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Qeema matar
Minced meat and pea curry
Qeema matar: Punjabi minced lamb or beef with green peas
In Lahore and across Pakistani Punjab, qeema matar is the mince dish that appears on a Tuesday when nobody has time for a slow salan: minced mutton or beef browned hard, cooked down with tomato, ginger and garlic, then studded with sweet green peas. It is dry enough to scoop with a hot roti or paratha, with a little sliced onion and lemon on the side. The usual mistake is adding the tomatoes before the mince has lost its raw, wet look, which leaves it boiled and grey instead of rich and brown. Chef's tip: break the mince up with the back of a spoon while it fries, so it cooks into fine crumbs rather than lumps.
- Total time
- 30 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 onionfinely chopped
- 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste
- 1 ⅛ lb lamb or beef mince
- 2 tomatoesfinely chopped
- 1 tsp red chilli powder
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp salt
- 5 ½ oz frozen green peas
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 2 green chilliesslit
- 1 handful fresh coriander (optional)chopped
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Heat 3 tbsp vegetable oil in a wide pan over a medium-high heat. Add 1 tsp cumin seeds and let it crackle for a few seconds, then add 1 onion and fry, stirring, until golden at the edges.
5 minStep 2: Stir in 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste and fry for 30 seconds, until the raw smell has gone.
Step 3: Add 1 ⅛ lb lamb or beef mince and turn the heat up. Fry, pressing it into small crumbs with a spoon, until the liquid it gives off has cooked away and the meat is browned and sizzling, not grey and wet.
6 minStep 4: Add 2 tomatoes, 1 tsp red chilli powder, ½ tsp ground turmeric, 1 tsp ground coriander and 1 tsp salt. Cook, stirring, until the tomatoes have melted into the meat and oil shines around the edges.
5 minStep 5: Stir in 5 ½ oz frozen green peas, 2 green chillies and 100 ml water. Cover and simmer on a low heat until the peas are tender and the mince is cooked through to 160°F, with no pink left.
5 minStep 6: Uncover, sprinkle over 1 tsp garam masala and cook for a minute more until any last liquid clings to the meat. Scatter with 1 handful fresh coriander and serve with roti.
1 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 390 kcal
- Protein
- 29 g
- Carbs
- 10 g
- Fat
- 26 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does qeema matar take?
- About 30 minutes in total: 8 minutes to prepare and 22 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of cumin seeds?
- Ground cumin, three quarters of the amount (add it with the other ground spices, not to hot oil first).
- What can I use instead of onion?
- 2 shallots per onion.
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