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5 from 16 votes
/ March 27, 2021

Pakistani Aloo Keema (Ground Beef and Potato Curry)

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Here’s a recipe for an authentic, homestyle, just-like-grandma’s Aloo Keema – Ground Beef & Potato Curry. This is a traditional, one-pot beef keema curry recipe that’s simple, easy-to make, and gives the most tender, flavorful results!

Aloo Keema (Ground Beef and Potato Curry) in a beige bowl served with naan and rice and garnished with cilantro

What is Aloo Keema?

Aloo Keema is a iconic Pakistani & North Indian dish consisting of curried, minced or ground meat (keema) and potatoes (aloo).

Keema curry, or qeema, can be made with any meat, but Pakistani versions typically use beef (here’s a beef curry roundup if you’d like more ideas!).

Bowls with Aloo Keema served with naan, rice, and lemon wedges

If I had to pick one traditional dish from my childhood, it’d be Aloo Keema. It’s not glamorous, but it’s home. 

If you’re new to Tea For Turmeric, rest assured that I test, dissect, and improve each recipe several times before I declare it ‘good enough’ to go on this here blog. We’re talking blood, sweat, and tears y’all (this is a country-style recipe, go with it guys).

And when it’s such a special, close to home, memory-evoking dish like Aloo Keema, the pressure is on! (Speaking of pressure, here’s an Instant Pot version.) Let’s just say I ate way more than my share of red meat to bring you this classic, deeply flavorful, yet simple recipe of Aloo Keema.

A Note on a Few of the Ingredients

A marble top with ingredients for making Aloo Keema
  • Ground/Minced beef – Both lean or full-fat will work in this recipe. I lightly rinse my ground beef in a strainer, then squeeze out any excess water and allow it to to sit in the strainer while I prepare the curry.
  • Potatoes: The smaller you cube the potatoes, the faster they’ll cook. I generally like to cut them into 1/2″-3/4″ cubes.
  • Spices: Whole spices are meant to be discarded before/during eating. If you don’t want to bite into any whole spices, feel free to omit.

How to Make Aloo Keema

Aloo Keema is hard to mess up, and this recipe is particularly forgiving, adaptable, and straightforward:

First, you sauté the onions along with the whole spices until golden.

A black skillet with browned onions and whole spices in preparation for keema aloo

Then add in the garlic, ginger, and ground beef sauté so that the beef changes color and the moisture evaporates. Next, add in tomatoes, ground spices, salt, and yogurt while continuing to sauté.

Keema curry in a black pan with a wooden spoon

Lastly, add the potatoes along with a bit of water, cover, and let it cook until the potatoes are tender. Garnish with the usual suspects – garam masala, cilantro, and lemon.

Cooked Aloo Keema Curry in a black pan with a wooden spoon
Aloo Keema in a bowl with basmati rice and naan with a silver spoon

Tips for Making Aloo Keema

  • After you add in the meat, sauté it until the moisture evaporates from the meat. This technique, called bhunnai (a blend of sautéing and stir-frying), gives ground beef a well browned, deeply flavorful finish.
  • I’ve added 1/4 cup water before covering and allowing to cook, but feel free to add more if you’re afraid it’ll stick to the bottom. I grew up eating a ‘dry’ (no curry, but moist) version, but you can always increase the curry by adding more water.
  • Since Keema Aloo is all about comfort, you’ll notice I’m generous with the spices, salt, and oil. Feel free to adjust these to taste.
Ground beef and potato curry in a beige bowl with basmati rice and naan
Side shot of Aloo Keema (ground beef and potato curry) in a beige bowl

How to Serve Aloo Keema

Sometimes we like to serve it with some crunchy vegetables like red onions or cucumber, but it’s so flavorful that it doesn’t really need much enhancement. In terms of pairing, Aloo Keema pairs well with just about anything:

  • Naan
  • Roti or Paratha (mmm!)
  • Basmati Rice
  • Good old’ sandwich bread
Ground Beef (Keema Aloo) Curry in a bowls with naan and basmati rice

If you try this recipe, please let me know in the comments below! I love hearing from you!

