August’s dish of the month is in celebration of the game season. On the Glorious Twelfth, the first grouse of the shooting season was brought to London in the fastest mode possible; in a Porsche Macan Turbo, and served for lunch at The Cinnamon Club! Check out our feature in the London Evening Standard.

Kadhai ka shikar or game cooked in an Indian wok- Shikar is a Hindi term for hunted meat, and this kadhai-style preparation is a quick and easy way to enjoy whatever you may be able to lay your hands upon. 

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 3 grouse, breasts deboned
• 3 tbsp vegetable or corn oil
• ¼ tsp cloves
• 3 green cardamom pods
• 1 bay leaf/cinnamon leaf
• 2 medium sized onions, ½  finely chopped & ½ cut into strips 1cm ( ½ inch) thick
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 2cm (1 inch) fresh ginger, chopped
• 1 green chilli, chopped
• ½ tsp red chilli powder
• ½ tsp ground coriander
• ½ tsp ground cumin
• 3 tomatoes, 2 puréed and 1 deseeded and cut into strips 1cm (½  inch) thick
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ tsp sugar
• 1 tsp chopped fresh coriander
• Juice of 1 lime

Spice mix

• 1 dried red chilli
• 1 tsp coriander seeds
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• ½ tsp cumin seeds
• ¼ tsp black peppercorns
• 1 cm (1-inch) piece of cinnamon stick
• ¼ tsp carom seeds

Method

Skin the birds, and then cut the breasts off the bone. You won’t need the legs but you could keep them to use for another dish. Cut the breasts into strips about 1cm ( ½ inch) thick and set aside.

To make the spice mix, roast all the ingredients in a dry frying pan, over a moderate heat for a couple of minutes and then pound them to a coarse powder using a mortar and pestle. Set aside.

Heat the oil in a wok or a large frying pan, add the whole spices and bay leaves and let them crackle. Add the finely chopped onions and sauté until golden. Add the garlic, ginger and green chillies and sauté for a minute.

Stir in the chilli powder, ground coriander and cumin and cook for another minute. Add the puréed tomatoes and continue cooking until they are reduced by half. Add the meat and sauté over a high heat for 2 minutes to sear it quickly. Add the onion strips, reduce the heat, stir in the spice mix, salt and sugar and cook for another minute or so. Add the tomato strips and mix well. Sprinkle in the fresh coriander, squeeze in the lime juice and remove from the heat.

Serve with paratha or a light salad.