Lamb Tikka Masala is a fantastic family dinner. Tender melt-in-the-mouth in a creamy tikka masala sauce is a delicious twist on a classic family favourite curry, and this recipe is super simple!
I love making curries at home, but I’m the first to admit that I’m not an authentic Indian cook, and this is not an authentic Indian Curry, lamb tikka masala or a restaurant-style lamb tikka masala.
Not at all. We love this easy fakeaway, but it’s more “tikka masala style” than anything close to the real thing.
My kids love it; it’s easy to make, and lamb curries are always delicious. I’m sorry if it’s not exactly what a Tikka Masala should be.
Disclaimer: While I aim to be as accurate as possible, any advice in this post, including but not limited to, cooking times, quantities, nutritional information and storage and freezing guidance is based on my own experience. Please use your own skills, knowledge and judgement, and get up to date food safety information.
Why I Love This Easy Lamb Tikka Masala Recipe
I love lamb curries. Lamb Rogan Josh is one of my favourites, and this one makes a lovely change. We love it, and I think you will too because:
- Chicken tikka masala and paneer tikka masala are gorgeous, so it makes sense that tikka masala lamb would also be fabulous!
- Marinading and slowly simmering the lamb means it’s wonderfully tender and melts in your mouth.
- It’s a relatively mild and family-friendly lamb tikka masala recipe that kids love.
- Some curries are quite dry, but this one’s got lots of sauce for dipping naan bread!
- It’s the perfect recipe for using up leftover roast lamb.
- There are no complicated ingredients or instructions.
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Ingredients For Lamb Tikka Masala
When I make my lamb tikka masala recipe, I use quite a few ingredients. But I don’t tend to have to buy anything special.
If you cook curries and other spicy foods often, chances are you’ll have most of them in your cupboard already and if not all of the spices are easy to pick up in your local supermarket.
For the Marinated lamb, I use:
Diced Lamb – Either buy diced lamb or dice a joint up yourself
Garlic Puree – You can use crushed garlic cloves. But I like to keep things simple.
Ginger Paste or Puree – You can swap for grated root ginger, but I try to keep some puree in for ease.
Turmeric
Chilli Puree – Again, you can use a fresh chilli or even a pinch of chilli flakes, but puree or jarred chopped chilli makes life much easier.
Garam Masala
Cumin
Salt and Pepper
Full-Fat Greek Yoghurt – Natural yoghurt is also fine, but I recommend full-fat, as low or fat-free can separate.
And for the tikka Masala Sauce, I use:
Cooking Spray – Oil or extra Ghee is fine, too
Ghee – You can swap this for oil, spray, or butter, but I love the flavour of ghee in a curry
Yellow Onion
Garlic
Red Pepper
Tinned Chopped Tomatoes
Coconut Milk – I recommend full-fat
Curry Powder
Smoked Paprika
Chilli Powder
Tomato Puree
You’ll Also Need
To make lamb tikka masala, you also need:
- A sharp knife and chopping board to prepare your ingredients.
- A tub or bowl to store your marinating lamb.
- Then, you just need a large flameproof pan and a spoon or spatula. I use a large cast-iron Dutch Oven, but a regular frying pan will do.
How to Make Lamb Tikka Masala – Step-by-Step Instructions
Full, easy-to-follow instructions and quantities are available in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step One
Place the lamb, yoghurt, garlic, ginger, turmeric, chilli, cumin, garam masala, and salt and pepper in a large, lidded tub or bowl.
A dish covered in foil or cling film will do. I use a large glass tub with a lid.
Step Two
Stir together well, making sure all of the spices are mixed into the yoghurt and the lamb is well coated. I do this with a wooden spoon.
Step Three
Seal or cover and place in the fridge.
Ideally, leave it overnight so the lamb takes on lots of flavours and is super soft and ready to cook. If you are short on time, leave it for as long as possible and at least two hours.
Step Four
Mist a large flameproof pan or cooking dish with cooking spray and warm over medium heat on the hob.
Step Five
Add the marinaded lamb, discarding any liquid left in the tub.
Step Six
Brown carefully, stirring often.
It does need to be cooked through, just browned on the outside.
Step Seven
Once lightly browned, remove to a bowl and leave to one side. Leave any juices in the pan.
Step Eight
Add the ghee to the same pan and melt. Scape the bottom of the pan to remove any bits of lamb that might have stuck.
Step Nine
Add the onions and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes until soft. I love this bit. Onions cooked in guess smell absolutely incredible.
Step Ten
Add the red pepper and garlic and cook for 3 minutes, stirring often.
Step Eleven
Return the lamb to the pan. You can add or discard any juice from the bowl. I add it in.
Step Twelve
Pour in the tinned tomatoes and coconut milk and stir well.
Step Thirteen
Add the curry powder, chilli, coriander and smoked paprika and mix.
Step Fourteen
Bring to a simmer, reduce the temperature, and continue to simmer on a low bubble for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
Top Tips
My top tips are:
- Marinade the lamb overnight if possible.
- I use my Dutch Oven, but any flameproof pan will do.
- Simmer for at least an hour, stirring occasionally for a thick, tasty tikka masala sauce.
- Taste before serving, and add more chilli if you want a spicier flavour. You can also add a little more salt and pepper if desired.
- It’s not as red as you might expect, but I’ve seen recipes (looking at you, BBC Food!) that add food colouring for effect, which is just a bit ridiculous!
Serving Suggestions
I serve my curries with naan bread, white or basmati rice, poppadoms, and dips because I love a big fakeaway feast. Any of those would do, though. Or you could also add sides like bhajis and samosas for a bigger meal.
