Tuesday 16 November 2010

Korean Keema

The word keema simply means ground/minced meat.  It is a traditional South Asian dish of spicy lamb or goat cooked with onions,garlic, ginger with variant of spices like curry powder and garam masala.  In some variations of the dish, potatoes, peas or lentils may be added.

Nigella's Korean Keema is a wonderful variation of the traditional dish.  The recipe calls for minced turkey here which, let's be frank, can be a bit on the bland side, but it's a good thing here; because of its mild flavour, minced turkey is a great carrier for all the spices and the Gochujang paste.

Gochujang or Kochujang paste is a new ingredient for me.  It is a delicious hot and sour red pepper and soybean paste from Korea, hence the name of the dish.  You may need to make a trip to your local Asian food store or specialty store to find this paste.

The minced turkey is steeped in this paste along with honey, soy sauce and rice wine vinegar before cooking it with spring onions and petit pois.  Serve over plain boiled rice and sprinkle with chopped coriander.


Ok, I gotta go now. I am almost late for my lecture....

7 comments:

  1. So simple, perfect for a busy weeknight dinner!

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  2. oh wow love the Korean version we make it with Turkey with Indian spices

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  3. Oh, absolutely. When you substitute turkey with the other stronger tasting meats, it allows to bring in so many different herbs and spices and still be able to taste them all (whereas sometimes the stronger meats fade them out). Using turkey is a great idea in this dish.

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  4. This is a great idea! I love Keema. I just had wonderful Lamb Keema the other day. This turkey version with Gochujang sounds also great. This kind of food is dangerous for me because I can not stop eating. I love rice bowls :-)

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  5. Hi Michael-The Turkey version of this dish makes it so light, and with all those wonderful spices, including curry...you know, it's gotta be one of my favorites.
    Thanks for sharing...and have a great lecture!

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  6. Wonderful idea, really looks like something my family would love :)

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