Move over ground beef. Ground lamb is stealing the show today.
This ground lamb curry is made with Indian spices like ginger, coriander, cumin, turmeric, and meat masala. It’s a little spicy, but the tomatoes help balance the heat by adding a little sweetness. The potatoes, peas, and carrots help make this a hearty dish. And the great thing about cooking this in the Instant Pot is that it helps marry the flavors together in a little over half an hour vs. cooking it all day in a slow cooker. Though I actually have a slow cooker version of the recipe if that’s what you’d rather use.
I love lamb. It has a sweet flavor to it that ground beef just doesn’t have. And as much as I love the ease of cooking with ground beef – it can get kind of… boring. That’s when I opt for ground lamb (or goat, chicken, pork, etc.).
Some people seem to think that lamb tastes gamey or has a smell to it, but I have to tell you, I’ve never noticed either of those things. People often confuse lamb with mutton – mutton is an older sheep and has a stronger flavor. I find lamb to be sweeter and milder than ground beef, and I most definitely prefer it, so if you get the chance, try it! Not sure if you already know this, but lamb is actually the second most popular protein in the world (after goat meat), but it’s obviously not as popular as beef here in America. I’m pretty sure that if you try this curry, though, you’ll start loving lamb as much as I do.
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons ghee or butter
- 1 onion diced
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1- inch fresh ginger minced
- 1-2 Serrano peppers minced (according to heat preference)
- 4 tomatoes chopped
Spices
- 1 tablespoon coriander powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon homemade meat masala
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon cumin powder
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne adjust to taste
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 pound ground lamb
- 1 cup frozen peas rinsed
- 3 carrots chopped
- 2 potatoes chopped
- 1 13.5 ounce can tomato sauce
- Cilantro garnish
Instructions
- Press the sauté button on the Instant Pot, add the ghee and onions. Cook until the onions begin to brown.
- Add the ginger, garlic and serrano pepper. Stir-fry for a minute, then add the tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes, or until they begin to break down.
- Add the spices, stir-fry for a minute, then add the ground lamb. Cook until the meat is fully browned.
- Add the peas, carrots, potatoes and tomato sauce to the pot and mix well.
- Secure the lid, close the pressure valve and cook for 10 minutes at high pressure.
- Allow the pressure to release naturally if possible, otherwise quick release is also fine for this recipe.
Nutrition
Looking for more Instant Pot Recipes? Try these:
Instant Pot Shredded Chicken
Instant Pot Saag
Instant Pot Carne Guisada
Instant Pot Habanero Chili
Instant Pot Dal Makhani
Goat Curry in a Hurry
Instant Pot Texas Beef Chili
Instant Pot Butter Chicken
Sarah says
I made the instant pot ground lamb curry recipe last night and was thrilled with the results. I didn’t have a serrano pepper to hand so just bumped up the cayenne a touch, and used diced tomatoes instead of tomato sauce. I didn’t think there was enough liquid in the pot to bring it up to pressure, so added a small tin of V-8 juice before locking on the lid. After being at pressure for 10 minutes and natural release following, I had lots of liquid left over, so I saute’d it for a couple of minutes afterwards to boil off some of the extra liquid. The flavours were AMAZING! My husband was VERY pleased, and had three bowlfuls. Would definitely do this again!
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Sarah, that’s great to hear! I’m glad you and your husband enjoyed this so much 🙂
Kim says
Can you provide number of servings this makes and the nutritional values?
Ashley - My Heart Beets says
Hi Kim, I just updated the recipe card to include that information. Hope that helps!
Jay says
Is this recipe good with ground beef?
My Heart Beets says
I’m sure it’d be good with ground beef 🙂 I also have a great Kerala ground beef curry if you want to give that one a try: https://myheartbeets.com/indian-ground-beef-coconut-curry/
Julie says
Recipe great but your Website keeps crashing!
My Heart Beets says
Hi Julie, I’m glad you liked it! Sorry about it crashing – I’m working on updating my site and hope to release a faster version in a few months. Stick with me!
Leslie says
You link to the homemade meat masala, but it says there are two different kinds — North and South Indian. Which do you recommend for this recipe?
Leslie says
Never mind. I see you only give the recipe for the South Indian kind.
Lynn says
Hi, I followed this recipe exactly as written– it doesn’t seem like 10 min on high pressure is enough time. The potatoes were still crunchy (not cooked …and they were smaller cubes). I put it back on high pressure for another 3 minutes and that seemed to work. I don’t think 10 min is enough. The flavors are fantastic though!! Thanks, Lynn
My Heart Beets says
Hi Lynn! Was the valve on properly? 10 minutes is more than enough time for potatoes… I normally cook them in 4 mins but with the chili they still turn out fine with a 10 min cook time.
Zena says
10 ✨ I cook Indian food every week at least 1-2 times. This recipe rocks! Thank you so much. The only things I changed were: I added more salt and a little more masala; I browned meat separately and used canned diced tomatoes. This will be saved in my recipe box. Thank you- Zena
My Heart Beets says
Zena, I’m so happy to hear that you like this curry so much! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂
Mary says
Not sure if goat is the most consumed…
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/most-consumed-meat-in-world_n_593562eae4b02478cb9d42dd
Anna says
I made this recipe and it was amazing! Not only was it delicious but it made a lot which is a big positive for me since I am too busy to cook everyday. It was great with lamb but I am going to try it with other ground meats and I think it will be just as good.
