This ground beef curry is simple but still packs the heat and flavor you expect from an authentic Durban curry. The meat cooks quickly and makes this an easy meal to prepare during the week when time is short. Don’t be fooled by the simplicity of this recipe — it is a hefty and comforting meal that can convince you to spend an extra hour (or two) on the couch before bedtime.
Mince curry, or ground beef curry, was the first Indian dish I learned to cook after arriving in the US. I had missed my mum’s cooking and wanted to have a taste of home in between her visits. Of course, I used my mum’s recipe which was a great place to begin my journey into South African Indian cooking.
The ground beef requires no advanced preparation, and the vegetables can be prepared in minutes. Enjoy this curry on top of rice or with a side of bread, and pair it with a fresh carrot salad.
How to Make Durban Mince (Ground Beef) Curry
I like to have all my ingredients prepared before I begin cooking. For this recipe, start by dicing your onions, tomatoes, and chili peppers. Finely mince the garlic and mix with the ginger to create a ginger-garlic paste. Lastly, cube your potatoes and soak them in a bowl of water until needed to prevent browning.
To cook, we’ll start off by adding oil to a pot and heat to medium-high. Ground beef naturally has a lot of oil, so use oil sparingly in this dish. Once the oil is warm, add in the whole spices and roast for a minute or two. Keep a watchful eye over the whole spices as they can burn easily, especially the bay leaves. Next, add in the onion and cook for a few minutes until the onions turn translucent. Once this has happened, add in the ginger-garlic paste and Thai chili peppers. Mix everything together and after a few minutes, the mixture will be quite fragrant.
Complete the next two steps in fairly quick succession. The spices can burn quickly as they absorb the moisture from the pot. First, add all of the ground spices EXCEPT for the garam masala and then mix. Then quickly add the ground beef and begin thoroughly mixing all the contents of the pot. The ground beef will begin to break apart as you mix and will blend with the rest of the ingredients. You will see the oil being released from the ground beef, at which point it is safe to stop mixing. Salt the mixture to taste, close the lid, and let the contents cook for around 5 minutes.
You will see the color of ground beef change and separate further as it cooks through. Now you will add the diced tomatoes. These will cook down quite quickly and will add some acidity to the dish. After the tomatoes have cooked for around 5 minutes, add in the potatoes and the garam masala and mix thoroughly. Let this cook and for the next 10-15 minutes, stir the contents occasionally to prevent them from sticking to the bottom. Once the potatoes are done, add in the peas and you’re done! Garnish with some fresh cilantro and you are ready to serve this with either rice or bread (roti is my favorite), a side of fresh carrot salad.
Mix it up by adding in additional vegetables such as spinach, watercress, cabbage, boiled eggs, and more!
Durban Mince (Ground Beef) Curry
Ingredients
- 1¼ lb ground beef
- 2 potatos
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 yellow onion
- 2 roma tomatos
- 5 garlic cloves
- 2 tsp ginger
- 3 Thai chili peppers
- 1 cup cooked or frozen peas
- ½ cup cilantro (optional)
Ground Spices
- 5 tsp mixed masala recipe linked above
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- ⅓ tsp ground cardamom (you may also use 4 whole cardamom pods added with the whole spices instead)
- ¾ tsp garam masala
Whole Spices
- 1-2 bay leaf
- 1 cinnamon sticks
- 3 cloves
Instructions
- Heat a thick based pot on medium-high and add enough oil to coat the base. Wait a few for the oil to heat
- Add the whole spices and quickly roast- not more than 2 minutes or they may burn
- And the the diced onion and cook until it turns glassy
- Reduce heat, add the garlic, ginger, and Thai chili. Mix and cook until the garlic and ginger are fragrant- less than 5 min
- Add the ground spices, EXCEPT for the garam masala, and mixture everything thoroughly
- Add the ground beef as soon as mixed in the ground spices. Increase the temperature back to medium high. The contents may start to dry at so mix in the ground beef quickly so that the contents do not stick to the bottom
- Add salt, close lid, and cook for 5 minutes
- Add tomatoes, stir the contents, and cook for another 5 min
- Add the potatoes and garam masala, and cook for 10-15 min. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking
- When the potatoes are cooked, stir it the peas
- Garnish with cilantro, and serve hot with rice or bread, and a side of carrot salad