More Keema (Ground Beef) Recipes for you to try:

Keema Matar (Ground Beef & Potato Curry)
Beef Kofta Curry (Meatball Curry)
Shami or Seekh Kabab

This is an updated post of a recipe that was originally published in March, 2019.

Aloo Keema (Ground Beef and potato curry) in a bowl with basmati rice and naan.

Aloo Keema (Ground Beef and Potato Curry)

Izzah Cheema
Here's a recipe for an authentic, homestyle, Pakistani & North Indian style Aloo Keema (Keema Curry with potatoes). This is a traditional, one-pot recipe that's simple, easy-to make, and gives the most flavorful results!
5 from 16 votes
Save Saved! Print Pin
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 50 mins
Total Time 1 hr
Course Main Course
Cuisine Indian, Pakistani
Servings 4

Ingredients
 
 

Whole Spices (Omit any you don't have)

  • 1 2-inch cinnamon stick
  • 1 tsp cumin seeds
  • 3 whole cloves
  • 1/2 tsp coriander seeds optional
  • ½ tsp whole black peppercorns

Aloo Keema

  • 1/3 cup neutral oil (I use grapeseed or avocado)
  • 1 large onion finely chopped
  • 5-6 cloves garlic (~1 tbsp) crushed
  • 1 inch piece ginger (~1 tbsp) crushed
  • 1 lb ground beef lean and full-fat both work, though lean is a bit more dry
  • 1 large tomato (or 2 small) finely chopped
  • 1-2 Serrano or Thai chili peppers sliced
  • 2 tsp coriander powder
  • 1 tsp cumin powder
  • 3/4 tsp turmeric powder
  • 1/4 tsp red chilli powder or to taste
  • 1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper
  • 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt or to taste
  • 2 tbsp plain, whole milk yogurt
  • 1 medium to large russet potato (~250 g) peeled and cubed into 1/2" cubes

Garnishing

  • 1/8 to 1/4 tsp garam masala optional
  • 1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice
  • 2 tbsp cilantro leaves chopped

Instructions
 

  • Heat a heavy-bottomed pan over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the oil, whole spices, and onions and sauté until the onions are golden brown (~8-10 min). Deglaze the pan with 2 tbsp of water.
  • Once the water dries up, add the garlic and ginger and sauté for a minute. Add ground beef and cook, stirring often, until it changes color and the moisture dries up (~4-5 min). Use a wooden spatula to break up the beef into small pieces to ensure no lumps.
  • Add the tomato, green chili pepper, ground spices, salt, and yogurt and continue to sauté for 4-5 minutes, or until the tomato breaks down and the oil starts to separate from the ground beef. Add the potatoes and 1/4 cup water and stir to combine.
  • Lower the heat to low-medium. Cover, and allow it to cook for 23-25 minutes (depending on the thickness of potato cubes), stirring once in between. The potatoes will be very tender.
  • If needed, turn the heat to high and sauté out any extra moisture. Turn off the heat and add the garam masala (if using), lemon juice, and cilantro. Give it a quick stir and serve hot with rice, roti, naan, bread, or anything else you'd like.

Video

Notes

*The smaller you cube the potatoes, the faster they’ll cook. I generally like to cut them into 1/2″-3/4″ cubes. To prevent browning, place the cubed potato in a bowl of water.

Nutrition

Calories: 495kcalCarbohydrates: 18gProtein: 22gFat: 37gSaturated Fat: 10gCholesterol: 82mgSodium: 988mgPotassium: 742mgFiber: 3gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 352IUVitamin C: 13mgCalcium: 72mgIron: 4mg
Keyword Aloo Keema, keema aloo
Did you try this recipe?Please let me know in the comments below. If you’re on Instagram, I’d love for you to tag me so I can see your creations.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Kara says

    April 14, 2021 at 8:59 pm

    5 stars
    Wow! What a wonderful and yummy recipe!! I am so glad I found it and cannot wait to make again and again!

