I’ve got a bit of a thing for a casual lamb cutlet starter whenever I’m in a good Indian restaurant. Benares holds the title for my favourite, but you can’t beat Tayyabs, who regularly sell out of their brilliantly seasoned take that costs less than your morning latte.

Turns out, it’s pretty cheap and relatively easy to make lamb cutlets at home, and they’re the perfect welcome snack if you’re having people over for dinner – you can have them marinated ready in less than 5 minutes and cook them in another 5 as soon as everyone arrives. Perfect!

I gave my own spicy lamb cutlet recipe a whirl last night and my key take aways are: do them in small batches rather than all at once, make sure the pan is super hot, oil the pan WELL (these guys get are prone to sticking), more marinade is more, and rest your lamb cutlets like you would any other meat for a super tender result. Got it? Okay, let’s go…

Serves 2, as a starter

You’ll need:

4 lamb cutlets

For the marinade:

1 small pot plain yoghurt

1 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp garam masala

1tsp harissa paste

Drizzle of chilli oil

Squeeze of lime

Pinch of salt & pepper

Mix all of the marinade ingredients together and then coat the cutlets in it. Be really generous and make sure each cutlet has a thick layer covering it, just leaving the end of the bone dry – a natural handle, if you will.

Next, open the windows. It’s about to get smoky!

Get a griddle pan really hot and drizzle it with vegetable oil.

Place two of the cutlets in the pan and cook on each side for 4 minutes, giving them a wiggle every so often to check they’re not sticking.

Pop on a plate and wrap tightly with tin foil while you cook the last two cutlets. Then add them to the plate as well and rewrap all four. Rest for 5 minutes, then serve.