Lamb shoulder: the one I'd cook at home

Why it suits a curry

Shoulder has more fat and connective tissue than leg. In the pot the fat melts into the masala and the tissue goes soft, so it stays juicy even if you get distracted and it simmers a bit longer than planned. Keep the bone in: it gives the sauce body you can't get from a stock cube.

How I'd cut it for you

For karahi, bone-in pieces about 4cm across. For biryani, a touch bigger, so they hold together under the rice. For a stew or hotpot, chunky. Or leave it whole: 160°C for about 4 hours, covered for most of it, and it falls off the bone.

Timings

Bone-in curry pieces: 45 to 60 minutes, lid on, until a piece pulls away from the bone. Boneless in a stew or tagine: about 1½ hours. A whole shoulder: 3½ to 4½ hours in a low oven. Short on time? A pressure cooker gets curry pieces tender in about 20 minutes.

Where shoulder shines

• Lamb karahi Bone-in lamb cooked hard and fast with tomatoes, green chillies and black pepper. The Pakistani street-side classic, made at home in one pan. 1 hr 30 minHot
• Slow-roast lamb shoulder A whole shoulder rubbed with garlic, cumin and lemon and roasted low for four hours, until you can pull it apart with a spoon. 4 hr 25 minMild
• Lamb biryani Spiced lamb layered with part-cooked basmati, saffron, fried onions and mint, then steamed until every grain is fragrant. 2 hr 30 minHot
• Kabuli pulao Afghanistan's best-loved rice dish: tender lamb buried in spiced basmati and topped with sweet carrots and raisins. 2 hr 20 minMild
• Aloo gosht Lamb and potato curry, the everyday dish of Pakistani home kitchens: bone-in lamb, soft potatoes and a thin, peppery gravy for dipping roti. 1 hr 45 minWarm
• Lamb tagine with apricots Lamb shoulder slow-cooked with warm spices, chickpeas, apricots and honey until meltingly tender. A North African feast from one pot. 2 hr 35 minWarm
• Shinwari lamb karahi The Pashtun roadside karahi: lamb on the bone cooked in its own fat with salt, tomatoes, green chillies and black pepper. No spice powders needed. 1 hr 5 minWarm

People also ask

Tell us the dish and we'll cut the shoulder to match. We're on Kilmarnock Road: opening hours and directions.