Variations
Use Leftover Roast Lamb
Lamb Tikka Masala made with leftover roast lamb is fantastic!
Just make sure you store the lamb safely and that it’s piping hot before serving. Which it should be if you are simmering for an hour.
To make a Leftover lamb tikka masala, just marinate your cooked lamb, as in this recipe, but instead of browning, just add it to the pan, scooping the meat out with a slotted spoon and leaving the remaining yoghurt and other juices behind, after you’ve fried the onions, garlic, and pepper.
More or Less Lamb
This recipe has a lot of sauce, so if you’ve got a little more lamb, it should still be ok.
If you’ve got closer to 1kg, you might want to double the other ingredients or at least the marinade ingredients.
If you’ve got less lamb, I’d keep the rest of the recipe as it is and enjoy the sauce with naan bread and rice.
Bulk it Out
Another option, if you haven’t got as much lamb and don’t want to buy more, you could add things like vegetables, potatoes, chickpeas or other tinned beans.
If you add anything like this, do so after your curry has been simmering for around 20-30 minutes so they don’t get too soft. Taste before serving, and cook for a little longer if they are still too hard.
Kick Up the Heat
Add more chilli powder, a pinch of chilli flakes, or a teaspoon of cayenne pepper if you prefer a spicer lamb tikka masala.
Leftovers
If you’ve made your tikka masala with lamb with leftover lamb, I don’t recommend keeping leftovers and reheating again.
If, however, you used fresh lamb, you can save the leftovers to reheat another time.
Reheat in the microwave or a pan on the hob over medium heat for around 15 minutes until the lamb is piping hot.
Add a cup of water if it’s too dry.
Storage
Remove leftover lamb tikka masala from the cooking pan and place it in a clean bowl or tub on the kitchen side to cool.
Don’t leave it out for longer than two hours.
Once cool, cover it and place it in the fridge for 1-2 days.
Don’t keep it if your lamb is out of date.
FAQ
Yes, while chicken tikka masala is a more common option, lamb tikka masala is also delicious.
Lamb Tikka Masala isn’t a spicy curry. It does have a little heat from the chilli and chilli powder, but it’s pretty mild.
You can reduce the chilli if you prefer it to be very mild or add a pinch of chilli flakes if you’d like it spicier.
Tikka masala is made from tomatoes, coconut milk, paprika, curry powder, and chilli.
Yes, lamb tikka masala is very good.
Other Recipes
If you like this recipe for lamb tikka masala, you might also want to try these curry recipes:
- Butternut Squash and Sweet Potato Curry
- Chicken Rogan Josh
- Leftover Pork Curry
- Curry with Leftover Veggies
- Sausage Curry
- Leftover Turkey Curry
- Beef and Sweet Potato Curry
- Lamb Rogan Josh
- Butter Chicken Curry
- Easy Chicken Curry
- Leftover Lamb Curry
- Leftover Beef Curry
- Butter Turkey Curry
Recipe Card
Lamb Tikka Masala
Ingredients
For the Marinade:
- 600 g Diced Lamb
- 1 Teaspoon Garlic Puree
- 1 Teaspoon Ginger Puree
- 1 Teaspoon Turmeric
- 1 Teaspoon Chilli Puree
- 1 Tablespoon Garam Masala
- ½ Teaspoon Cumin
- Pinch Salt and pepper
- 100 g Full Fat Greek Yoghurt
For the Curry Sauce:
- Cooking Spray (Or 1 Tablespoon Cooking Oil)
- 1 Tablespoon Ghee (Or Butter/Extra Cooking Oil)
- 1 Yellow Onion (Finely Diced)
- 1 Teaspoon Garlic Puree
- 1 Red Pepper (Deseeded and Diced)
- 400 g Tinned Chopped Tomatoes
- 400 ml Coconut Milk
- 1 Tablespoon Curry Powder
- 1 Tablespoon Smoked Paprika
- 1 Teaspoon Chilli Powder
- 1 Tablespoon Tomato Puree
Instructions
- Add the lamb, yoghurt, garlic, ginger, turmeric, chilli, cumin, garam masala, and salt and pepper to a large, lidded tub or bowl.
- Mix well, seal and place in the fridge, preferably overnight, but for at least 2 hours.
- Mist a large flameproof pan or cooking dish with cooking spray and warm over medium heat on the hob.
- Add the marinaded lamb, discarding any liquid left in the tub.
- Brown carefully, stirring often.
- Once lightly browned, remove to a bowl and leave to one side. Don’t worry if any juice or sauce is left in the cooking pan.
- Add the ghee to the same pan and melt.
- Add the onions and cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes until soft.
- Add the red pepper and garlic and cook for 3 minutes, stirring often.
- Return the lamb to the pan.
- Pour in the tinned tomatoes and coconut milk and stir well.
- Add the curry powder, chilli, coriander and smoked paprika and stir.
- Bring to a simmer, reduce the temperature, and continue to simmer lightly for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
Notes
- You can use fresh garlic (3 crushed cloves each for the marinade and sauce), ginger (1 inch – grated), and red chilli (1 – diced) if you prefer.
- We like to serve our curries with plenty of bread, so this recipe has quite a lot of sauce. If you prefer it thicker, either use less coconut milk or simmer for a little longer.
Any nutritional information is given as a general guide only and may not be accurate. The information is provided using an online calculator and is specific to my ingredients. Please make your own calculations if you want precise information.
