Mughli Charcoal Pit ★ 4.7
Manchester's Curry Mile classic since 1991, kitchen open until 00:30 on Friday and Saturday. Charcoal lamb chops, tandoori platters, mango lassi at all hours.
Try: Charcoal lamb chops
History
Mughli on Wilmslow Road built its reputation around a focal charcoal pit after opening in 1991. The lamb chops, marinated overnight in ginger, garlic, yoghurt and spice and cooked over coals to medium-rare, became the dish the Curry Mile is best known for in the city. Other restaurants on the strip adopted the same template; the BBC's Curry Mile documentary made Mughli the canonical Manchester spot for it.
Common allergens: Dairy
Make it at home
Ingredients
- 12 lamb cutlets or rib lamb chops (3 per person), trimmed
- For the marinade: 250g full-fat natural yoghurt
- 4 garlic cloves crushed
- 3cm fresh ginger grated
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander
- 2 teaspoons garam masala
- 1 teaspoon Kashmiri chilli powder
- 1 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 tablespoons mustard oil (or sunflower oil)
- Chaat masala to finish
- Lemon wedges and mint chutney to serve
Method
- Whisk all marinade ingredients in a large bowl. Add the lamb cutlets and turn to coat thoroughly.
- Cover and refrigerate at least 12 hours, ideally 24.
- Light a charcoal grill. Let the coals burn down to a hot bed with white ash, around 30 minutes.
- Lift the cutlets from the marinade and shake off the excess. Place over the hot coals.
- Cook 3 minutes per side for medium-rare; the bones char and the fat crisps. Move to a cooler part of the grill if the marinade burns before the lamb cooks.
- Rest the cutlets 3 minutes on a warm plate.
- Dust with chaat masala. Serve with lemon wedges and mint chutney.
Tip from the editors. The 24-hour marinade is what separates okay chops from the Mughli version. Yoghurt tenderises and spices penetrate; rushing the step gives a flat result.
Where to eat curry mile lamb chops
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