If you want to make a tasty stew to keep you warm this fall/winter, you’ve found it!
Indian Ground Beef Coconut Curry is a Keralite dish
In Kerala, they make a ton of stew, or as they call it: ishtu. Ishtu. It’s fun to say… and even more fun to eat. You can make all kinds of ishtu with chicken, lamb, beef, potatoes, eggs, etc. Because this is a mildly spiced stew, it’s usually eaten for breakfast, but in our house, we eat ishtu for lunch or dinner.
“I truly cannot believe this recipe does not have 700 likes and Five stars. I have made this recipe for years, shared it with friends, bought enough black mustard seeds to share with my neighborhood for 5 years, bought a curry plant that we NURTURE for this recipe ALONE and I get requests from it from my family ALL the time. Absolutely a hug in a bowl. The ONLY thing I do differently from the recipe (I rarely follow a recipe…this one is printed and pulled up OFTEN and followed to a tee) is I add peas JUST because we love peas. And to had color if I don’t have fresh herbs to tops it with. THANK you for this staple in my life.”
Amy H.
When making beef ishtu, I’ll usually use the leftover beef from my Indian Fried Beef recipe, but when I don’t have fried beef in the freezer, I’ll use ground beef instead.
I usually use one can of coconut milk when making this dish, but you can use two or add water/stock if you prefer a soupier stew. I make my stew nice and hearty – a lot of meat with every bite.
If you like a spicy stew, add more Serrano peppers. The recipe below is subtly spiced but still packs a lot of flavors.
Love this recipe? Give one of my other Keralite recipes a try!
Keralite Recipes to Try:
Ingredients
- 1-2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
- 1 large red onion finely chopped
- 1 serrano pepper minced (I used a small one to make a mild curry. Add more if you like it spicy)
- 2 sprigs curry leaves
- 1 tablespoon garlic minced (~4 garlic cloves)
- 1- inch piece ginger minced
Spices
- 2 teaspoon homemade meat masala
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ¼ teaspoon Kashmiri chili powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 pound ground beef
- 3 medium carrots chopped
- 1 potato chopped (optional)
- 1 can coconut milk canned and full fat (add more coconut milk or water if you like a thinner curry)
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat coconut oil in a pan over medium heat and add mustard seeds. Once seeds start to pop, add onions, serrano pepper and curry leaves.
- Once onions begin to brown, add garlic and ginger.
- Add the spices and let them bloom – then add ground beef.
- Cook the beef until it’s mostly browned, then add the carrots, potato and ¼ cup of water.
- Cover the pan and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add coconut milk and simmer until the potatoes are tender (approx. 15 minutes).
- Adjust salt and pepper and add water if you prefer a thinner curry.
Just for fun, here’s an old picture from 2013:
Melodi says
Just made this with Beyond Meat for a vegan version. I need to share it so I don’t eat too much. 🙂
Sheilar says
Can ground chicken/turkey be used as a replacement for a healthier option? Or even vegetarian meat crumbles/beyond meat?
Amy Hollands says
I truly cannot believe this recipe does not have 700 likes and Five stars. I have made this recipe for years, shared it with friends, bought enough black mustard seeds to share with my neighborhood for 5 years, bought a curry plant that we NURTURE for this recipe ALONE and I get requests from it from my family ALL the time. Absolutely a hug in a bowl. The ONLY thing I do differently from the recipe (I rarely follow a recipe…this one is printed and pulled up OFTEN and followed to a tee) is I add peas JUST because we love peas. And to had color if I don’t have fresh herbs to tops it with. THANK you for this staple in my life.
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Amy, love this comment lol! I’m so happy to hear that you’ve shared this recipe with friends and family and that you love this so much! Thank you for this amazing comment/review, I really appreciate it!
Beck and Bulow says
Absolutely gorgeous. We’ve done it with lamb too and equally as nice. We add a little more chilli powder for a wee bit more of a kick. Will add fresh chilli next time
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Happy to hear that! Thanks for letting me know how you like this!
Farha says
Hi Ashley, great recipe! Can’t wait to try. Can this be eaten with rice/paratha/roti or is better to be eaten as only soup?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Farha, you can serve this with rice or paratha but it’s good enough to eat on its own. If I’m making it as part of a meal for guests, I serve it with rice – but if I’m making it for the family I’ll serve it as soup. Traditionally though, it’s served with matta rice or a rice pancake called appam.
Joe says
Hi! Can I replace the curry leaves with curry paste?
My Heart Beets says
Joe, unfortunately no – there’s no replacement for curry leaves. You can read this article I wrote about it to learn more if you’d like: https://myheartbeets.com/difference-between-curry-leaves-curry-powder/
Ben says
It looks like a good recipe, but it seems weird to talk about an “Indian ground beef” dish when Cows are sacred animals in Hindu majority India and aren’t eaten.
My Heart Beets says
Ben, I can understand that. As a north Indian myself, I had never heard of Indian beef until meeting my husband whose south Indian family is Catholic and from Kerala where beef is consumed. Let me know if you give it a try 🙂
Tina says
What a graceful reply! Sounds like Ben has never broken bread with any of the millions of Indian Christians around the world (almost 30 million in India alone). Even some Hindus in India eat beef (just ask my family). Great site; I’ve tried many of your recipes and hope to someday impress my own Christian Indian mother-in-law with this recipe!
My Heart Beets says
Thanks Tina! I appreciate the kind words 🙂 I can’t wait to hear what you think of this if you give it a try!
Neethu says
Hi Ashley ,
I am glad that I stumbled upon this recipe . I usually make Keema with peas and carrots and was looking for a different one . It came out pretty good. Like we make stew in Kerala ii made 2 coconut milk of two consistency , 1st paal( thick one ) and 2nd paal which is the thinner version.instead of water Ii used the second paal and the end topped of the curry with second paal. I like a little sour taste so added vinegar too. It came out well ,thank you so much and I plan of making more of your recipes.
My Heart Beets says
Hi Neethu! I’m glad you found this recipe too! I hope you’ll let me know what you think of any more recipes that you try 🙂
Tarah says
Delicious. I added frozen peas, more potatoes, we all enjoyed it!
My Heart Beets says
Tarah, thanks for letting me know how much you liked it! 🙂
ALIcia says
Rutabagas are awesome replacement for potatoes
My Heart Beets says
Great to know!