Indian cooking
Indian cooking / Dishes / Bohra-Style Fried Lamb Chops
Bohra-Style Fried Lamb Chops ()

Bohra-Style Fried Lamb Chops

Non-vegetarian

Fried lamb chops coated in breadcrumbs after a gentle simmer and a tangy spiced vinegar marinade. They are crisp outside, juicy within, and savoury with a mild chilli tang.

Turmeric for the pot

1.5 gAdded to the pan with the lamb, salt and water (step 2)
01
1.5 g½ teaspoon
spice
Keep ground; add it to the pan with the chops.

Marinade spices

12 gStirred into the vinegar marinade (step 3)
Mix with the vinegar, water, salt and reserved garlic paste.

Everything else

01
36 g12 cloves
aromatic
02
16 g4 cm
aromatic
03
Lamb chop · ChaapFrench-trimmed (ask your butcher to do this)
1200–1500 g12–15 chops
meat
04
~0.3 gpinch
salt
05
90 g
flour
06
100 g2 eggs
egg
07
90 g
other
08
Oilfor frying
to taste
oil/fat
09
60 g4 tablespoons
souring agent
10
to taste
salt

Method

  1. Blend 36 g garlic to a paste. Set aside 1 tbsp for the marinade and put the rest in a heavy saucepan. Blitz 16 g ginger separately and add it to the pan.
  2. Add 1200–1500 g lamb chops, the turmeric for the pot, 0.3 g salt and 300 ml water. Raise to a boil, then lower the heat, cover and cook gently for 18–20 minutes.
  3. For the marinade, combine the marinade spices, 60 g malt vinegar, salt to taste, 3 tbsp water and the reserved garlic paste in a bowl. Set aside.
  4. Drain the chops and turn them through the marinade while still warm.
  5. Heat a frying pan over medium heat with oil for frying to a depth of 1 cm. Coat the chops in 90 g plain flour, then 100 g beaten egg, then 90 g white breadcrumb. Fry in batches for 2–3 minutes per side until golden brown and crisp. Keep the cooked chops warm.

Don't have something?

Garlic
  • Garlic paste

    Use equal weight. Fry gently in oil or ghee with the ginger; incorporates smoothly into curries without visible minced bits.

  • Garlic powder

    Use 15% to 20% of the weight (about 1 g for every 5 to 6 g fresh cloves). Whisk into sauces; gives a savoury, toasted garlic flavour without raw pungency.

  • Shallot

    Use 1.5 times the weight, very finely minced. Sauté until golden; provides savoury allium sweetness, though it lacks garlic's pungent sulphur bite.

Fresh ginger
  • Ginger paste

    Use equal weight. Sauté in hot fat until the raw allium smell disappears; slightly wetter, but provides identical warmth and pungency.

  • Ground ginger

    Use 20% to 25% of the weight (1 g for every 4 to 5 g fresh). Stir into the gravy; adds peppery heat and warmth, though it misses the crisp, zesty kick of raw root.

Lamb chop
  • Pork

    Use equal weight of bone-in pork chops; cook over medium heat, taking care not to dry them out, done in 10-12 minutes.

  • Lamb shoulder

    Use equal weight cut into thick steaks; requires lower, slower braising for 45 minutes longer to become tender.

Ground turmeric
  • Ground ginger

    Use 50% of the weight. Mimics turmeric's warm, earthy, rhizome background, but provides none of the golden-yellow colour.

  • Saffron

    Steep a tiny pinch (0.1 g per 2 g turmeric) in 2 tbsp warm water; use to match the rich golden hue. Contributes an aristocratic, honeyed floral flavour rather than earthy bitterness.

Plain flour
  • Whole wheat flour

    Use the same weight, add 10–15% more water and rest the dough for 20 minutes; the result is heavier and nuttier.

  • Rice flour

    Use the same weight for crisp coatings; for doughs use no more than half rice flour with wheat flour, or it will be crumbly.

  • Cornflour

    For thickening use half the weight, mixed with cold water; it is not suitable for bread or chapati dough.

Egg
  • Chickpea flour

    For binding, use about 10 g chickpea flour mixed with 20 ml water per egg and rest for 10 minutes. Denser and nuttier; not suitable for baking or coating in the same way.

  • Full-fat natural yoghurt

    Use about 30 g per egg for moisture and binding in koftas or fillings. Adds tang and softness; will not set or glaze like egg.

  • Tofu

    Use the same weight, mashed, for egg-like bulk in curries. Soft and bland; add extra spices and do not expect it to bind.

White breadcrumb
  • Fresh breadcrumbs

    Use the same weight but reduce other liquid slightly, as fresh crumbs are moister.

  • Dried breadcrumb

    Use the same weight. Drier; soak in a little milk or water if the recipe needs binding.

  • Panko breadcrumbs

    Use the same weight. Coarser and crispier; good for frying, less good for binding.

Oil
  • Vegetable oil

    Use the same weight. It is neutral and behaves the same in frying and tempering; no noticeable change in flavour.

