Venison Keema
A delicious alternative keema that's full of flavour from the spice mix or curry powder and can be made as spicy as you like!
Ingredients
For the spice mix (see Notes):
- 1 tsp coriander seeds
- 0.5 tsp black peppercorns
- 1 tbsp cumin seeds
- 0.5 tsp ground turmeric
- 0.5 cinnamon stick broken up
- 2 cloves
- 3 cardamom pods crushed
- 2 dried bay leaves
For the keema:
- 3 tbsp sunflower oil
- 500g venison mince (see Notes)
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic finely chopped
- a thumb-sized piece of ginger finely chopped
- half a 400g can chopped tomatoes freeze the rest or 227g can chopped tomatoes, or use 2 medium fresh tomatoes, chopped
- 200ml water
- 1 to 3 green chillies (depending on how much heat you prefer) finely sliced
- 100g frozen peas or petit pois
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- a handful of mint leaves roughly chopped
- a handful of coriander leaves roughly chopped
To serve (optional):
- naan
- chutney
- basmati rice
Instructions
- To make the spice mix - put all the spices in a deep frying pan or shallow casserole and toast over a medium heat for a few minutes until fragrant. Remove from the heat and crush to a fine powder using a pestle and mortar.
- Drizzle the oil into the same pan and place over a medium high heat. Cook the venison mince for 10 minutes until crisp – if the meat releases some liquid while it cooks, keep cooking until the liquid evaporates and the mince starts to brown. Add the onion and sizzle everything for another 5 minutes until the onion has softened. Stir in the garlic and ginger and cook for 3 to 4 minutes more. Stir in the spice mix and tomatoes and continue cooking for 2 minutes.
- Pour over 200ml water and bringto a simmer, then bubble for 5 to 6 minutes until the liquid is reduced by half.When the mixture is thick and saucy, scatter in the chillies and peas and warmthrough for 2 to 3 minutes, until the peas are completely defrosted. Season,then stir through the herbs just before serving. Serve with naan, chutney, andbasmati rice, if you like.
Notes
- Make ahead – this keema can easily be made ahead, up to the point before you add the chillis and peas. Simply reheat the keema on the hob and then continue step 3.
- Batch cook and freeze – this keema freezes well, so make a batch if you like and freeze it in portions.
- Spice mix – if you don’t have enough time to make your own spice mix, just add 1 tbsp of your favourite curry powder instead.
- Mince – if you can’t get venison mince, lean beef or lamb mince can be used instead. I got venison mince from Costco and have also seen it in some Marks and Spencer Food Halls.
- Leftovers - any leftover mixture can be stuffed into venison samosas or venison curry puffs using a sheet of shop-bought puff pastry. Simply bake according to pack instructions.
- This venison keema recipe can easily be adapted if you’re cooking for less or more people.