You'll Fall for Indian Meatballs

Last night I made Indian meatballs. It was a good night.

I reheated some again today for lunch. It was a good afternoon.

Here’s the recipe so you can make them too:

(They are aka kebabs in the motha-land.)

What you need:

1lb. lean ground beef (I used Trader Joes 96/4 beef.)

1lb. ground turkey

1 large onion, chopped in small pieces

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

1/2 cup chopped mint

1 lime

1 tablespoon ginger/garlic paste

2 green chilies, chopped and seeded (I use Jalapenos.)

2 eggs

2 potatoes, boiled, peeled and chopped (If you don’t have potatoes or are too lazy to boil them as I usually am, use 2 slices of bread. This is just to help them stick together better.)

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

1 teaspoon chili powder

1/2 palm-full salt

(I also usually add Shaan Seekh Kabab masala and Shaan chaat masala, but if you don’t have that, no sweat.)

What to do:

Mix together meats, onion, cilantro, mint, ginger/garlic paste, green chilies, eggs, potatoes/bread, turmeric, chili powder and salt. Squeeze juice of lime into mixture. Thoroughly mix all ingredients together. (If you’re squeamish, use a wooden spoon. I personally like to get dirty and use my hands. I think it tastes better that way.)

In the meantime, heat up a large pan over medium heat on the stove. Spray with Pam or a light layer of vegetable oil.

Use your hands to make two-inch sized balls with the meat mixture.

Throw kebabs into the heated pan. Heat evenly on all sides until cooked through—about ten minutes.

Eat and enjoy!

P.S. You might notice that the quality of the pictures has drastically improved. It's not me ... it's all the hubby.

Spicy Broc That'll Knock Off Your Sox

I really don’t know why broccoli gets such a bad rap. True it can make you gassy if you eat too much of it raw, but I personally am a huge fan of the broc. The only way I can get my hubby to eat veggies is if they’re cooked, apparently fresh salads don’t exist in India. (I can actually personally attest to that because everyone is scared that veggies have been washed in contaminated water, you really don’t get fresh veggies too often there, only cooked.) So, I’ve been developing (i.e. finding recipes) ingenious ways to cook veggies every night. My latest and greatest find is broccoli rabe; it’s just so much better than normal broccoli. Here’s my fave way to prepare it:

Sauteed Broccoli Rabe with Garlic and Red Chili Flakes

What you need:

4 bunches of broccoli rabe

2 tablespoons olive oil

8 garlic cloves, sliced

Red pepper flakes

Salt and pepper

What to do:

Wash and prepare the broc by cutting down the bottom part of the stem and any stray leaves.

Blanche the broc by bringing a large pot of water to boil. Have another large pot of ice water nearby (aka an ice bath). Once the water has come to a boil, drop in the broc and let boil until it becomes tender and bright green—about 5 minutes. Using tongs, pull it from the boiling water, dry it on a paper towel, and immediately throw it in the ice bath. (You might have to do this in a few batches.) After it's fully cooled, let the water dry out by placing it on a stack of paper towels.

Heat the olive oil in a large pan over a medium flame. Add the garlic and heat for 1–2 minutes until it starts getting brown and crispy. Add the blanched broc and toss it frequently. Add a pinch or two (depending on how spicy you like it, I personally am a two-pinch kinda gal). Season with salt and pepper. (I’ve been using a lot of kosher salt lately. Here’s a good article on its benefits.)

This dish is a great side to almost anything. It pairs beautifully with Indian or non-Indian dishes. Delish!

Krazy for Keema

My hubs and I have about five go-to dishes that we make every week. The are healthy, relatively simple, and usually Indian. Keema, spicy ground meat, is at the top of our list. It’s deeelicious comfort food—kinda the Indo version of Sloppy Joe’s I’d imagine …









What you need:


1 pound ground meat (We used 96% lean beef this week but you can use turkey, chicken, or beef.)
2 large tomatoes, diced
2 large onions, diced
1 bunch of cilantro
2 potatoes, peeled and diced (These are optional if you are on the low-carb train … this week we were not! I am dying to try keema with sweet potatoes but hubs isn’t interested. Lame.)
1 teaspoon ginger-garlic paste
3 green chilies, remove seeds, chop finely
Fennel (This is also optional
Shaan Keema Masala
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

What to do:


Heat oil in a large skillet or saucepan over medium heat. One the oil is hot (test by throwing in a piece of onion and see if it sizzles) throw in onions and let the sauté until the turn brown—about ten minutes. Add in tomatoes, ginger-garlic paste, meat, fennel, masala, turmeric, potatoes, and 1/2 of the cilantro. Add a few tablespoons of water, stir and let simmer over medium heat for 15–20 minutes, until the meat is tender. Add green chilies and garnish with remaining cilantro and squeeze of lemon.  Note: The keema masala is already heavily salted so it isn’t always necessary to add extra salt.


There are tons of variations on keema. You can throw in peas, carrots, even barbeque sauce. This recipe is classic and it’s our favorite!