[Indian Recipes] Kheema - Ground Beef Curry

This ground beef curry recipe (aka kheema curry) actually reminds me of Jamie Oliver’s curry vindaloo; sweet, savory, bright but without the fiery hot spices. So for you out there who cannot handle level 11 spicy food, this is the perfect recipe to try.

Let’s face it; making a traditional curry from scratch can be time consuming. I have an Indian cookbook filled with sensational curry recipes that I love looking at, but won’t dare cook from. The amount of spices used to create these beautiful, colorful dishes is overwhelming! I don’t even know what to do with cardamom pods; do I open them or cook them just like that? Is that even a pod I’m looking at? Too complicated.

So what is a girl to do when she loves curry as much as I do but cannot be bothered to slave in the kitchen for hours? She uses ketchup and curry powder and pow! What do you know: Super yummy ground beef curry to the rescue!

I admit to being surprised by the result as I anticipated the dish to fail during prep work (how positive of me!) – but ketchup is a pretty amazing condiment that somehow gets along with Indian food. I guess it makes sense when you think about it; ketchup is made with tomatoes, vinegar and sugar, and many Indian curries contain the same ingredients. A match made in heaven! What is also different about this curry is the texture of the ground beef: When cooked together with liquid, ground beef breaks into smaller chunks and remains moist and tender. This makes it perfect for pouring over rice or dipping fresh out of the oven pieces of naan bread. I’ve also added lots of veggies to keep this dish healthy and filling.

This is a straight forward, curry in a hurry, no fuss no muss ground beef curry recipe.

GROUND BEEF CURRY (KHEEMA)

PREP TIME: 10 mins
COOK TIME: 30 mins
TOTAL TIME: 40 mins

Author: Caroline Phelps
Recipe type: Main
Cuisine: Indian
Serves: 4

INGREDIENTS

1 tbsp vegetable oil
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 celery stalks, finely chopped
½ green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 thumb size ginger, peeled and grated
1 small tomato, roughly chopped
½ lb lean ground beef
1 cup chickpeas (drained)
¼ cup ketchup
3 tbsp curry powder
1 cup chicken broth
⅓ cup water
salt and pepper
fresh cilantro, roughly chopped (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS

- In a large pot (or deep fry pan) over high heat, add oil, garlic, onions, bell pepper and celery.
- Cook for 5 minutes, until vegetable have soften.
- Add tomato and ginger and cook for 1 minute.
- add water, stock and ground beef. Break up the ground beef as it is cooking and stir constantly until the meat has cooked through (about 3 minutes).
- Add chickpeas and stir well.
- Add ketchup and curry powder and stir well.
- Cover and cook on low (simmer) for 20 minutes, until vegetables are soft.

- Season with salt and pepper and serve with rice.

This recipe and image sources are referred in website: Pickledplum.com. Thanks so much!