Tawa Chaanp, Spicy Lamb Chops, Pan Fried

This recipe for Tawa Chaanp or Spicy Lamb Chops can make some carnivore in your life very happy. In my case it’s my husband who loves to eat these for weekend dinners, with some salad.

Tawa is a flat, round skillet used in South Asia for making rotis (flat bread), shallow frying and cooking dry curries. A multipurpose skillet or flat frying pan. Tawa chicken, tawa fish, tawa brain masala and tawa Chaanp are some of the popular Lahori recipes.

In tawa recipes, the meat is usually cooked or steamed beforehand and then quickly fried on tawa before serving.

For this recipe, the marinade is a combination of dry spices and fresh herbs mixed into yogurt. Toasted spices give it a hint of smokiness while fresh herbs add another layer of flavour.

Yes the chops are spicy because there are three sources of heat working their magic in the recipe; red chilli flakes, fresh green chillies and garam masala.

Garam masala is hot blend of powdered spices that includes black pepper corn, cinnamon, cloves, bay leaves, cumin seeds, black cardamom and star anise.It’s easily available at all Indian/Pakistani grocery stores but I’d you can’t find it, you can make your own blend by grinding whole spices in a dry mill or you can simply add powdered cumin, cinnamon and black pepper to any recipe that requires garam masala for an instant substitute.

If you can’t take this much heat you can skip or reduce any of the above mentioned hot elements.

This recipe is easy to cook as you don’t have to stand there over the pan stirring all the time. Just let the meat tenderise and then fry for 4-5 minutes. The result will be juicy meat, falling off the bones. The marinated chops can be prepared ahead and are great for grilling too.

For Lamb Chops Pan Fried:

1 kg lamb chops
2 tablespoons garlic paste
1 tablespoon ginger paste
4 green chilli peppers or to taste
1/2 cup fresh coriander leaves
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 cup plain thick yogurt
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1 teaspoon salt or to taste
1 teaspoon red chilli flakes
1 teaspoon garam masala
1 onion, chopped
2-3 tablespoons olive oil, butter or ghee for frying

This Is What You Do :
Toast cumin seeds, coriander seeds and red chilli flakes on a skillet till aromatic. Grind them into a coarse powder.

Whiz together cumin masala mix, ginger- garlic paste,green chillies, coriander leaves, lemon juice, salt and garam masala in a blender. Stir into thick yogurt to make the marinade.

Add the yogurt marinade to lamb chops, mix thoroughly by hand. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, overnight would be great.

Add chops and the marinade to a heavy bottomed pan, add 1 cup water. Cover the pan and cook over medium low heat for an hour.

When the meat is tender and the liquid sufficiently reduced, turn off the heat.

Heat oil in a non stick frying pan/skillet/tawa, add chopped onion. Fry till golden brown.

Add chops and all the masala to the skillet on top of fried onions. Keep frying for 5 minutes or till the chops are slightly charred on the outside and onions well blended with masala.

Serve hot with mint raita and fresh salad.

Serves 4