Pheasant Curry

Ingredients

• 1 pheasant, cut into eight pieces
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp rapeseed (canola) oil
• FOR THE SPICE BLEND
• 1 tsp coriander seeds
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 20 dried Kashmiri chillies
• 1 tsp black peppercorns
• 10 garlic cloves
• 1 x 2.5cm (1 inch) ginger, roughly chopped
• ½ tsp ground turmeric
• 1 tbsp tamarind sauce
• Juice of one lime
• FOR THE CURRY
• 20 fresh or frozen curry leaves
• 2 medium onions, finely chopped
• 200g (7oz)chopped tomatoes
• 400ml (14 fl oz) thick coconut milk
• 70ml to 125ml (¼ to ½ cup) water, chicken or pheasant stock
• 1 tsp sugar (optional and to taste)
• Salt to taste

Steps

1. Season the pheasant pieces with about 1 tsp salt and ensure it is equally coated. Set aside.
2. To make the spice paste, place the cumin, coriander, dried chillies, black pepper and cloves in a frying pan over a medium heat. Stir the spices around in the pan until they become warm to the touch and fragrant. Then transfer the spices to a plate to cool.
3. Place the cooled spices in a spice grinder and grind to a fine powder. Add the garlic cloves, ginger, ground turmeric, tamarind sauce and lime juice and blend to a thick paste. You could add a little more lime juice or water if needed to assist blending. Set aside.
4. Heat two tbsp oil in a pan over a medium-high heat. When the oil begins to glisten from the heat, add the pheasant and fry it for about 10 minutes, stirring from time to time to brown it all over. Transfer to a plate and set aside.
5. Now add the remaining oil to your pan and add the curry leaves. Let the curry leaves sizzle in the pan for about a minute and then stir in the chopped onion. Fry the onion for about 5 minutes or until soft and translucent.
6. Add your prepared spice paste and stir it all in to combine. Then add the chopped tomatoes and stir them in too. Stir in the coconut milk and bring to a simmer.
7. Return the browned pheasant to the pan and add just enough water or stock to almost cover the pheasant. Cover the pan and let simmer for 15 minutes. Remove the lid and continue simmering to thicken the sauce. If you find that your sauce is too thick, add a drop of water or chicken stock. If your sauce is too thin, just cook it down.
8. When the pheasant is tender, your pheasant curry is ready to serve. It’s ready when it’s ready but an additional 10 minutes simmering should do the trick. Try some and add sugar and/or salt to taste.Serve with Basmati rice or Indian style bread such as naans or chapattis.