Tandoori rack of lamb with saffron rice

First, make your tandoori spice mix. We used ginger, coriander, cumin, mustard powder, garlic, cardomom and paprika - mixed with yoghurt. Marinade the rack of lamb for at least an hour.

Roast the lamb in a hot oven for 15 minutes, and then put it under the grill for a final 5 minutes for pink meat.

Whilst the lamb is cooking prepare the side dishes. We had basmati rice with shallots and saffron, plus paneer cheese cooked with tomatoes, spinach and mushrooms.

Lamb curry

We rarely follow a recipe for curries and instead prefer to bung in what we fancy or have to hand. Although not authentic in the slightest, they always taste good.

Ingredients (serves 2):

500g diced lamb (we prefer slow cook cuts of lamb in a curry)

4 large tomatoes, diced

8 mushrooms, sliced

1 onion, diced

1 chilli, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1cm piece ginger, minced

seeds from 4 cardomom pods

1/2 tea sp garam masala

1/2 tea sp masala curry powder

1/2 tea sp turmeric

1/4 tea sp ground cumin

olive oil

rice, to serve

small bunch of chopped coriander, to serve (optional)

• The easiest (and tastiest) method we find is to chop the meat into bite sized chunks and place in a bowl with the garlic, ginger, chilli, cardomom, garam masala, cumin, curry powder and tumeric. Add a large glug of olive oil, stir everything well and leave to marinade for an hour or so.
• When the meat has marinaded for a while, fry the onion in oil in a non stick pan.
• When the onion has softened remove them from the pan and set aside.
• Add the marinaded lamb and cook until browned.
• Add the sliced mushrooms and then the onion back into the pan
• Add the diced tomatoes and a little hot water. Start with 150ml but you may want to add a little more later.
• Season with salt and pepper and leave on a low heat to simmer for at least an hour, stirring often and adding a little hot water (or stock) if you think it needs it.
• Serve with rice and some chopped coriander if you like.