When I am using ground beef I tend to default to burgers or mexican food. But sometimes I have to mix it up a bit and think outside of my box. How about ground beef with curry and coconut milk?
If you are a regular reader on my blog you know I try to always make my recipes healthy and support a healthy eating plan for life. I also try to make them quick and easy. We all don’t have endless time to be in the kitchen, but to eat healthy we do need to plan, prepare and spend some time in the kitchen. That’s what this recipe is all about.
The ground beef coconut curry sits on a bed of steamed cabbage. The cabbage acts like rice or noodles, but I wanted to use a vegetable instead of a grain to make it healthier. You can use some cooked quinoa in the recipe if you wish, but trust me, it is good on its own. The cabbage recipe is below, make sure to turn it on the stove about 10 minutes before you serve the dish to make sure they are both done at the same time.
Ingredients
1 Tablespoon coconut oil (the perfect oil for high heat)
1 medium onion, diced
1 cup of diced sweet peppers (green or colored)
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 pound grass-fed beef
1 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 Tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander
3 teaspoon ground turmeric (an amazing anti-inflammatory!!)
1 teaspoon cumin
1/8-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (to your spice level)
1/2 cup tomato paste
1/2 inch of fresh ginger, finely grated
1 can full fat coconut milk
juice of 1/2 lime
1/2 head of cabbage, sliced
1 teaspoon sea salt
Directions
- In a small bowl, measure out all of the spices: salt, pepper, curry powder, coriander, turmeric, cumin and cayenne pepper. If you pre-measure them it will save you time and effort once you start browning the beef
- In a large skillet, add the coconut oil and heat the pan to medium-high
- Add the onions, peppers, and garlic and stir a few times to coat them in the coconut oil
- Add the grass fed ground beef, break up with a wooden spoon and cook until browned through, then turn the heat down to medium.
- Stir in the tomato paste and grate the ginger right into the skillet
- Dump the spices into the beef that you added to the small bowl and mix into combine
- Right before serving add the coconut milk and the lime juice and stir until everything is well mixed
- To serve, put a layer of cabbage on a plate and top with the coconut curry
Steamed Cabbage
- Fill a large saucepan with the sliced cabbage and add 2 cups of water to the saucepan
- Put the cover on the saucepan and turn the heat to medium
- Once it is boiling, turn the heat down to low and let cook for 10 minutes
- Toss the cabbage with 1 teaspoon of salt to give it more flavor before serving
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We love easy curries – and this looks like another one! We like to eat them over millet, too. I appreciate the ground beef idea. Thanks.
Thanks for checking out the blog Nancy! Enjoy the recipe!
This was so easy and delicious! My two year old especially loved it!! So nice to have another ground beef recipe to add to the rotation!! Thanks for posting!
Thanks for making the recipe! And I always love it when little ones like the recipes too. And thanks for letting me know!
Love it! so simple and so good!
Thanks Marta… enjoy :)
My kids loved this, and my husband did too!! Score!! They had seconds and thirds and kept going until the pot was practically licked clean! I also took it to a church potluck and it was a popular item. The only thing I did differently that time was to put all the ingredients (meat browned first, of course) into a crock pot and cooked on high for 3 hrs and I also added a head of cauliflower that time. Great recipe :)
I just made this for lunch and it’s incredible! So easy too! I’m picky with my curries and I like that this one uses spices rather than a curry paste. Bravo! Will be making again in the near future :)
Thanks Jamie :)
This is so awesome. I made it last week and I love it so much that I’m actually making it for 10 people tonight! Such a delicious recipe! Thank you for sharing!
Wow… that’s amazing. Enjoy it :)
I just made this for me and my husband (late lunch).
It was awesome and he loved it too!
I used tomato sauce instead of paste because I didn’t have any. I also added squash, mushrooms and then sprinkled fresh cilantro. Yum!
Any idea on calories for this meal?
Fannie… wow, those additions sound amazing. Glad you and your husband loved it. I don’t know about the calories, but I know that you can add recipes into different internet programs and figure out the nutrition information.
Yumm. Thanks for this recipe. The kids loved it. I let it simmer for 90 minutes to really let the flavors develop. Next time I may make it with lamb.
Awesome Jodi! Thanks for sharing :)
Thank you for the wonderful recipe! I’ve made it a few times now and everyone always love it! I always double the recipe add a ridiculous amount of extra vegies (mushroom, zucchini, celery, carrot, cauliflower, baby spinach or whatever I have to use up) and I add the sliced cabbage to save washing up
I love that you add more veggies. I tend to do that too because why not get some more veggies in??
Meghan, Thank you! This recipe is PERFECTION! I have made it twice now and am delighted with it. My only addition is chickpeas added once the meat is browned. I’ve entertained with it as well and it was a huge success. You’ve hit this out of the park. Thank you, thank you!!!!
Oh I’m so glad you love this recipe Liz and thanks for letting me know! It’s easy and tasty which are my kind of recipes :).
I can’t wait to try this. Dumb question, though — how long do you cook the mixture once it’s on medium heat? It seems like the kind of thing that could get better with an hour or more of cooking to allow the flavors to blend, but I’m not sure.
You can cook it as long as you want. So it’s not a dumb question at all. You will cook it as long as it needs to cook through the veggies. But you can simmer it for longer too. That sounds delicious too!
How have I missed this recipe for so long…. It was the bomb. Love it!
So glad you love it!! Thanks for stopping by :)
This is delicious!! My 10yr old son and his dad loved it too.
Forgot to mention I added some golden raisins at the end. Yummy!
I’m now craving this meal and will have to try it with golden raisins!!
That’s so awesome!! I love it when simple and tasty meals can be such a big hit!
I’m so glad you loved the curry!! And it’s on your favorites list. thanks :)