Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Kheema Matar, Spiced Minced Lamb With Peas



I have always loved Indian food and like a lot of Malaysian children growing up, roti canai was one of my favourite breakfast dishes (always with lamb curry! yes I'm talking about breakfast :)) Indian food was never cooked at home for whatever reason that might be, but going to Indian restaurants for lunch and dinner was quite a regular affair for us. I was very lucky to grow up with a lot of Indian friends; some of them are still my closest friends today, so I was lucky enough to have tasted many beautiful Indian home cooking from quite a vast number of regions and have an idea of what good Indian food is really about. Going to my good friend G's house in the tea plantation during the weekends or holiday breaks was always a treat, delicious food was served as soon as we cleaned ourselves up after a day of running around in the beautiful countryside.
This is a dish I learnt from my neighbour V when I was living in Singapore and has since been my favourite ever since. For me, mince + peas = comfort food, and  If you agree with me this is perfect the next time you feel a little down. One of the tummies was complaining about the heat while stuffing himself with more of the mince, so it has to be good :)
P.S I'm using lamb mince here, beef will be equally delicious cooked this way.


serves 4 as part of an Indian meal;
you'll need;
500g of lamb mince
200g of peas
2 bay leaves
2 green chilies, sliced
2 tbs of tomato puree
2 tbs of greek yoghurt
1/2 tsp of turmeric powder
1/2 tsp of chili powder
2 tbs of cumin powder
2tbs of coriander powder
1 tbs of garam masala
coriander leaves, chopped
1 tbs of black pepper, crushed
salt to taste
250 ml of water


for the spice paste you'll need;
2 onions, chopped
5 green chilies, chopped (remove seeds for a milder dish)
4 cloves of garlic, chopped
5 cm knob of ginger, chopped
blend everything to a course paste

Spice paste

Fry spice paste and bay leaves with 4 tbs of oil til soften and lightly browned. Add in the mince and mix through, break up any large lumps as you go.

After about 10 minutes, add the tomato paste and continue to stir.

Add dry spices except the garam masala, mix through and fry the mixture for 5 minutes. Add in the yoghurt.

Slowly add in the water and let it simmer for a good 10 minutes, stir from time to time to prevent the mixture sticking to the bottom.

When the mixture is quite dry, chuck in the peas, check for seasonings and add the garam masala and chopped coriander leaves.


Served as part of an Indian meal.

28 comments:

  1. That looks tasty! It's almost like samosa filling.

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  2. Looks delicious! I'm a mince and peas lover too!!

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  3. Wow yummy looking dish! I will be very happy with lots of rice with this!

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  4. You've got another fan of Indian food ! These mutton are so fragrant and I would like to have these serve with prata or tumerice rice. Come over to my kitchen later , I've grilled some tumeric drumsticks and tumeric rice with raisins.... have reserved a plate for you !

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  5. Thanks Palidor! I think it will work well as samosa filling.

    Thanks Anonymous! Glad to hear that :)

    Thanks Mike! and lots of roti too!

    Thanks Pearlyn!! Your dinner sounds delicious but I don't think there will be any left by the time I get there!!

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  6. Lots of fresh lamb mince here. Can easily cook this dish....looks sooooo delicious.I would love it with roti canai too. Really miss that.

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  7. I really like this delicious dish but I'll use beef instead. Thanks for sharing.

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  8. My kind of food! It looks so good my diet plan can say goodbye :(

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  9. So beautifully presented, I love Indian food too, LOL.

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  10. I love lamb! This will definately go well with roti or rice! Yum!

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  11. Thanks Mary! I would have made some roti canai but was too lazy haha!

    Anncoo, beef will be just as delicious,

    Michele, diet can start after the new year :)

    Kenny, thank you! I know you like curry :)

    Thanks Tricia, make sure to try making it!

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  12. Congratulations on the reopening of the tummies' kitchen! This looks very delicious and we all love mince and peas here :)

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  13. 好喜歡呀!用豬肉可以嗎?

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  14. What a delicious recipe and what a great blog! I love it and am following! My mum was born and raised in Malaysia so I grew up on all the foods you write about and try to cook them here at home for my family too. So glad I found your blog via full-timed housefly!

    Best wishes, Natasha.

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  15. I love this dish but I am not a fan of lamb. Do you think I can just replace it with beef?

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  16. Love to eat,
    Thanks!! It is very exciting to start cooking again :) Glad I found more mince and peas lovers :)

    大肥,
    謝謝!當然可以啊!

    Natasha,
    Thank you so much!! I am so happy you are familiar with a lot of my food! Pearlyn is great, very good food idea there. I'll check out your blog :)

    ICook4Fun,
    Thanks! Beef will be just as delicious, I sometimes use beef too.

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  17. oh yeah I am loving this one, cool Indian week, oh Malaysian food is also good, have had roti and curry before yummy I am on my way over!!
    will link to OMIndianGroceries facebook page I am doing their social media
    Rebecca

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  18. Harriet from CarltonDecember 9, 2009 at 3:48 PM

    I could eat this everyday!! The kids will love it!!

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  19. Good to know beef can be used instead, I can see this turning into a family favourite. Which part of Singapore were you living?

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  20. Rebecca,
    Thanks! thanks! thanks! will be a seat reserved for you :)

    Harriet,
    I bet the kids would love it so double the quantity!

    Wan,
    Yeah I often use beef. I was living in Newton Circus.

    Daniel,
    Thanks and what are you cooking? This is perfecy for you!

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  21. Haha was wondering when you'll start cooking Indian food, this looks awsome! I'll need at least a kg of mince!

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  22. Oh you are very lucky to have tasted many home cooked Indian food, is the tea plantation in Cameron Highlands? This dish looks great btw :)

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  23. That is a delicious dish indeed.
    I like the way of presentation and the recipe too.

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  24. Kheema is my FAVORITE LAMB DISH! you have done an amazing job explaining step by step!! thank you for the wonderful recipe!

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  25. fitzboy,
    Haha thanks fitzboy, I normally cook extra too and it taste better the next day.

    Kl girl in Melbourne,
    Thanks! I'm very lucky indeed! IT is in Cameron Highlands!

    Abhilash Pillai,
    Thanks! I really appreciate that!

    Resh,
    Thanks! I bet you have a good recipe for Kheema :)

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  26. Very proud of you! It looks much better than what I taught you haha! Coming for a visit soon?

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  27. My sort of food! It looks so great my eating regimen plan can bid farewell

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