In collaboration with Simply Beef & Lamb.
I am a huge fan of spice and vibrant fresh flavour, which means we eat a lot of Indian and Middle Eastern foods in our house. We’re also fans of lamb. For years, every Autumn, I’ve bought a whole lamb from a local crofter for our freezer; lambs reared in the fields outside my house, lambs I know have been treated well, and lambs that have been slaughtered locally, meaning lower food miles.
Not everyone has access to their own home grown hill lambs, but thankfully there are ways for you to choose lamb that has been farm assured and is of top quality. Look out for a quality mark like the Red Tractor logo on packets of British home grown lamb (and beef) so you can be sure the meat is traceable, safe to eat and has been produced responsibly.
Lamb mince is an incredibly delicious and versatile ingredient – use it in comfort food dishes like shepherd’s pies and barbecue kofta skewers, but what about non-traditional recipes like hash, pancakes, tortillas, tacos, toasties, nachos, pasta bakes or even in a Scotch egg?
Simply Beef and Lamb have teamed up with Red Tractor and a couple of pretty awesome Keema Nans who want to share their family recipes and home cookery tips, showing you just how versatile and tasty British lamb can be. This week they’ve published a rather fantastic digital keema cookbook comprised of traditional and modern keema recipes (keema means ‘minced meat’) along with some cooking tips, advice and more.
One of their recipes, the keema meatball curry by Mamta Gupta over at Mamta’s Kitchen, really caught my eye, so this weekend I treated the family to a quick and delicious Indian curry. Watch the video above to see just how easy it is!
Would you believe that even the kids ate it! When you’ve got fussy kids like mine this is so much for the win!
The keema meatball curry was really simple to make, and there’s something incredibly satisfying with working with whole herbs and spices. The scents and aromas wafting from the kitchen had the family ooh-ing and aah-ing long before dinner was ready, and the thing with Indian cooking is that you can always adjust the heat to your liking. I only used half a chopped chilli in my meatballs, and that was just perfect for the kids. Not to spicy but still with a kick of heat to get the juices going. I always serve a little bowl of plain, natural yogurt on the side to help cool things down, if needs be.
You can find the recipe for other rather creative ways to cook lamb mince in The Keema Sutra, a recipe booklet to banish boring recipes and inspire families to spice up mealtimes. on the Simply Beef & Lamb website.
What’s your favourite way to cook lamb mince? Let me know in the comments!
Mamta Gupta's Indian Keema Meatball Curry
Ingredients
for the meatballs
- 500 grams lamb mince
- 1 large egg slightly beaten
- 1 medium onion peeled and roughly chopped
- 0.5 inch fresh ginger root peeled
- 3 garlic cloves peeled
- 1-2 green chilli finely chopped (or use red)
- 1.5 tsp sea salt or to taste
- 0.5 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 10 fresh mint leaves (or mint, if you prefer)
for the whole spices
- 1 tsp whole cumin seeds
- 3 green cardamom pods broken slightly with a mortar
- 8 whole peppercorns
- 6 whole cloves
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 inch cinnamon stick or cassia bark
for the curry
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 medium onion peeled and roughly chopped
- 3 garlic cloves peeled
- 1 inch fresh ginger root peeled
- 1/2 tsp ground coriander
- 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
- 1/2 tsp ground chilli powder adjust to taste
- 1 tsp sweet paprika for colour
- salt to taste
- 2 tbsp tomato puree
- 2 medium tomatoes or 200 grams chopped tinned tomatoes
- 0.5 - 0.75 pint water
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 2 tbsp fresh coriander leaves to garnish
Instructions
- 1. Place all meat ball ingredients, except the lamb and egg, in a food processor and process finely. If you don't have a food processor chop the ingredients as fine as you can.
- Place the lamb in a large bowl and add the onion mixture and the egg. Mix well by hand or with a large spoon.
- Transfer the mixture to an airtight container and leave in the fridge for a few hours, or overnight, to marinate. This helps the flavours to infuse.
- When ready to cook the curry, shape the meatballs into 20 walnut sized balls. I divided the mixture into half, then half again to make the balls as evenly sized as I could. Wetting your fingers and palms helps with the rolling.
