Kasundi Keema Lasagne Rolls

by Gurdeep Loyal, featured in Mother Tongue

Published by 4th Estate

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Introduction

It was the daytime clubbing scene where the boundaries of bhangra and Asian underground were pushed, blending Punjabi folk music, classical Indian melodies and Bollywood anthems with hip hop, R'n'B, soul, dance and garage. I remember South Asian friends bunking off college on Wednesday afternoons, heels in their bags, to get to afternoon raves. Created by and for the diaspora, they served a generation of young adults, united by a need to party coupled with a need to be at home in time to make roti. I encountered offshoots of the scene much later, through the queer-desi night Club Kali and sporadic bhangra DJs that played Popstarz at the Apollo. Those 2am moments on the dance floor were rare times I could be every layer of my identity at once, illuminating with lasers what was often concealed by the code-switching of my life by daylight. Identity is like lasagne: each layer unique, but transformed when brought together as a whole.

As featured in

Mother Tongue

Image of Gurdeep Loyal's Kasundi Keema Lasagne Rolls — Photo by Jacqueline Walker

Ingredients

Serves: 4

FOR THE KASUNDI KEEMA

2 tablespoons ghee (clarified butter)
2 large onions (finely chopped)
1 tablespoon coriander seeds (crushed)
1 tablespoon black mustard seeds
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
8 cloves garlic (very finely chopped)
2 tablespoons finely grated fresh ginger
2 teaspoons chilli flakes
500 grams minced lamb (20 per cent fat)
2 tablespoons garam masala
2 teaspoons fine sea salt
5 tablespoons tomato puree
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
½ x 400g can of chopped tomatoes

FOR THE CHEESE PASTE

200 grams mature cheddar cheese (grated)
2 teaspoons cumin seeds (crushed)
3 tablespoons coarse semolina
1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
1 egg (lightly beaten)

FOR THE GREENS

200 grams cavolo nero (coarse stalks removed)
1 tablespoon English mustard
4 cloves of garlic (very finely chopped)
4 tablespoons lemon juice

FOR THE LASAGNE ROLLS & TARKHA

10 - 12 lasagne sheets
500 grams jar of tomato pasta sauce
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
30 - 35 fresh curry leaves
1½ tablespoons black mustard seeds
1 teaspoon chilli flakes

Method

Kasundi Keema Lasagne Rolls is a guest recipe by Gurdeep Loyal so we are not able to answer questions regarding this recipe

To make the keema, heat the ghee in a large pan, add the onions and cook for 7–8 minutes until golden.
Next add the coriander, mustard and cumin seeds, cooking for another 2–3 minutes, before adding the garlic, ginger and chilli flakes. Now add the lamb, browning for 4–6 minutes before mixing through the garam masala and salt. Finally add the tomato purée, sugar and vinegar, along with the tomatoes. Simmer and reduce for 5–7 minutes, then set aside.
To make the cheese paste, mix all the ingredients together into a crumbly mixture.
For the greens, boil the cavolo nero in salted water for 5–6 minutes until tender, then blend with the mustard, garlic and lemon juice into a thick smooth paste. Add a little water if needed, then let it cool.
Preheat the oven to 200°C fan.
Cover the lasagne sheets with boiling water and leave for 4–5 minutes to soften a little. Slice each lasagne sheet down the middle lengthways, making 2 strips ready for rolling.
Take one pasta strip, spread with 1 tablespoon of the mustard greens, sprinkle over some cheese paste and finally add a spoon of keema. Roll up tightly into a snail. Repeat to form all the lasagne rolls.
Pour the jarred tomato pasta sauce into an ovenproof dish and tightly pack in the lasagne rolls.
Cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for a final 10–15 minutes until piping hot and crusty on top.
Meanwhile, for the tarkha, heat the vegetable oil in a pan, then add the curry leaves, mustard seeds and chilli flakes. Sizzle for 1 minute, then drizzle over the baked lasagne rolls just before serving.