Kerala Style Beef Fry

I've been wanting to update the Kerala Beef Fry recipe posted here, for a long time. With all the hue and cry happening over the “beef ban” in India, now, seems like a good time ;)

Originally, I was planning to update the earlier post, but with the new developments (read beef ban), I thought this deserve a separate post altogether. If you are a regular visitor here, you must know that, I've proclaimed my undying love for beef many times.

If I may borrow a Malayalam movie line, I can sum up every Malayalee's reaction to Beef ban in one sentence ; “ethu njangale udeshichannu, njangale thanne udeshichannu, njangale mathram udeshichannu”. From what i've heard and read, it's not yet clear about the whole “beef ban” thing. I'm eagerly waiting to see how it unfolds.

Meanwhile, if you like beef and if you get beef where you live, go ahead and make this “kick-ass” beef fry. The freshly roasted and ground spices takes the beef fry to another level. The addition of small onion, enhances the flavour of the dish. If you are a beef lover like me, it's a must try recipe. You can also make this with Mutton and it tastes great!

Check out the video of this Beef Fry recipe below:

You can see other beef recipes here

You can serve it with Parotta (Porotta) Plain Rice, Ghee Rice, Jeera Rice, Coconut Rice, Veg Pulao, Appam, Idiayppam, Kallappam, Puttu, Roti etc;

Here is the recipe…

Kerala Beef Fry 300x250 1
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Kerala Style Beef Fry

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Servings: 5 -6
Author: Maria Jose Martin

Ingredients

  • 1 kg Beef / Mutton (cut into bite size pieces)
  • 2 tsp Fennel seeds
  • 1 tsp Whole black pepper
  • 4 Cardamom
  • 4 Cloves
  • 2 small – med sticks Cinnamon
  • 2 petals from 1 Star anise
  • a pinch Cumin
  • 3 medium Onion (sliced)
  • 2 tbsp Chopped ginger & garlic (each)
  • 4-5 Green chilli (slit lengthwise)
  • 1/2 cup Coconut bits (thengakothu)
  • 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
  • 3 tsp +1 tsp Coriander powder
  • 15-20 Small / pearl onion (sliced)
  • Curry leaves
  • Salt
  • Coconut oil

Instructions

  • Dry roast fennel seeds, whole black pepper, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon, cumin and star anise for 3-4 mins or till the roasted aroma comes. Let it cool and grind to a fine powder, using grinder or in a mortar and pestle.
  • Marinate cleaned beef with 2 tsp of ground spices, turmeric powder, coriander powder (3 tsp), onion, ginger, garlic, green chilli, coconut bits, salt and curry leaves. Add 1/2 cup water to this and pressure cook the beef till done (refer notes).
  • Heat oil in a deep and wide pan. Add sliced small onion and curry leaves. Fry till the small onion becomes brown. Add 1/2 – 1 tsp of ground spices and 1 tsp of coriander powder. Fry for 2 mins. Add cooked beef along with the stock (cooking water).
  • Bring it to boil, reduce flame to lowest. Cover and cook for 7 – 10 mins. Remove the lid and continue to cook till the beef becomes darker in colour. It might take another 8 -10 mins. Add 1-2 tbsp of hot water in between to retain the moisture. You can also add oil in between. Cook till the beef is roasted nicely and is dark in colour. Please note that the colour deepens as it rests.

Notes

Pressure cooking the beef – Pressure cook with the weight on, in full flame till the first whistle comes. After the first whistle, reduce the flame to low-medium and cook for another 10-12 whistles. The cooking time may vary depending on the cut and type of beef you use. I normally use Indian beef and the notes are based on that.
Make sure you dont skimp on the small onion, since it adds more flavour to the dish. If you want to make it spicy, add 1 tsp of crushed red chillies & 1/4 – 1/2 tsp of crushed pepper , once the small onion browns and follow the rest of the recipe.
There might be left over of the ground spices. You can use that in other dishes, instead of your regular garam masala. However, I strongly recommend you to use freshly roasted and ground masala for making this particular dish.
Tried this recipe? Let others know by…mentioning @mariasmenu or tagging #mariasmenu
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5 thoughts on “Kerala Style Beef Fry”

  1. Hi Maria,

    I tried out the recipe today – and it came out brilliant! My family thoroughly enjoyed the dish! and to quote my daughters comment it was just “dope” !! :) which is their way saying it the dish was super!

    I note that in the instructions it fails to mention when to add the onions (sabola) into the cooker along with the meat – plus I did add half a spoon of Kashmiri Chili Powder into the mixture…

    Loved it !

    Thank you !

    Reply
    • I’m glad this recipe got your daughter’s approval :)

      About adding onions – it’s added while marinating the beef, it’s mentioned in the recipe.

      Thank you for leaving a comment here.

      Cheers
      Maria

      Reply
  2. This is such a beautiful clean recipe Maria!!!
    I really enjoyed making it
    God bless you and your family.
    Thank you alot for posting such awesome recipes.

    Reply

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