Easy, One Pan Paleo Ground Beef Korma

This is an older recipe from Foraged Dish that has been a long-time reader favorite, and a favorite of mine. I’m republishing it with some updates, including a how-to video that really highlights how easy it is to make this dish! 

The Whole Foods Market in Boulder is extra large, partly because of an expansive prepared foods / hot bar / salad bar section. It’s buzzing with people at lunch time, and the parking lot is a mess! That’s where I first discovered ground beef korma — the hot bar, back in 2015. Whole Foods still has ground beef korma on it’s hot bar sometimes. Theirs is studded with peas but otherwise is super simple. That’s the beauty of this dish: simplicity! 

I love curries, which is probably why, over the last three years this recipe has become a regular in our rotation. It’s by no means a traditional dish, but it is a 20-minute wonder, something you can make on the busiest of evenings. I’ve even made it camping, while in Ten Sleep, WY. 

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If the video player does not appear below, you can watch it here.

In India, I was taught the saying: “No hurry, no worry, no chicken curry.” It’s meant as an ironic statement there — because everyone is moving at their own pace — but also, there’s a lot of curry. In this case, the curry comes together fast so you don’t have to hurry or worry! :)

When I followed the Paleo to a T, I served this over cauliflower rice, but these days I serve it with regular rice. Take your pick — both are delicious. I do almost always use 85% beef, as it’s way juicier. If you do use 95% beef, you might add a touch more coconut milk than what the recipe calls for! 

Easy, One Pan Paleo Ground Beef Korma

Published February 12, 2018 by Caitlin Sherwood

Serves: 4   |    Active Time: 20 minutes

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Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef (85/15 recommended)

1 teaspoon coconut oil

1/2 yellow onion, diced

1 teaspoon minced ginger

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 medium-sized jalapeño or serrano, minced (if you are sensitive to spicy foods, cut out and discard the seeds, then wash your hands and knife thoroughly)

1 sixteen-ounce can of crushed tomatoes

1/2 cup full fat canned coconut milk

1 teaspoon curry powder

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1/8 teaspoon cayenne (optional--adds spice)

Dash of salt & pepper

To serve: rice or cauliflower rice

Garnish: Minced cilantro

Directions:

1. Heat coconut oil in a 10 or 12 inch skillet over medium heat until oil glistens.
2. Add onion, garlic, ginger and jalapeño to skillet and reduce heat to medium-low. Sauté until onions are translucent.
3. Add beef, and use a wooden spatula to break meat up into grounds. Cook until browned.
4. Add tomatoes, coconut milk, curry powder, turmeric, cayenne, and a dash each of salt & pepper. Stir, and bring to a simmer for 5 minutes.
5. Serve hot over rice or cauliflower rice, and garnish with cilantro.

Eggplant Cannelloni

The last few months have been go, go, go, which has meant fewer posts to the blog, less time to photograph recipes, 😭 and learning to cut myself a break every once in a while.

Somehow, yesterday was April and today it's September. September thirteenth. Back in April my mantra was, "You can't do literally everything," but somewhere between then and now, my mantra became nothing but a string of words, as I continued to ignore their meaning. So, today, I'm trying out this new mantra: Cut yourself a break. It means going easy on yourself when you've been trying your hardest. It means giving yourself a pass when you need it most.

In the midst of my mantra-creating and mantra-forgetting, our stockpile of eggplants has been growing: Not a day goes by that I don't have at least three of them sitting in our fruit bowl, staring me back. This year I planted six varieties, next year I'll plant two: Fengyuan and Black Beauty. 

• Edirne - these were the first to fruit, but they're my least favorite to eat. other than their pretty green and purple stripes, they are just a little bitter and not as tasty.

• Antigua - these are my favorite to look at but they are quite small, better for slicing in half and roasting with some harissa or something of the sort.

• Fengyuan - my most copious producer, I freakin' love these eggplants. They are long (17 inches!), skinny and usually make a "J" shape. They are absolutely delicious when stir fried with some garlic and Thai basil.

• Ping Tung - I also like these for stir fries, but for whatever reason I prefer the Fengyuan... no need to grow both, they are so similar!

• Black Beauty and Florida - speaking of similar, I can barely tell these two plants apart. I think I like the black beauty ones the most (we have gotten some massive eggplants from those plants). In any case, they are the best variety for recipes like this cannelloni, where you want wide strips, or this roasted eggplant salad. They're also the variety you usually find at the grocery store.

Ok, don't quote me on the only growing two varieties thing. But those are my favorite so far this season. Have you ever grow eggplants? What were your favorite varieties? 

Normally I'd suggest serving this with a glass of red, but I happened to also be making a batch of this Fig & Pear White Wine Sangria, so of course I had to have a glass of that instead. 

