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Keema on a paratha with tomato cucumber salad garnish from the front.
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5 from 13 votes

lamb or beef keema

This lamb or beef keema is really an ingredient for dishes like keema matar or aloo keema. If you can't wait, it's also great served simply with Indian flatbread.
Prep Time5 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time20 minutes
Course: Main
Cuisine: Indian
Keyword: keema, lamb keema
Servings: 2
Calories: 576kcal
Author: romain | glebekitchen

Ingredients

  • 12 oz minced beef or lamb
  • 2 Tbsp oil
  • 1 bay leaf - Indian tej patta if you can get it
  • 1 black cardamom - whole, split
  • 1-2 kashmiri chilies
  • 2 inch piece cassia bark - cinnamon stick
  • 2 tsp garlic ginger paste - recipe link below
  • 1/2 tsp kasoor methi - fenugreek leaves
  • 2 tsp madras curry powder e.g Lalah's brand
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 tsp tomato paste - diluted with water to the consistency of pasatta
  • 2/3 cup water

Instructions

  • Pre-heat your skillet over medium heat.
  • Add the oil. Once it starts to shimmer add the bay, cardamom, kashmiri chilies and cassia bark. Cook until little bubbles form around the spices - about 30 seconds.
  • Add the garlic ginger paste and cook until the sizzling subsides.
  • Reduce heat to medium low and stir in the kasoor methi, madras curry powder and salt. This is called blooming the spices and it's absolute magic. You should do this every time you cook Indian.
  • Cook, stirring constantly for about 30 seconds.
  • Mix in the tomato paste, stir to combine and cook about 30 seconds.
  • Add the beef or lamb, breaking up any big chunks and cook until all the meat is brown. If you are using it as a filling (e.g. samosas) break it up completely. If you are serving it in a curry consider leaving the chunks a little bigger. It's a small thing but it does make a difference.
  • Add the water and simmer uncovered for about 10 minutes until cooked through. The curry should be dry again. Almost all the liquid will have evaporated by this point.
  • Use a slotted spoon to remove the keema from the pan leaving most of the fat behind. Much easier than trying to spoon fat out of the pan with keema in the way.
  • Taste and adjust for salt if needed.

Notes

Make garlic ginger paste from scratch at home.
This recipe is spiced to use in a subsequent curry, samosas etc. If you want to serve it as is increase the madras curry powder to 1 Tbsp and think about adding a 1/2 tsp of Kashmiri chili powder when you add the other powdered spices.

Nutrition

Serving: 2servings | Calories: 576kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 29g | Fat: 48g | Saturated Fat: 14g | Cholesterol: 120mg | Sodium: 749mg | Potassium: 550mg | Fiber: 1g | Vitamin A: 90IU | Vitamin C: 1.3mg | Calcium: 50mg | Iron: 4.2mg