This beef mince curry is an Indian classic made with peas. Very similar to chili with minced meat and beans, but here we use ground beef and frozen peas instead. This simple and easy recipe uses popular curry powder and garam masala available in most supermarkets. This means you do not need a fully stocked Indian Pantry.
One of my absolute favorite things as a kid was minced meat. And my mom never failed to create wonderful Indian, as well as non-Indian dishes for us, such as this minced beef curry.
If you love Indian food, and have been to an Indian restaurant, you probably saw this dish on the menu often under the name Kheema Mattar Masala. Kheem is minced meat, 'mattar' means green peas, and masala meaning spice. So basically this is minced meat with peas cooked in Indian spices.
Table of Content
About this curry
To make this recipe authentic would mean to add all spices individually. I want to make this recipe accessible to my friends who love Indian food. So, instead of using my Indian spice rack, I chose to use what is most popularly found to everyone in most supermarkets: curry powder and garam masala. Of course, I am using my homemade curry and garam masala.
The recipe is very simple and very easy. The secret to cooking Indian food is to cook the spices well at every stage. Don't make haste. Saute the onions until they are translucent, let ginger and garlic go fragrant. Let the tomatoes become soft, so they disappear in the sauce. Cook the spices until they are fragrant. If you just add ingredients quickly to the pan and cook you will have a curry with color, it will even taste good, but you will lack that depth of flavor, which gets builds at every stage in the cooking process.
Today, am serving it with Indian chapati, and Indian spiced potatoes. But, you can also use naan, turmeric rice, or pilaf, vegetable. When I'm looking for a low carb option, I eat cauliflower rice. My cauliflower rice works great for me in place of steamed rice.
Ingredients and substitutes
- Beef - Ideally, you can use any minced meat. I have tried it with turkey, lamb, and chicken. They all taste delicious but my favorite is still the beef. If you do use chicken I highly recommend using the ground chicken thigh and reduce the cooking time.
- Onion - I use red onion because I like the little sweetness it adds when caramelized. But, you can use any onion and it will taste just fine.
- Ginger/garlic - I highly recommend mincing or grating these as it really blends well in the sauce. Plus, no one likes to bite into a piece of ginger or garlic.
- Paprika - I love adding sweet paprika when I cannot add cayenne or hot paprika because my kids are small. It really gives the curry a nice rich color. If you love spicy food, go ahead and add cayenne or chilly powder and you will love it.
- Fenugreek powder - This is a dried herb with a slightly bitter taste and is not commonly found. Feel free to omit it.
- Curry powder – I used my homemade curry powder as well as garam masala. These can be easily found in most supermarkets these days.
Step by step instructions (pin)
Prepare
- Chop onions fine - set aside
- Grate the ginger and mince the garlic - set aside
- Add one cup water to the minced beef - set aside
Saute
- In a pan or cast-iron skillet saute onion in the oil over medium heat for two minutes until translucent.
- Add garlic, ginger and bay leave - Saute another minute or two.
- Add curry powder, paprika, garam masala, fenugreek powder, and tomatoes - saute well for 2 to 3 mins on low until fragrant and the oil separates from the mixture.
- Next, add the beef mince and frozen peas and stir well for 2 to 3 minutes
- Season with salt and pepper
- Add half the fresh herbs and bring to a boil.
- Lower the heat and simmer covered for 15 minutes on medium-low until you see the oil separates from the mince.
- Lastly, add lemon juice.
- Taste and adjust seasoning.
- Check consistency - add water if you need more gravy or cook on medium until excess water is evaporated.
- Enjoy!
Frequently asked question
This beef curry will keep in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. You can also freeze it in the freezer for a month.
This curry can be spicy but this one is not too spicy. I make it less spicy by using more sweet paprika for the color instead of all chilly powder. The sweet smoked paprika gives the lamb that beautiful color.
You can but you will need to cook it for much less time as the ground chicken cooks instantly.
Garam masala is a blend of warm spices similar to pumpkin spice of gingerbread spice using spices like cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, etc. It can be easily available in most supermarkets. You can also omit the garam masala.
Curry powder is a blend of easy to find ingredients such as turmeric, coriander, cumin, etc. You probably already have these spices in your kitchen to make your own homemade curry powder.
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Recipe
Indian Beef Mince Curry aka Kheema Mattar Masala
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Ingredients
- 1 lb (500 g) Minced beef
- 1 cup (150 g) Frozen peas
- 2 tbsp Cooking oil
- 1 Red onion chopped
- 1 tbsp Garlic minced
- 1 tbsp Ginger grated
- 1 (1 cups) Tomatoes large, chopped
- 2 Bay leaves large
- 2 tbsp Curry powder
- 1 tsp Sweet paprika sweet or hot
- ½ tsp Garam masala (my homemade recipe)
- ½ tsp Fenugreek powder optional
- 1 tbsp Lemon juice
- 1 cup Cilantro or parsley chopped
Instructions
Prepare
- Chop onions fine -set aside
- Grate the ginger and mince the garlic - set aside
- Add one cup of water to the minced beef - set aside
Saute
- In a pan or cast-iron skillet saute onion in the oil over medium heat for two minutes until translucent.
- Add garlic, ginger and bay leave - Saute another minute or two.
- Add curry powder, paprika, garam masala, fenugreek powder, and tomatoes - saute well for 2 to 3 mins on low until fragrant and the oil separates from the mixture.
- Next, add the beef mince and frozen peas - stir well for 2 to 3 minutes
- Season with salt and pepper
- Add half the fresh herbs and bring to a boil.
- Lower the heat and simmer covered for 15 minutes on medium low until you see the oil separates from the mince.
- Lastly, add lemon juice.
- Taste and adjust seasoning.
- Check consistency - add water if you need more gravy or cook on medium until excess water is evaporated.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition Information
The nutrition information and metric conversion are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee its accuracy. If this data is important to you please verify with your trusted nutrition calculator. Thank you
Clare Moody
This was amazing and so tasty . Also so easy thank you
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Clare. So happy you enjoyed it.
Jackie Cayless
Really nice. Kids liked it too. I will add more curry powder and paprika next time as we like fairly spicy. Thanks
Veena Azmanov
Lucky you, Jackie. My kids won't eat more spicy than this. Thanks for the feedback.
Keith.
I tried this recipe last night. There were a few ingredients I didn't have (fenugreek, for example, and, as I didn't have any, I substituted fresh ginger for powdered). I did it with sauteed potatoes, and I have to say it was the best curry I've ever made - entirely delicous.
Thank you for providing me with the means to make such a lovely meal!
Veena Azmanov
Keith. I am so happy you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you for coming back to write this feedback.
Keith.
It's my pleasure, as indeed was the meal. I realised after I posted my comment that I'd got the gingers the wrong way around - it should read I used powdered ginger instead of fresh.
Anyway, this page is now saved in my favourites, as I'll be making this again, and will be looking at other recipes to try.
Veena Azmanov
Thank you so much, Keith. Happy to hear my site is on your lists of favorites.
AK
Fantastic Recipe, now my Wednesday night treat. I serve this with naan bread, mango chutney and raita in addition to the mint yogurt that my wife loves.
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Ak. So happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe. Thank you for coming back to write this feedback
Clarinda Yap
Wonderful dish, Veena! 🙂 thank you so much for sharing! 😍🙏
Veena Azmanov
Thank you, Clarinda. Happy you enjoyed it. Appreciate you coming back to write this feedback.