Lamb with lentils and Saffron Pulao

I started searching for lamb dishes with beans and the dish I finally made has a little Persian touch to it and is definitely one of the best lentil dishes I have every eaten. This dish has lentils and lima beans . The original recipe called for Sultanas (I am guessing these are Lima beans...I have seen them somewhere ) . But anyway since I couldn't find Sultana beans I used canned Lima beans and the dish turned out to be great.
                   And I made Saffron Pulao to serve this lamb dish with. This is a bit different from the Saffron Rice I make. And this is equally delicious. So please enjoy a great dinner

Lamb with Lentils (Lamb meat with spicy lentils and beans)

Lamb with beans and lentils

Ingredients:

1. 1 lb lamb or goat cut into medium bite size pieces
2. 1/2 cup lentils
3. 1/2 can lima beans drained
4. 1 bay leaf
5. 1 inch cinnamon stick broken
6. 1/2-3/4 teaspoon each of salt and chilly powder
7. 1/2 teaspoon each of turmeric, cumin powder, coriander powder, ginger-garlic paste
8. 2 tablespoons oil
9. 1 medium onion chopped
10. 1 big or 2 small green chillies slit
11. cilantro for garnishing

In a pressure cooker heat the oil and fry the onions till they start turning brown. Add green chillies, cinnamon and bay leaf and fry for a minute. Add lamb and fry for 5 minutes. Add ginger-garlic paste and fry for a couple of minutes. Add all the spices and stir to combine. Add 1/2 cup water and cook for 3-4 whistles. At the same time in another pot add the lentils with 2 cups of water and cover and bring to a boil. Simmer on medium heat for 25-30 minutes until the lentils are cooked through.

               Let all the steam from the pressure cooker escape, open it and add the lentils and lima beans to the pot. Add 1/2 cup water and simmer for 10 minutes. Garnish with cilantro and serve with roti or Saffron Pulao

Saffron Pulao (Rice cooked with Saffron)

Saffron Rice

Ingredients:

1. 2 cups basmati rice washed and soaked in water for 10 minutes.
2. 1/2 teaspoon saffron crushed
3. 1/2 teaspoon salt
4. 1 cup milk
5. 2 cups water
6. 1 tablespoon oil
7. 1/2 cup sliced red onions

In a heavy bottomed pan heat the oil and fry the onions till they become golden brown. Add the milk and water and salt and bring to a boil. Add saffron and drained rice and simmer on low for 20 minutes or until rice is cooked. Serve