My Heart Beets says
Anna, I’m so glad you liked it!! Thank you for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂
John B says
Hi Anna,
Did you try it with pork by any chance? How did you like it?
Thanks!
John B
Maggie says
I’m following a low carb diet so I’d like to make this without the potatoes. Do you think I could just omit? Or substitute with turnip maybe.
My Heart Beets says
Hi Maggie, you can use another veggie instead if you prefer 🙂 If you omit then you will likely need to reduce the spices a bit since you won’t be using potatoes.
Janet says
Just yum. Pinned it, shared it, made it, love it.
My Heart Beets says
Janet, so happy to hear that! 🙂
Rod says
Sounds delicious. 30 mins seems like a long time for ground meat. Could I cook for just 10 mins? Thanks
My Heart Beets says
Rod, yes 10 minutes works too! Though both times work, I have actually been meaning to change this to 10 mins to match my other ground meat recipes – thanks for asking!
Justin says
This is a tasty recipe as is, but if you want to make it even better there are a couple of technique improvements that you can do:
1) Cook the onions until they’ve gotten quite brown, stirring often and adding a little water if they start to burn. This will add a sweet, deep flavor characteristic of a lot of Indian stews.
2) Add the lamb after you add the garlic, ginger and serrano pepper. This lets you brown the lamb (it will never brown if you add it after the tomatoes, since they let off so much liquid – the lamb ends up steaming).
3) Add the spices when the lamb is almost browned, with a little bit of extra ghee, and stir them for a minute or so until they get very fragrant. This lets the spices fry and bloom in the oil which improves their flavor markedly over just stirring them in with the liquidy tomatoes.
4) Add the tomatoes once the spices have been cooked and continue with the recipe.
5) Finally, wait to add the peas until after you release the pressure. Frozen peas really don’t need to be cooked, just thawed, and that way they retain their structure and don’t fall apart.
But overall a great recipe, one I’m sure I’ll be making again. Love the homemade masala, that’s a great touch that helps set this apart from other curries.
Megan Smith says
Really good tips. Wish I would have read this before i started.
John B says
Thank you Justin (AND Ashley)! I’m not big fan of lamb. Have you tried this dish with pork? Did you like it? Thanks!
Radhika says
Instead of canned tomato paste, could I use fresh tomatoes of so how much would i need and what changes do I need to make for the recipe.
I am trying to avoid canned food.
Anna says
How many servings does this recipe make?
Gloria says
I made this with cubed lamb. Definitely a keeper recipe. Thanks!
My Heart Beets says
glad to hear that!
Mike says
This is an amazing recipe and simple enough for the competent cooks that we are. The meat masala recipe smells *incredible* when roasting and definitely added a unique flavor. Well worth it. Thanks again!
My Heart Beets says
Mike, so happy to hear that! Thank you for letting me know how it turned out for you 🙂
Kristin says
So delicious! My husband and I ate it all within 2 days and my husband was ready to make another batch the next day.
My Heart Beets says
Kristin, I’m so glad to hear that! Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you guys!
Hannah says
Hi Ashley,
I wanted to know if one can use just regular garam masala instead of the homemade meat? Planning on making this in a hurry after work. Any other quick substitute recommendations until I find time to make the homemade meat masala?
My Heart Beets says
Hi Hannah, normally I’d really suggest using the homemade meat masala but I think that for this particular recipe, regular garam masala will taste good too 🙂
Jen says
Could I substitute a can of diced tomatoes? Have a newborn and a toddler, so finding ways to make it a little quicker.
Megan says
This was my first time using an InstantPot. I am in awe!! So fast and so delicious! These flavors were perfect for a cold drizzly night! 5 stars!
My Heart Beets says
That’s great to hear! I’m so glad you liked it, Megan 🙂 Thanks for letting me know how it turned out for you!
Branka Gajic says
Hi Ashley,
I tried your goat curry and loved it! 😉 Thanks for the recipe. I do not have an instant cooker, but is it possible to make this dish in a slow cooker? If so, how to do it?
Cheers!
My Heart Beets says
That’s great to hear! Yes I actually have slow cooker directions on how to make goat curry and this ground lamb curry available here: http://myheartbeets.com/slow-cooker-goat-curry-indian/ and here: http://myheartbeets.com/indian-ground-lamb-curry/
Suchi says
This may be a dumb question, but do you skip the meat browning step and just add it to the onions or brown it separately before going into the IP?
Suchi says
nevermind I see it in the directions – sorry!
My Heart Beets says
no prob! Let me know how it turns out for ya 🙂
Cynthia Collinge says
Oops, I didn’t realize I could just hit Reply and ask my question… do you add the serrano peppers whole or do you chop them up? The recipe doesn’t specify… Thx.
My Heart Beets says
Cynthia, I mince them – but make sure to adjust to your heat preference. I’ve made a note in the recipe itself to reflect this – thanks!