Ball Curry
beef meatballs poached in a thin red coconut gravy, the Sunday lunch of Calcutta Anglo-Indian homes
Allergens in Ball Curry: milk, gluten, egg.
Ingredients
Quantities for 4.
- 500g, finely minced Beefmutton mince works equally well
- 2 slices, crusts off Breadthe binder; soak it and squeeze it dry
- 4 tbsp, for soaking the bread Milk
- 1, beaten Egg
- 3 medium: 1 grated for the balls, 2 sliced for the gravy Onion
- 1 tbsp paste Ginger
- 1 tbsp paste Garlic
- 2, finely chopped Green Chillioptional
- 3 tbsp, chopped Coriander Leaves
- 1 tsp Black Pepper
- 1.5 tsp Chilli Powderkashmiri chilli if you want the colour without the heat
- 3/4 tsp Turmeric
- 1 tbsp Coriander Powder
- 1 tsp Cumin Powder
- 2, chopped Tomato
- 250ml Coconut Milk
- 2, quartered Potatotraditional, and they soak up the gravyoptional
- 3 tbsp Neutral Oil
- 400ml Water
- to taste Salt
Cookware
stovetop
Checked against the ingredient list for ten allergens: milk, egg, fish, crustaceans, tree nuts, peanuts, sesame, mustard, soy and gluten. Brands vary, so read the label on anything new to you.
Before you start
- Soak the bread in the milk for 5 minutes, then squeeze it almost dry before working it into the mince. Wet bread makes balls that fall apart.
- Chill the shaped balls for 20 minutes before they go into the gravy; cold balls hold together far better.
- Have the gravy simmering before you start dropping the balls in, so they set on contact rather than sitting in warm liquid.
Method
- Mix the mince with the squeezed bread, beaten egg, grated onion, half the ginger-garlic paste, the chopped green chilli, 2 tbsp coriander leaves, the black pepper and 1 tsp salt.Mix with your hand until it just comes together. Overworking makes the balls rubbery.
- Roll into balls the size of a walnut, about 20 of them, and chill 20 minutes.
- Heat the oil in a wide pan and cook the sliced onion until soft and gold, 10 to 12 minutes.
- Add the remaining ginger-garlic paste and fry 2 minutes.
- Add the chilli powder, turmeric, coriander and cumin powders with a splash of water and fry 2 minutes until the oil takes on colour.
- Add the tomato and cook until it collapses and the oil separates at the edges, 7 to 8 minutes.
- Pour in the water, add the potato and salt, and bring to a steady simmer for 10 minutes.
- Lower the balls in one at a time. Do not stir for the first 5 minutes; shake the pan instead.Stirring too early is how ball curry becomes mince curry.
- Simmer uncovered 15 minutes, turning the balls gently once, until they are firm and cooked through.
- Stir in the coconut milk and simmer very gently 5 more minutes. Check the salt, scatter the remaining coriander leaves and serve with yellow coconut rice.Never let it boil after the coconut milk goes in.
Safe temperatures: Minced meat is done at 71°C / 160°F all the way through. Egg dishes are done at 71°C / 160°F; a whole egg when the yolk and white are both firm. Reheat leftovers to 74°C / 165°F. FoodSafety.gov
Storage
Keeps 3 days refrigerated and tastes better the next day. Reheat gently in a pan, not a microwave, so the balls stay whole. Freezes for a month.
Nutrition Good estimate
One serving of Ball Curry (554 g) is about 544 calories, or 99 calories per 100 g.
High protein: 36 g a serving, 27% of the calories
| Per serving554 g | Per 100 g | |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 544 kcal | 99 kcal |
| Protein | 36.2 g | 6 g |
| Carbohydrate | 32.9 g | 6 g |
| of which sugars | 7.1 g | 1 g |
| Fibre | 5.7 g | 1 g |
| Fat | 31.2 g | 6 g |
| of which saturated | 15.4 g | 3 g |
| of which unsaturated | 13.3 g | 2 g |
Estimated from raw ingredients using USDA FoodData Central.
More like this: · Anglo-Indian recipes
Times, yields, allergens and nutrition are guidance. Use your own judgement on doneness and on storing. More in About.