- To prepare the curry, heat the vegetable oil in a heavy based saucepan.
- When the oil is hot, add the whole spices. When the cumin seeds begin to sizzle add the onion, garlic and ginger mix.
- Fry this mixture until it is golden to dark brown. This might take awhile, but be patient - it's an important step in making the curry taste amazing.
- Add the chopped tomatoes, tomato purée, ground coriander, turmeric, chilli powder, paprika and salt. Cook until the oil separates or the mix looks shiny.
- Add the water, bring to a boil and reduce the heat to a simmer.
- Add the meatballs, raw, to the simmering (but not boiling!) sauce. Allow to simmer for 20 minutes, with the lid off (covering with the lid sometimes causes the meatballs to break), shaking the pan on occasion and turning once.
- When meat balls are ready, any oil will separate and float to the top of the sauce. Add half the coriander leaves and garam masala, stir gently and transfer to a serving dish.
- Garnish with remaining coriander and serve hot with freshly made chapattis, steamed rice or plain pilaf rice.
Notes
OTHER KEEMA SUTRA RECIPES
Mamta Gupta’s Indian Keema Lamb Meatballs by Kavey Eats (Mamta’s daughter)
Spicy Lamb Keema Pizza by Supergolden Bakes
Lamb Keema Nachos by Foodie Quine
Lamb Keema Tacos by Fuss Free Flavours
Keema Nachos by Munchies and Munchkins
This is a paid post in collaboration with Simply Beef & Lamb as part of their Keema Sutra campaign. Thank you for supporting the brands who make it possible for me to do what I love: mess up my kitchen and share recipe stories!
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Have you made this recipe?
Take a photo and tag @tangoraindrop or use the hashtag #elizabethskitchendiary and share on Instagram and Twitter. It would make my day to see your creations!
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Daydream adventurer. Expat Canadian. Foodie. Calls Shetland home, for now. One eye is always on the horizon.
Pat C.Wilson says
meatball with white rice is the best combination for a dinner. i usually cook meatball with tofu ( try it out Elizabeth 😀 ) because my kids eat much more whenever i make that dish.
i forward more posts from you, have a nice week!
Emily Rose says
I’m a big curry fan, although mine are vegan! But i might try some soya meatballs!
Charlotte says
What a great idea. I have only ever had meatballs in bolognaise. Bet they would be fab in a curry!
Tracy Morgan says
Making this for tea tonight! Although I won’t ever be able to compete with these beautiful photos!
Annie B says
Firstly your photography is awesome. I can’t stand lamb and you’re making even me hungry! I guess this would maybe work with different meat?
Bintu - Recipes From A Pantry says
Wow how delicious does this look. A really authentically spiced curry.
Platter Talk says
Those look delicious & I love curry! We are going to give this recipe a try next weekend! Thanks.
Melissa @ My Wife Can Cook says
Wow, this looks amazing! I have never had curry and meatballs together. I love all those spices, I bet the whole house smelled amazing while making this!
Anna Fraser says
Oooof this looks amazing! I love curry and cook it possibly twice a week – I’m quite literally addicted to spices so this recipe couldn’t be any more up my street if you possibly tried!
I’m going to give it a go on Friday night. Thank you!
Colleen C says
First of all, I love your photography! And these meatballs look delicious! Doesn’t help that I’m sitting through a chemotherapy session right now, dying for yummy food! Beautiful post! xoxoxo
The London Mum says
I have never thought about a meatball curry before but it sounds and LOOKs amazing!
Valerie says
I’ve never had meatballs and curry together. This looks so good.
Hannah says
This looks and sounds like a great meal – I need to try it soon!
Melissa major says
Looks like a very nice curry! Really must make it one day 🙂
Dr.Amrita Basu says
I love lamb keema curry.It’s comfort food to beat all.
I am Indian and this has been a Sunday dinner favourite fora very long time.You pics are so great I can literally smell the aroma wafting from this beautiful dish.
Jasmine Watts says
Yumm.. this looks so delicious! I would love to try out this recipe today.
