Mint And Mango Lamb Pitas Recipe

Fans of rich, subtly gamey lamb are sure to love this mint and mango lamb pita recipe, created by Tasting Table recipe developer Jennine Rye. This recipe provides us with a delicious and unique way to make the most of the earthy-tasting protein. Ground lamb is cooked until tender with a mixture of fragrant and hot spices, then served with a fresh mint yogurt sauce, sweet spicy mango chutney, and fresh tomatoes, all stuffed into pita bread, for an Indian-Middle Eastern fusion dish that really packs a punch.

While it certainly sounds like a lot of different flavors in one go, the combination of mint, mango, and lamb is in fact well tried and tested. There's nothing wrong with balanced and bold ingredient pairings, it only makes the resulting food more exciting and adventurous. Inspired by Indian cuisine, the earthy and gamey taste of the lamb is enhanced by the bright, fresh, sweet, and cool flavors of the mint and the mango, providing contrasting tastes that balance out to make this dish hit all the different flavor notes at once.

To begin this mint and mango lamb pitas recipe, first you will need to gather the ingredients. For the lamb mixture you will want rapeseed oil, an onion, sugar, garlic, fresh ginger, ground lamb, cumin, coriander, turmeric, chili powder, lamb stock, tomato puree, salt, and pepper. To assemble the pitas you will additionally need plain yogurt, mint, cilantro, lemon, pita breads, mango chutney, and tomatoes.

Add the rapeseed oil to a frying pan and place it over medium heat.

Add the onions to the pan and saute for 1-2 minutes.

Mix 1 teaspoon of sugar into the onions and saute for another 3-4 minutes, until translucent.

Add the garlic and ginger to the pan and fry for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.

Add the ground lamb to the pan to brown for 4-5 minutes.

Mix in 1 teaspoon of ground cumin, the coriander, turmeric, and chili powder.

Add the lamb stock, tomato puree, and salt and pepper to the pan.

Stir everything well and then leave the mixture to simmer for 15 minutes. When the time is up, remove the lamb mixture from the heat.

Meanwhile, add the yogurt, mint, 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro, lemon juice, a pinch of cumin, and a pinch of sugar to a bowl, stirring to create the mint sauce.

Slice the pita breads in half.

To serve, fill the pita breads with a spoonful of mango chutney, a spoonful of the mint sauce, the lamb mixture, some fresh diced tomatoes, and some more cilantro.

These mint and mango stuffed lamb pitas are delicious as they are, and they are also easily adaptable according to your personal preferences and whatever you might have lying around in the fridge. Cooling and crunchy cucumber makes a great addition, and can either be added in simple slices when assembling the pita, or it can be diced and mixed into the mint yogurt sauce to give it more texture and to further enhance it's cooling properties. If you aren't a fan of cucumber, radish also makes a good addition, similarly adding crunch and freshness to the dish. Or, a simple addition of a crisp lettuce variety such as cos or little gem will similarly add freshness, as well as more nutrients, to your meal.

If you like to keep things spicy, a drizzle of hot sauce will add more of a fiery kick to this dish. Add as much or as little as you like — the boldness of the other flavors make them more than robust enough to handle the heat. Alternatively, if you like things more on the mild side, you can always reduce or even omit the chili powder in this recipe, and serve up your stuffed pitas with a larger helping of fresh herbs such as parsley and mint leaves, to add heaps of flavor whilst keeping things cool.

Pita bread, a type of yeast-leavened flatbread, is more versatile than it may initially seem. Originating from the Middle East, pita bread has an ancient history — we're talking more than 10,000 years of pitas and other flatbreads. While many people limit their pita consumption to gyros or pairing with hummus, there's a world or opportunity for using the bread, and as this recipe proves, you can also stuff the bread instead of just eating it on the side.

If you've not yet come across pita bread, or you are looking for tips on how to perfect your pita handling, then look no further. Pita, if bought from the store, can be enjoyed either cold, or it can be warmed up in the toaster, in a pan, or under the grill. Although most store-bought pita bread works perfectly well cold, there is something to be said for reheating them, as it makes them much less likely to crack and leak delicious filling all down your fingers.

To serve the pita, you can either cut it in half if the bread is more of an oval shape, to create two smaller pockets, or simply cut off an end if it is a round, larger pita. Then use a knife or a spoon to get right into the cracks and crevices of the pocket and stuff it to your hearts content.