  • Corn or vegetable oil

    Use the same weight. Neutral and good for high heat; the dish will taste virtually the same.

  • Groundnut oil

    Use the same weight. It has a mild nutty flavour and is good for Indian cooking; heat until just hot, not smoking, so the nuttiness does not dominate.

Kashmiri chilli powder or mild paprika
  • Kashmiri chilli powder

    Use the same weight; this is the first half of the book's option and gives the best red colour with mild heat.

  • Mild paprika

    Use the same weight; add a pinch of cayenne pepper for warmth. Slightly less colour.

  • Paprika

    Use the same weight and add cayenne pepper to taste; works but is less aromatic.

Ground cumin
  • Cumin seed

    Dry-roast briefly and grind finely; use equal weight (1:1). Imparts an even punchier, nuttier, toasty aroma than pre-ground cumin.

  • Ground coriander

    Use equal weight (1:1). Adds mild, lemony sweetness rather than cumin's smoky, earthy bite; curries will taste lighter and less savoury.

  • Black cumin seeds

    Grind finely; use 60% to 75% of the weight. Produces a darker, more complex, smoky-herbal flavour suited to rich gravies.

Ground coriander
  • Coriander seeds

    Dry-roast lightly in a pan and grind to a fine powder; use equal weight (1:1). Offers a noticeably fresher, brighter citrus note.

  • Ground cumin

    Use 50% to 75% of the weight. Lacks the floral, citrusy profile of coriander and turns the gravy heavier, earthier, and darker.

  • Garam masala

    Use 50% of the weight and stir in near the end of cooking. Adds warmth and depth since it contains ground coriander, but introduces stronger spices like clove and cinnamon.

Malt vinegar
  • White malt vinegar

    Use the same weight; sharper and clearer; reduce salt slightly.

  • White vinegar

    Use 90% of the weight, diluted with 10% water; harsher, so taste.

  • Lime juice

    Use the same weight; fresher sourness but no malt flavour; reduce salt.

Similar dishes

Tamil Black Pepper Lamb Chops
Spicy Lamb Chop Curry with Ghee, Garlic, Chilli and Black Pepper
Tamil Black Pepper Lamb Chops tastes peppery, spicy and aromatic with a thick gravy, while this dish tastes tangy from vinegar and mild in chilli with a crisp breadcrumb coating.
  • Same: Tamil Black Pepper Lamb Chops and this dish both use lamb chops, garlic, ginger, turmeric, kashmiri chilli powder, ground coriander and salt.
  • Different: Tamil Black Pepper Lamb Chops is a ghee-rich curry with onion, black peppercorns, cardamom, cinnamon, green chilli and water, while this dish uses malt vinegar, cumin, flour, egg and breadcrumbs and is fried.
Mumbai Frankie Rolls
Mumbai Frankie Rolls tastes tangy, savoury and gently hot, with sharp onion and chutney and a soft paratha, while this dish is crisp outside and juicy inside with a mild chilli tang.
  • Same: Mumbai Frankie Rolls shares lamb, garlic, ginger, malt vinegar, Kashmiri chilli, cumin, egg and salt with this dish.
  • Different: It uses boned leg of lamb, garam masala, Greek yoghurt, green bird’s eye chilli, red onion, lemon, frozen paratha and mint-coriander chutney, and it lacks this dish’s turmeric, plain flour and breadcrumb coating; it is a paratha wrap rather than simmered, breadcrumb-fried chops.
Laal Maas (Indian Kitchen)
Rajasthani Lamb Curry
Laal Maas is fiery, tangy and aromatic with yoghurt softening the chilli heat, while this dish is savoury with a mild chilli tang and crisp outside, juicy within.
  • Same: Laal Maas shares lamb, garlic, Kashmiri chilli powder or mild paprika, ground coriander and ground cumin with this dish.
  • Different: Laal Maas is a bone-in lamb leg curry with dried Kashmiri chillies, onion, Greek yoghurt, lemon, cardamom, bay leaf and clove in vegetable oil and water, while this dish uses lamb chops marinated in malt vinegar, simmered, then coated in flour, egg and breadcrumbs and fried, with ginger and turmeric but no yoghurt, lemon or whole spices.
Bengali Kosha Mangsho
Marinated Lamb Curry with Mustard, Yoghurt and Spices
Bengali Kosha Mangsho tastes rich, tangy and warmly spiced from yoghurt, mustard oil and whole spices, while this dish is crisp outside, juicy within and savoury with mild chilli and vinegar tang.
  • Same: Both use lamb with garlic, ginger, turmeric, Kashmiri chilli, cumin, coriander and salt.
  • Different: Bengali Kosha Mangsho is a slow-cooked curry with yoghurt, mustard oil, onion, tomato purée, potato and lemon juice, while this dish is simmered lamb chops marinated in malt vinegar, coated in flour, egg and breadcrumbs, then fried.