It may have an unusual sounding name to native English speakers, but Pakistani kima has become one of my favorite dinner recipes. I tried this recipe at a friend’s suggestion and adapted it slightly to fit our family’s preferences. The result is a fast, easy, delicious recipe that makes for great leftovers. (If there is any left!)
Typically Pakistani kima is made with white potatoes, but substituting sweet potatoes works just as well and gives it a great complex flavor. If you prefer the more traditional recipe, this is a great version.
Pakistani Kima is a one-pan delicious pan stir-fry that also reheats very well and makes a great omelette when mixed with eggs. It’s also one that kids (depending on age) can help make, which always makes them more likely to eat it. It has complex and delicious flavors and makes the house smell amazing! Many thanks to reader Sara for sending in the photo 🙂
Pakistani Kima Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 large onion
- 4 TBSP butter (or coconut oil)
- 1 lb ground beef (or venison, buffalo, etc.)
- 1 TBSP curry powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 3 medium sweet potatoes
- 15 oz can of tomatoes (diced)
- 1 lb green beans (fresh or frozen)
Instructions
- Dice the onion.
- In a large skillet, melt the butter or coconut oil and add diced onion.
- Cook three minutes or until starting to become translucent.
- Add the ground beef, curry powder, salt, pepper, garlic powder, cinnamon, ginger, and turmeric and cook until the meat is browned.
- While the meat is cooking, peel and dice the sweet potatoes into small pieces and set aside.
- Once meat is cooked, drain and add the diced tomatoes, sweet potatoes, and green beans.
- Cover and simmer 20 minutes or until the sweet potatoes have softened. Check after ten minutes and add a couple tablespoons of water or chicken broth if needed.
- Serve warm and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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delicious! very happily surprised with this recipe!
While this is very different from traditional Pakistani Kima (which literally means “ground meat”), it looks amazing and I cannot wait to try this! Being Pakistani, I grew up with tons of deliciously flavorful and spicy food but realized when I was more grown up how fattening a lot of it is!! I’m so glad I found a healthier alternative to one of my favorite dishes! Thanks!
I have made variations of this several times… we love it!
This turned out really well!!!! I had my kids do majority (98%) of the work (thanks to your influence). My youngest , who’s is 2, even joined in with helping to peel the potatoes with a butter knife. Hahahaha. They really enjoyed cooking this and want to do it again!!!!!! This is my first recipe I have made from you! And I’ve been following you for years. Thank you for contributing to good tips on parenting!
This is delicious! I cant even imagine it without the sweet potatoes. They go so well with the cinnamon! It almost reminds me of thanksgiving. This will definitely be a regular dish in our household!
Wow! I made this tonight and it was awesome. My kids loved it, which makes it even better. Thank you so much for sharing all of these wonderful meals. You have made dinner at my house so much easier!
This is an awesome quick dinner! I don’t keep curry powder on hand, so I just added a little extra fenugreek, cardamom, coriander, et al. It was amazing with ground bison, but next time I’m going to add cauliflower too, as many of the other Pakistani Kima recipes I’ve found call for it.
Made this tonight for the family…definite hit! It was delicious.
I made this tonight for my family and it was a huge hit! Delicious! I jumped into the wellness challenge and have been thankful for the recipes you’ve posted to help on the journey. Thanks!
Made this a couple of days ago … it was delicious!! Thanks!
you do realize that the Garlic powder listed in the ingredient list and the garlic salt called for in the directions are different things? which do YOU use?
Garlic powder… forgot a comma between garlic and salt, I think… Thanks!
Totally overlooked the garlic powder. Turned out great anyway. Will be making this one again.