Curried mince with peas

Peas in curried mince is an dish often made in the Cape but when I came across this North Indian recipe I just had to give it a try and it was truly fantastic, quite different from the Cape Malay style though. Now that you can get frozen peas in supermarkets again it’s well worth giving a try. (for 4 people)

What you need

2 onions chopped
2 teaspoons crushed garlic
2 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger
2 large green chili’s chopped
2 bay leaves
500g lamb mince (beef is also fine)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
pinch turmeric
Pinch chili powder
2 tablespoons coriander powder
2 tablespoons cumin powder
2 tablespoons plain yoghurt
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups frozen peas
Palm of chopped fresh coriander
Oil

Water

The process

The first thing you need to do is blitz the onions, garlic, ginger and chilis in a food processor or grind to a paste in a pestle and mortar.

Heat about 4 tablespoons of oil in a heavy base frying pan over a medium heat and add your paste. Cook for about 3 minutes or so and then add the bay leaves. Cook, stirring until it begins to brown.

Add the mince and cook, stirring occasionally until the meat changes colour, about 15 minutes. Now add the tomato paste and reduce the heat to low.

Add the turmeric, chili powder, coriander powder, salt, pepper and cumin and give the mixture a good mix to combine all the flavors. Add the yoghurt and about 3/4 cup water and give it a mix. Cook until most of the water has evaporated. Now add the peas, stir, cover and simmer for 15 minutes.

Whe you are ready to serve, toss in the chopped coriander leaves, stir and serve.

It’s a really great tasting dish that is perfect for work the next day. Another fantastic curry is the Kerala country chicken, give it a try.