    Reply
    • teaforturmeric says

      April 15, 2021 at 10:01 am

      Yesss! So glad to hear that, Kara! Thanks for taking the time to review!!

      Reply
  2. Jasrawwrrr says

    March 5, 2021 at 11:52 pm

    5 stars
    It truly is “an authentic, homestyle, just-like-grandma’s Aloo Keema.” I was looking for something that would taste just like the one my mom makes and this was perfect! I’ve made it a few times already and my little ones enjoy it as well. Thank you for such a perfect recipe!

    Reply
    • teaforturmeric says

      March 10, 2021 at 11:15 pm

      Thank you, Jasra and I’m sorry to miss your wonderful comment earlier. It’s an honor that it lives up to mom’s!

      Reply
  3. Dieuwertje says

    January 31, 2021 at 8:33 pm

    5 stars
    Really good recipe! It’s so tasty! I didn’t have yoghurt so I used lite sour cream instead and it worked out really well. Will make it more often 🙂

    Reply
    • teaforturmeric says

      February 1, 2021 at 8:56 pm

      Happy to hear that, Dieuwertje. Thanks for sharing the tip & for your review!

      Reply
  4. Nicole Basic says

    November 4, 2020 at 8:49 pm

    5 stars
    Made this tonight – mashaAllah it was so so good! I’ve been looking for a good, simple ground beef dish to keep on rotation in our house, alhamdulillah! Thanks for the recipes and the tips!

    Reply
    • teaforturmeric says

      November 4, 2020 at 8:51 pm

      So glad to hear that. Thanks so much for such a nice review, Nicole!

      Reply
  5. LPS says

    October 27, 2020 at 4:43 pm

    5 stars
    Absolutely delicious! This is an easy dish with wonderful, vibrant flavors. I will be making this dish again very soon.

    Reply
    • teaforturmeric says

      October 27, 2020 at 6:32 pm

      Yay! Thank you!!

      Reply
  6. Nimrah says

    September 30, 2020 at 4:36 pm

    Izzah, I know for your mattar keema you mentioned adding aaloo, but what if we wanted to add mattar to this recipe? When would we do that? I made this as is and omg couldnt stop tasting it as I waited for the kids!

    Reply
    • teaforturmeric says

      October 3, 2020 at 9:55 am

      Thanks so much, Nimrah! You can add them after 15 minutes of cooking the aloo keema. If you don’t mind them very well done, I would just add the frozen peas along with the potatoes.

      Reply
  7. Andrea says

    September 8, 2020 at 10:27 pm

    5 stars
    This was delicious! It turned out a little lighter than yours, but the flavors were still amazing and it was so easy to make. Next time I’ll cut my potatoes a bit smaller, but even with having to cook this twice as long the meat definitely was not overcooked. It’s in my regular rotation now

    Reply
  8. Nancy says

    August 27, 2020 at 3:50 pm

    This sounds delicious! Would love to try it- do you recommend cooking the potatoes separate? I worry if the potatoes take too long to cook my meat will overcook.

    Reply
    • teaforturmeric says

      August 27, 2020 at 7:49 pm

      I don’t recommend cooking them separately because they get infused with lots of flavor within the curry. Keema is typically very well cooked and hard to overcook. If you’re worried about it sticking to the bottom of the pan, add a bit of water before covering to cook. Hope that helps and hope you get to try it!

      Reply
  9. Foodie says

    August 8, 2020 at 11:13 pm

    So delicious and so full of flavorI I never knew keema aloo could come together so easily! Thank you!

    Reply
    • teaforturmeric says

      August 11, 2020 at 12:39 pm

      Thank you 🙂

      Reply

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Hi! I’m Izzah, and I look forward to brightening your day with good food and good vibes. Here you'll find tested & perfected South Asian recipes that are easy-to-follow yet authentic in taste!

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