It's a curry, but it's not in any kind of hurry. These low and slow lamb shanks take their time to beautifully fall-apart under your fork. Cooked in the oven with a gently spiced pumpkin dahl, this dish plays the long game for the win. A cooling cucumber and mango raita supplies the freshness and curled-up pappadams bring the crunch
Preheat oven to 160°C fan-forced. Heat ½ the oil in a frypan over medium-high heat. Add lamb and cook, turning, for 6–7 minutes or until golden brown. Place in a roasting dish and set aside.
Peel and cut onion into thin wedges. Peel and chop pumpkin into 3cm pieces. Peel and finely grate ginger. Dissolve stock cube in 560ml (2¼ cups) boiling water.
Return frypan to medium heat with remaining oil. Add onion, ginger and cumin seeds and season with ½ teaspoon salt flakes and pepper. Cook, stirring, for 4–5 minutes or until softened.
Add tandoori paste and cook for 30 seconds. Add coconut milk and bring to a simmer. Carefully pour liquid into roasting dish along with stock and tightly cover with foil. Transfer to oven and cook for 1 hour. Carefully remove foil, turn lamb shanks, cover with foil again, and return to oven for a further 1 hour.
Remove lamb from dish. Add pumpkin and lentils to dish and top with lamb. Cover with foil, return to oven and cook for a further 45 minutes or until lamb is tender and falling off the bone. Pick mint leaves from their stems and roughly chop. Grate cucumber. Place mint, cucumber, yoghurt and mango chutney in a bowl and swirl to combine. Set aside.
Place pappadams in an even layer on a microwave-safe plate and cookon high in the microwave for 60 seconds or until puffed and crisp. Serve lamb with lentil and pumpkin dahl, raita and pappadams.