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1
Put the meat in a large pan and cover with water.
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2
Bring to the boil, remove any scum, and add salt and pepper.
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3
Cook with the lid on for 1 hour.
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4
Add the onions and cook for 1/2 hour more, or until the meat is very tender and the onions are soft, adding water to keep the meat covered at first and letting it reduce, uncovered, so that most of it has evaporated at the end and there is hardly any broth left.
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5
Prepare the yogurt by mixing with egg white, or the cornstarch dissolved in a little water, following the directions for stabilizing yogurt on page 113, to prevent it from curdling during cooking.
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6
Add it to the cooked meat, stir in the garlic if using, and simmer gently, uncovered, for 10 to 15 minutes, adding a little salt.
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7
Stir in the mint, if using, towards the end.
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8
Some cooks pass round a little bowl of dried mint for people to help themselves if they wish.
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9
Use 6 small lamb shanks instead of the cubed meat, and cook them until they are so tender that the meat falls off the bone.
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10
For an Egyptian version, add 5 cardamom pods to the meat and onions from the beginning.
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11
Just before serving, fry 4 crushed garlic cloves with 1 tablespoon ground coriander in 2 tablespoons butter or oil, until the garlic just begins to color, and pour over the meat and yogurt as you serve.
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12
A Turkish version has a large bunch of chopped dill added towards the end of the cooking.
