Spicy Ground Beef with Potatoes

I saw this recipe on foodgawker and thought it looked very interesting. Mine came out much darker and more greasy than it looked in the picture on the blog, but it was tasty and I had plenty to eat for leftovers during the week. I forgot to add the peas when we had this for dinner, but I added some afterwards so it was in there for my lunches. I also was somehow missing the chiles, even though I know I bought them. It was spicy enough with the seasonings I added though.

Aloo Keema

Ingredients:
Canola oil, or vegetable oil
1 pound ground beef
1 red onion, thinly sliced into half moons
2 heaping tablespoons ginger-garlic paste (2 inch piece of ginger and 5-6 cloves of garlic blended together with a little water)
1 potato, peeled and cut into large chunks
2 tomatoes, puréed (canned are alright, if they are out of season)
1 teaspoon roasted cumin powder
1 teaspoon coriander powder
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon red chili powder/cayenne pepper, or to taste
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
3-4 whole black peppercorns
2 cloves
2-3 green chilies, julienned, seeds removed if you like
nice handful of cilantro, chopped
3 scallions, chopped, optional
garam masala, optional
limes, for garnish, optional

Directions:
Heat a large saucepan on medium heat and add in some oil, to your taste. Let the oil heat up and add the onions and fry them for a few minutes until they start to almost turn light golden brown.
Add in the meat and ginger-garlic paste and keep stirring it until the ground beef is all broken up and in very small pieces. Once the meat is slightly browned add in all the spices except the garam masala and keep mixing until everything is combined and the rawness is cooked out the spices.
Next, add in the tomato purée and mix it into the meat. I also add in half a cup of water at this point. Lower the heat to medium low and cover the pan and allow it to cook for 15 minutes or so.
After fifteen minutes, check the meat and mix it. Cover and let it cook for fifteen more minutes. After fifteen minutes, add in the potatoes and mix everything together a few times. You should no longer see individual pieces of onion (it should have melted into the “masala,” and the oil should start to separate from the meat. If necessary, add a little water (1/4 cup) to help the potatoes cook.
Once the potatoes are cooked, add in the green chilies, cilantro, scallions, and a sprinkling of garam masala and cook for another few minutes. Serve with rice.