1 tbsp garlic paste
• 1/2 tbsp ginger paste
• 1 tsp garam masala 
• 1 tbsp vinegar
• 1 tbsp salt

Cooking 

2 tbsp oil

2 dried bay leaves 

3-4 cloves

5-6 black pepper corns

1 black cardamom

2 inches cinnamon stick

1 tsp mustard 

1 tsp Worcestershire sauce (optional)

1 tsp tobasco (or any other chilly sauce)

1 tbsp tomato paste/purée 

2 tbsp cornflour

Method:

1. Wash and dry the mutton leg
2. Pierce it with a folk and rub the marination mixture, well all over the leg
3. Cover and marinate in a refrigerator over night at least or longer
4. In a pressure pan (or a thick bottom casserole pan), heat 2 tbsp of oil and all the other cooking spices and let them brown and release their flavour and fragrance 
5. Sear the leg, browning it on all sides, by alternating high and low heat for almost half an hour till golden all over, if needed u could add a little water at a time
6. Add water, just covering the leg and pressure cook for 4-5 whistles on high and 15 minutes on low 
7. Let it cool completely, open and take out the roast leg, slicing it thinly ( electric knife works best)
8. Heat the remaining liquid, adding mustard,Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste and tobasco to taste
9. Thicken the mixture, with 2 tbsp cornflour paste (2 tbsp cornflour + 4 tbsp water) and serve the roast hot, with a little gravy poured over and the rest on the side.

Notes:

• We normally use goats leg for this, but you could try lamb, if goat is unavailable 
• While this is a pressure cooker recipe it can be adapted to the oven by baking the leg in the oven, post searing
• Interestingly, its called a roast but cooked in a pressure cooker, as its a recipe from the pre-oven days :) 

Roast chicken

" Normally roast chicken takes a long time, the whole chicken needs to be stuffed, trussed,cooked, rested,etc. This is fine for major occasions, but if you love to eat roast chicken frequently,then use this fabulous recipe. Its quick, easy and perfect for any Sunday or weekday. Uses chicken pieces, which cook quicker and vegetables, making it a whole meal. Flavored with rosemary, its heavenly, once tasted, hard to ignore ..."

Ingredients:

Marination

• 1 whole chicken (cut into 8 pieces with the skin on)
• 2 tbsp ginger garlic paste ( I prefer more garlic then ginger)
• 1 tbsp vinegar
• 2 tbsp red wine
• 1 tsp red chilly flakes
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp paprika
• Salt to taste

Roasting ingredients

• 1 bunch of rosemary
• 50 gms butter
• 1 whole garlic head, peeled into cloves
• 3 bay leaves
• 2 large onions (cut into 4 pieces each)
• 1 large carrot (cut into batons 3 inches long)
• 2 large potatoes(cut into 4 large pieces)
• 1 handfull of beans(cut into 3 inch pieces)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Salt to taste

Method:

1. Wash and dry the chicken pieces
2. Rub the chicken well with the marination and cover and refrigerate overnight (or at the least 5-6 hour)
3. In a large roasting tin,distribute the chicken pieces (skin side up)
4. Mix the vegetables in the balance marinade adding extra salt and olive oil
5. In the roasting pan evenly distribute all the vegetables and the Rosemary,Bay leaves, dotting the dish with butter
6. Pour over the chicken, any balance marinade covering the roasting tin with foil tightly
7. Bake at a 220 degrees C for 40 minutes
8. Remove the watery gravy and keep aside
9. Reduce the temperature of the oven to 200 degrees C and bake for another 20 minutes, uncovered by foil till golden brown
10. Thicken the gravy with cornflour adding more of the marinade ingredients that you think are required as per taste

Note:

• Adjust the seasoning and herbs as per taste, tarragon or thyme or a mixture of all 3 herbs works well too.I like to use fresh herbs for amazing flavours, but in a pinch even the dried ones work well enough.
• This dish, uses a lot more salt then expected so ensure enough salt by tasting the chicken half way through the cooking process
• Cooking time also varies by oven , and size of bird, so for the first time keep a watch and you may need to adjust roasting time by 10 minutes either way