The Lamb Chop Rajasthani Style served at the Curry Kebab House was served in a novel way but was mediocre and only got a 3 out of 5 Rating.
This particular dish appeared on the menu at the Curry Kebab House in Ottawa’s Byward Market as ‘Rajasthani Champ’. I am not sure how ‘Champ’ is translated but the ‘Rajasthani’ refers to the fact a Rajasthani-style Garam Masala is used in the preparation. I wasn’t terribly impressed with the dish overall, but the method of service was quite novel and worth sharing.
The is essentially tandoor-cooked spiced lamb chops. The twist here, though, is that once done in the tandoor, they are served in what the restaurant in question also called a ‘tandoor’. Strictly speaking, this name is probably not that accurate since a proper tandoor is traditionally a large clay oven that is heated to over 500 F degrees, and the little table-top devise you see pictured here is made from copper and really more decorative than functional. It is heated with charcoal (you can see the little fuel slot at the bottom), but I really don’t see it doing much more than keep the food toasty warm rather than effectively cooking it.
Anyway, the lamb chops, seen here removed from the ‘Tandoor’ were skewered after being coated with the aforesaid Garam Masala from Rajasthan. They were cooked very well done (which you generally expect with meats in Indian cuisine) and there was some nice charring from the oven, but in truth, the chops weren’t that good and the spice coating here had a slightly ‘raw’ taste.
There was mint chutney supplied for dipping but, really, the spices were already complex enough that anything else as strong tasting as mint would inevitable be overkill. The buttered roti you see off to the side was very good, but on the whole the dish was uninspired.