How To Make Restaurant Style Lamb Rogan Josh

Name: How To Make Restaurant Style Lamb Rogan Josh
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 1
Cuisine: British Indian Restaurant (BIR)
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons ghee or vegetable oil; 1 tablespoons garlic and ginger paste; 1 - 2 tablespoons paprika; 1 teaspoon red chilli powder (or more to taste); 1 1/2 tsp cumin; 1 tbsp mixed powder*; 70ml (1/4 cup) tomato puree; 300ml (1 1/4 cup) heated curry sauce; 350g (12oz) tandoori lamb tikka; 1 generous tablespoons cashew paste (Simply pound a cashews with a little water into a paste); 1 1/2 tablespoons plain natural yogurt; 1/2 tsp garam masala; salt to taste; 1 tsp dried fenugreek leaves; 2 tablespoons chopped coriander; Chopped red onion to garnish

July 18, 2011 By Dan Toombs 75 Comments

Looking for that classic curry house style rogan josh? Here you go…

This rogan josh recipe is simply delicious and exactly as I have seen it made at so many popular curry houses!

I have been making this for years and though I love more authentic Indian recipes, there is something about a UK curry house rogan josh.

It’s no wonder this curry house classic is so popular!

Just like the best curry house style rogan josh curries! You’ve got to try this one.

The difference between this and the rogan josh recipe in my cookbooks…

When I wrote my first cookbook ‘The Curry Guy’, I decided to write the curry house recipes to serve four people.

That is really the only difference between that recipe and the one you find below.

This recipe shows how to cook a rogan josh curry as it would be made at most Indian restaurants to serve 1 – 2 people.

If you would like to make this two person curry to serve 4, simply double the recipe but be careful with how much chilli powder you use. That should be added to taste.

The difference between curry house style rogan josh and authentic Kashmiri rogan josh

With more authentic Indian rogan josh cooking methods, this curry needs to slowly simmer for a few hours. It needs to in order for the meat to become tender and to flavour the sauce.

With British curry house style cooking, rogan josh can be whipped up much faster. That said, there is some forward preparation to do.

The idea behind curry house style cooking, like this rogan josh recipe, is to get the curries out to the customers in minutes while still making the curry taste like it has been slowly simmering for hours.

The secret to an amazing rogan josh using curry house methods.

To make cooking faster at curry houses, a base curry sauce is used.

The base curry sauce is great because it can be made in large batches. It freezes really well so you can quickly make your favourite curry in minutes whenever you’re getting the curry takeaway craving.

You can check out my authentic curry house style base curry sauce here.

As I explain in my base sauce recipe, the sauce can be pimped up by adding different meat or vegetable stocks to it but it is usually just made with vegetables, spices and water.

Another secret is pre-cooked meat.

If chefs at Indian restaurants didn’t pre-cook the meat, it would take much longer to get the curries out to the table and your bill would be much higher too. I have a pre-cooked meat recipe here which is perfect for this rogan josh.

What main ingredient should I use in a rogan josh?

Authentic rogan josh originated in the Kashmir region of India where mutton is the meat of choice. ‘rogan josh’ translates as red meat and this curry is famous for the use of red meat and the fact that the sauce is quite red in colour.

At curry houses, however it is all about the sauce.

A rogan josh can be ordered with lamb, chicken, vegetables, prawns, minced meat, panner for example. When you are making this rogan josh curry at home, you can add the main ingredient of your choice too.

In this recipe I use lamb as that is what I prefer but use what you like. You’re making it… make it the way you want.

Step by step photographs of the cooking process…

Wan to make an Indian restaurant style rogan josh that will impress? Go for it!

Fry the garlic and ginger paste in the oil for about 30 seconds to cook off the rawness.

Add the ground spices and stir well.

Stir in the tomato puree followed by a ladle of heated base sauce.

Here is is worth mentions how to add the base sauce.

These curry house curries are built from the bottom up. Ladle a little base sauce in and let it come to a simmer. Add more as needed.

If the pan is looking too dry, add more base. If too saucy, just cook it down. The base sauce has so many veggies in it, it cooks down and thickens very quickly.

Add the meat and ground cashew paste. This is just soaked cashews that are then blended to a paste. It’s a thickener more than anything else.

Stir in the yoghurt a little at a time. Then add the quartered tomato pieces.

To finish, season with salt to taste and garnish with the dried methi, coriander and chopped red onions.

Here are some more curry house favourites you might like to try!

Chicken Tikka Masala
Chicken Korma
Chicken Madras
Chicken Dhansak
Lamb Vindaloo
Chicken Chilli Garlic
Chicken Patia
Lamb Bhuna

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Special Fourpure Beer Offer!

Restaurant style lamb rogan josh is perfect paired with an India Pale Ale by The Fourpure Brewing Company!

If you would like to try some, you can order here. Use the discount code thecurryguy20 to receive a 20% discount through the end of March 2021.

Yield: 1 - 2