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Ruchik Randhap

Food & Memories of Mangalore

Keema Green Masala

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To combat a mid-week meal idea crisis I always stock up on minced (ground) meat or keema as we call it in India. While my family has varied interests when it comes to how they like to eat their meat, I am glad that we agree that keema cooked any which way is always palatable. Highly palatable. It is simply a fantastic accompaniment to Indian breads such as chapathis or pulkas or even with rice and tastes even better when cooked with rice in the form of a pulao or biryani. Little wonder then, that I have plenty of recipes on my blog that call for keema. 

The best part about keema is that you can just toss in any spice blend you like and it will still taste fabulous. However, to get the right texture you need to ensure that the minced meat is always at room temperature and the other things that form the ‘masala’ are well fried before the mince slowly simmers away to perfection. Frozen mince if thawed abruptly can lead to a slightly watery end result. By ‘abruptly’ I mean using the defrost option in a microwave or immersing it in loads of water are not the best methods in my opinion
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Since I am very fond of the green masala, I tried this variation to make the mince. Although it does involve a bit of effort (grinding the masala) the result is very nice. I served the keema with Arabic kuboos (a kind of flat bread that is baked in a hot oven) and it tasted wonderful!

This dish is a very basic recipe which you can make for your weekday meal. You can go ahead & add additional spices if you want to take the dish to a whole new level.

                                                                               
                                                                     
Keema Green Masala                                                                                             
Prep time: 15 mins | Cook time: 20 mins | Serves 4

Ingredients

  • 1/2 kg ground/minced (keema) beef or mutton * see notes
  • 3 medium sized onions finely minced
  • 3 medium sized tomatoes finely chopped
  • 2 teaspoons vinegar (optional)
  • 2-3 tablespoons finely chopped coriander & mint (for garnishing)
  • 2-3 tablespoons oil or ghee 

To be ground to paste:

  • 4 green chillies slit (adjust to taste)
  • 1 packed cup of coriander & mint leaves (3:1 ratio)
  • 12 flakes of garlic
  • 3″ piece of ginger
  • 4 cloves
  • 2″ piece of cinnamon or cassia bark
  • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
  • 8-10 peppercorns (adjust to taste)
  • 3 dry red chillies de-seeded (use only skins)
  • 1 teaspoon cumin/jeera
  • 1 marble sized ball of tamarind

Method:
1. Wash the mince once and allow to drain well on a fine slotted colander * see notes. Grind all ingredients mentioned under ‘To be ground to paste’.
2. Heat oil or ghee in a heavy bottomed pan (you may use a pressure cooker) and fry the minced onions till light brown. Add the chopped tomatoes and fry till they turn mushy, you can sprinkle some salt to speed up this process. When the oil begins to leave from the sides add the ground masala and fry well for 2-3 minutes.
3. Put in the minced meat, add salt (adjust accordingly if you have already added some to fry the tomatoes) and vinegar (optional). On a slow flame continue to fry until the keema is dryish (but juicy). If you are using a pressure cooker you can cover it after adding the salt & vinegar and pressure cook for 2 whistles or depending on how tender the mince is (or how coarsely it has been ground).
4. When done, garnish with chopped coriander & mint and serve hot with chapatis, rotis, pulkas, rice or bread

Notes:
1. Depending on whether you are using beef or mutton keema the cooking time may vary. Frozen mince should always be defrosted at room temperature, otherwise it will turn lumpy while it is being cooked.
2. While many people are of the opinion that there is no need to wash hygienically packed mince, I feel it is always advisable to do so. However, ensure that it is well drained before use or else the dish will turn watery. Wash & drain it at least for an hour prior to use.

If you like dishes prepared with green masala (made with ground coriander/cilantro & mint leaves) you may also try these recipe:
Chicken Green Curry (Without Coconut)
Cilantro Fish
Mum’s Chicken Green Biryani (Pressure Cooker Method)

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Comments

  5. Shireen Sequeira says

    Hi Laveena, You are right, I totally missed mentioning the potatoes in the recipe as it was my own addition and not in the original recipe that I followed. If you wish to add it you can do so in step 3 after the minced meat has been added

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  8. Shireen Sequeira says

    Hi Archana, well, if you have washed the mince then there is no need to add extra water but if you are pressure cooking it, you could just sprinkle a little water. Again it depends on how much fat is released by the meat in which case the water may become excess. If you are uncertain about the cooker method or the quality of meat you have got, I suggest you cook it on slow fire instead of pressure cooking. Hope you are using beef as mentioned in the recipe and not any other meat?

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  9. Archana says

    Ishhhh .. As i saw "*or Mutton'"" i ended up using lamb kheema , i made the same last nyte wit little water . And looked almost similar to urs .. As i dont eat meat. But husband was happy !! Thnkx for the receipe and prompt replies too ..

    Reply