Add a little zesty flavor to a weeknight kid friendly dinner time staple! Whip up this easy and robust recipe for Bombay Sloppy Joes or Kheema Pav!
Check out the recipe for these Bombay Sloppy Joes below or PIN IT for later!
Do y’all ever get stuck on a particular recipe or food? Sometimes I get, dare I say it, obsessed with a food and will eat it on repeat for weeks, or until I get burned out on it. Like I will eat some variation of my go to oatmeal recipe every. single. day. until my taste buds demand a little more variety; or order the same exact thing every time we eat at a particular restaurant.
Right now our current food obsession has been lamb. It started right after I judged the Austin Lamb Jam earlier this year. I was so impressed with all the creative dishes we were served, it inspired me to want to cook more with lamb at home.
However, to be honest, while I have experience with cooking lamb professionally, at home we don’t eat it all that often since it can be harder to find and tends to be a bit more expensive than other proteins.
But after the Lamb Jam and my visit to Hillingdon Ranch (a Texas cattle, sheep and goat ranch), I decided that if I really wanted to start experimenting with lamb more, that I had just better roll up my sleeves and get in the kitchen!
Today’s lamb recipe, Bombay Sloppy Joes, is inspired by a recipe I saw on a Food Network show many, many years ago. This Sloppy Joe recipe is basically a variation of a street food found in India called Kheema Pav (see below), and is absolutely NOT your 1980’s summer camp Sloppy Joe!
No, this Sloppy Joe recipe is packed with fragrant spices, tender ground lamb and even has some pistachios and raisins mixed in for an added crunchy texture! And even with all that, it still manages to be a kid-friendly one pot wonder, that has been added to our regular dinner rotation!
Do you like lamb? Would you like to see more lamb recipe here on Kitchen Concoctions? Please share in the comments below!
Helpful cooking tips and information:
What is Kheema Pav?
Kheema Pav is robust curry dish made of ground chicken, beef or lamb that is cooked in a tomato sauce with onions, ginger, garlic and toasted spices. A lot of Kheema Pav recipes also include green peas or diced potatoes, however, this version has pistachios and raisins mixed in for added texture. The curry mixture is then served on buttered and toasted buns or potato rolls.
What to serve with Bombay Sloppy Joes:
I served these Bombay Sloppy Joes with some Spicy Sweet Potato Fries but these Carrot Fries or these Seasoned Shoestring Fries with Creamy Mesquite Fry Sauce would also be delicious.
Or you could simply serve this Sloppy Joe recipe with some potato chips and some fresh fruit or a side salad.
Bombay Sloppy Joe Cooking Tips:
Cooking with fresh ginger – Since I prefer the taste of fresh ginger for cooking, but don’t always use it on a regular basis, I buy pieces of fresh ginger in bulk and place them in freezer safe zip top baggies in my freezer. I then can pull out pieces 1-2 inches long, peel them and grate them into my recipe. Fresh ginger can be stored in the freezer for up to 6 months.
Garam masala substitute – I usually always buy my spices in the bulk bins of my local grocery store. Not only can I get fresher, higher quality dried herbs and spices for much cheaper by buying them in the bulk bins, you can purchase exactly how much you need. So, if you only need a teaspoon or two of a spice, like the garam masala called for in this recipe, you can buy just that amount.
If you have a hard time finding garam masala, you can substitute ¾ teaspoon cumin and ¼ teaspoon all spice, for the 1 teaspoon of garam masala called for in this recipe.
Other recipes for Sloppy Joes:
Southwestern Sloppy Joes
Philly Cheesesteak Sloppy Joes
Cheesy Beer and Bacon Sloppy Joe Sliders
Bombay Sloppy Joe Recipe:
Kheema Pav
Add a little zesty flare to a weeknight dinner staple with this easy and flavorful recipe for Bombay Sloppy Joes (Kheema Pav)
Ingredients
- 2-3 tablespoons canola or corn oil
- ¼ cup shelled and roughly chopped pistachios
- ¼ cup golden raisins
- 1 medium white onion, diced
- 1 red bell pepper, seeds and membrane removed, diced
- 1/2 serrano chile, seeded and finely minced*
- 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger*
- 4-5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon garam masala (see notes above)
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon dried cumin
- ½ teaspoon each Kosher salt and black pepper
- 1 pound ground lamb
- 1 (15-ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 cup beef broth
- 1/2 tablespoon honey
- 1/4 cup half-and-half
- Small handful chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
- 4-6 Potato hamburger buns
Instructions
1. Heat oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the pistachios and raisins and cook,stirring occasionally, until the raisins swell up and the pistachios toast slightly, about 6-8 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove pistachios and raisins from the pan and set aside.
2. Add onion and bell pepper to pan and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 8 minutes, or until onion becomes translucent and bell pepper becomes soft.
3. Add the serrano chile, ginger and garlic to the pan and sauté for 1-2 minutes.
4. Stir in the garam masala, paprika and cumin to the pan with the vegetables and sauté for 30-60 seconds.
5. Add the ground lamb to the pan and cook for 5-8 minutes, using a spatula or wooden spoon to break up the meat as it cooks.
6. Once the lamb is cooked through, stir in the salt, black pepper, tomato sauce and beef broth. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 10-15 minutes, or until sauce has thickened.
7. Once sauce has thickened, stir in honey and half-and-half. Remove from heat, garnish with cilantro (if using) and serve on toasted hamburger buns.
Notes
Use the entire pepper for a spicier version, if you prefer. Or omit the serrano pepper all together for a milder Sloppy Joe.
1 teaspoon dried ginger may be substituted, however, add it to
the pan with the other spices.
Recipe adapted from the Food Network
You say it’s a curry dish but there is no curry in your recipe!?
Hi JJ! That’s a good question! By definition, a curry is a dish of meat, beans or vegetables cooked in an Indian-style sauce seasoned with spices. Yellow curry powder is a spice blend that was marketed in the West and was first exported to Britain in the 18th century. Garam masala is another common Indian spice blend often found in a variety of dishes including stews and curries. In this recipe for Kheema Pav, we’ve used the spice blend garam masala.