Lakisha says
Omg I love Indian food! I’ve always wonder how many seasonings and spices were used to create such flavorful dishes! Thanks for the tips
Tara L says
I would so love to make this recipe but would need help I dislike all the ingredients you have to put in lol I guess that is what curry is all about all the spices have to be just right!
MELANIE EDJOURIAN says
I do love a good curry and this ones sounds especially delicious.
Kerry Norris says
I’m pretty sure I saw a pic of this on your Instagram and I started salivating. We luckily are able to buy lamb straight from a farmer by us. Will defo be cooking this x
Dannii @ Hungry Healthy Happy says
I do love a curry and a meatball curry sounds really comforting too.
nicol says
Beautifully presented and looks amazing. Btw, you photography is on point.
Fatima says
I’ve never tried curry, but I’d love to add it to my dish. I hear it gives it a nice kick
Rachel says
My mouth is literally watering with this, all those colours and flavours, wow.
Claire says
Oh how lovely! When we return from hols I have a lot of food posts p[anned – you are inspiring me!
Ana says
It looks so delicious! Thank you again for sharing such a delicious recipe and definitely, try this out.
Anna nuttall says
Beautiful photos and this meatball curry look delicious. I have bookmarked this and will be making this soon. xx
Sondra Barker says
I do enjoy a good curry quite often and this one looks absolutely delicious! Your photos are beautiful and the recipe sounds even better! I’ll have to try this one out the next time I’m craving a tasty curry!
Sam | North East Family Fun says
Do you know what, I’ve never thought of using meatballs in a curry – we always use lamb/chicken/prawns. Going to try this next time to mix things up a bit x
Tracy Morgan says
Oh, that really does look beyond amazing! Saving it to make myself!
Jessica says
I love Indian food too! This meatball curry is indeed a dish with a spice and vibrant fresh flavour that makes you wanting it more and more.
Liz Mays says
Yum! I really like curry with some spice. I know I’d like this recipe!
Ana De- Jesus says
I am a big fan of spice as well and I really feel like it can add flavour to pretty much any dish. This looks lovely.
Sam Bresnahan says
Very interesting choice using meatballs. I never considered meatballs in curry. Looks delicious
Nellwyn says
This looks so yummy! Perfect for the upcoming cold weather.
Katy Stevens says
This looks absolutely amazing! I have bookmarked it to come back to 🙂
Tara says
Oh this looks fabulous, I’d love to give it a go!
Rhian Westbury says
I’m not usually a fan of currys but this meatball one sounds so yummy x
Harriet from Toby & Roo says
This is just too delicious. I absolutely love the curry flavours and I can’t wait to give this a go!
Meg Kerns says
Ack- this is the second curry post I’ve come across today- guess what we’re having for dinner now! Yum! Thank you for sharing, looks delish!
Lisa says
Curry is always so delicious, and I’ve actually never used minced lamb before – in fact I’m not sure I could even get it here, but now I’ll be on the lookout for it! If I can’t find it I’ll substitute chicken or keep it vegetarian…otherwise I have all the ingredients so this one goes on my short list of new recipes to try!
Christine Dodd says
This looks delicious. Personally I like a lamb mince burger served with liberal amounts of tsatsiki
Dahn @savor the Best says
This looks incredible, lamb is one of my favorites and tastes so good in a curry. I love that your using whole spices for a fresh, vibrant flavor
Janette@CulinaryGinger says
I miss a good Indian curry and always make my own, which I prefer. Now I have a new recipe, thank you for sharing.
LaaLaa says
Oh this looks delicious, I love curry being a vegetarian I substitute. Meatball curry very different, I like.
Shanna says
THIS LOOKS AMAZING! I want to lick the screen!
I have to try this for dinner one night!
Tara says
This sounds incredible! So rich in flavor! I love the photos, especially showing the spices.
Paighton Millington - The Lazy Baker says
Oh I’m going to have to make this, it’s looks delicious! ☺️
Jemma @ Celery and Cupcakes says
I love all of the vibrant colours of a curry. This looks wonderful, I’ve never had a meatball curry before.