P.S., if you like this recipe, you'll LOVE this Zucchini Ricotta Manicotti. 😋

Eggplant Cannelloni

Published September 13, 2018 by Caitlin Sherwood

Serves: 6-8   |    Active Time: 40 minutes

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Ingredients:

2 medium sized eggplants

2-4 tablespoons olive oil

2 cups marinara sauce

1 cup mozzarella

1/2 cup parmesan

1 pound beef

1 teaspoon coconut oil

1/2 yellow onion, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

Salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Light grill set flame to medium. Slice eggplant into strips the long way. Brush eggplant slices with olive oil, and them place on grill, cooking for about 5 minutes before flipping. Eggplant slices should have char marks on the outside and be softened through. Remove from heat, turn off grill, and set eggplant aside.
2. Heat coconut oil in a medium sized skillet over medium-high heat until it glistens. Add diced onion and minced garlic and sauté until onions are transparent.
3. Add beef to skillet. Brown beef, using a wooden spatula to create crumbles as it cooks. When beef is browned, add 1/2 cup marinara sauce to the pan and stir. Turn off heat.
4. Allow beef mixture and eggplant to cool just enough so they can be handled before proceeding to next step. (Warm is fine, just avoid burning yourself!)
5. Prepare baking dish: spread remaining 1-1/2 cups marinara sauce in the bottom of a 9x9 or 7x12 baking dish.
6. Work with one eggplant strip at a time. Lay it out in front of you, with the short end towards you, and place about 2 tablespoons of beef mixture in the center of the strip. Roll the strip around the beef, rolling in the opposite direction of your body. Place rolled eggplant in the baking dish, with the “seam” down. Repeat this step until all eggplant strips are used.
7. Sprinkle top of cannelloni with mozzarella and then parmesan, and place in oven. Set broiler to high and broil for 5-10 minutes, until cheese and sauce are bubbling. Serve hot.

Moroccan Beef Kabobs with Mint Yogurt Sauce

Head down, I coach myself up and over the next hill. This is the first time my road bike has made it out of the garage this season, so I go easy on myself (I have to). 

Where the hill crests, I lift my head up. Across the road is an expanse of green, and behind that a big brown barn, and then a row of tall trees--maybe birch- and even beyond that the Rocky Mountains, towering over it all. From here, the mountains are a royal blue color. 

I ride 30 more feet and find a small herd of cattle sleeping in the grass, and a rancher in the fields behind them. Oh what a view they all have! For a moment I envy the rancher: he is shoveling hay into a pickup. It's a job that could use 2 of 3 people, though he seems to have it covered on his own. I imagine him there at 6 in the morning, when the sun is just starting to crack the horizon. In my mind he stops to watch, the crickets chirping and maybe the murmur of a cow in the distance.

Later I think back on that moment: me, looking at the view, and extrapolating an entire story around it. I wonder if that farmer does ever stop to look our across the Rockies... if he thinks he has the time. The cows likely don't notice the view, but they sure did look comfy there in the grass. 

These kabobs (kebab, kabob, however you want to say it) are roasted in a Moroccan inspired spice blend, and dipped in a cool mint yogurt sauce. I used Maple Hill Creamery's plain greek yogurt to make the sauce, which made it thick and super creamy. At one point, I had given up dairy in favor of nut-milks and coconut creams. If you're a long-time reader of this blog, you might remember a time when most of my recipes used dairy substitutes rather than milk, but that is certainly not the case anymore! Flavor-wise and texture wise, I much prefer regular milk. So when I can find high quality, grass-fed dairy products they go straight into my shopping cart with out a second thought. 

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Moroccan Beef Kabobs with Mint Yogurt Sauce

Published May 4, 2017 by Caitlin Sherwood

Beef kabobs with ras el hanout, a Moroccan spice blend. Served with minted yogurt sauce.

Serves: 4   |    Total Time: 30 active minutes

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Ingredients:

• 1 pound beef chuck, cubed
• 1 tablespoon ras el hanout (I used this recipe, feel free to use store bought too!)
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 bell peppers
• 1 red onion
• 2 lemons
• 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons fresh mint leaves, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon fresh parsley

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450°F.
2. Place beef in a bowl and toss with spice blend and 1/4 teaspoon salt (optional: do this in the morning and marinate for 6-8 hours to infuse the flavors).
3. Dice the onion, pepper, and one lemon into 1-inch pieces. String beef, peppers, onion, and lemon onto kabob skewers in alternating pattern. Place kabobs on a baking sheet. Brush olive oil over kabobs, and place in oven. Bake for 10-15 minutes, depending on how you like your meat (10 minutes for more rare, 15 for well-done). Remove from oven.
4. Make the yogurt sauce while the kabobs cook: combine yogurt, remaining salt, juice of remaining lemon, minced mint, garlic powder, onion powder, parsley, and ground black pepper and stir until well mixed. Serve kabobs hot with a small bowl of yogurt sauce on the side for dipping.

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