Life. Love. Food

Meatball Tikka Masala

I had been thinking about tikka recipes sometime back and I came to the realization that nearly anything can be made into a tikka…Any meat that is! These  meatball tikka masala were totally experimental. My dad suggested we make meatballs coz we had not had them for quite some time so I chose that time to try this out. I was so afraid I would mess up not only because I have not tried this recipe before, but also because I was making a large quantity. Nothing hurts more than making a lot of bad food. Ya relate?

But I thank God for whispering in my ear and heart how exactly I should go about it. These meatball tikka masala were a hit with my family.  Spicy, juicy and delectable. #MUSTTRY for sure!

meatball tikka masala recipe by best kkenyan food blogger kaluhi adagala of kaluhiskitchen.com

COOK TIME: 90 MIN                               SERVES:7

Meatball Tikka Masala Ingredients

For the balls:

meatball tikka masala ingredients by kenyan best food blogger kaluhi adagala of kaluhiskitchen.com

 

1 kg of minced beef

1 egg

1/2 a cup of bread crumbs

1 lemon, juiced

5 cloves of garlic, minced

1/2 of thumb sized ginger root, minced

1/2 a teaspoon of dried thyme

1 heaped teaspoon of black pepper

1/2 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

3 tablespoons of plain yoghurt

For the masala

how to make the sauce for the meatball tikka masala_best kenyan food blogger_kaluhiskitchen.com

2 tablespoons of royco all spice

1 tablespoon of black pepper

1/4 teaspoon of turmeric

1 teaspoon of cumin powder

1 tablespoon of coriander powder

1/2 green bell pepper, finely diced

3 carrots, finely diced

4 large tomatoes, grated

2 tablespoons of tomato paste

2 red onion, finely diced

Plain yoghurt, approx 1/2 a cup

Salt to taste

 

Method

Put your minced beef in a large bowl. Then add the pepper, cayenne,bread crumbs, whisked egg, the yoghurt , thyme, fresh lemon juice ginger and garlic. Mix everything until all the ingredients are distributed evenly through out the meat.

Kenyan food bloggers_mix the ingreditents evenly before proceeding to rolling up the balls_kaluhiskitchen.com

Take small hand fulls at a time and roll them into balls. Roll and set aside. The egg and crumbs allow them to stick quite easily so their is no need of making them too compact.

 

Put some oil in a large pan or a flat grill and grill or shallow fry the balls. It should take about 8-10 minutes for them to cook through. Do not crowd them, put a batch at a time depending on your quantity. The house always smells too good at this point!

lightly fry the meatbals to get them cooked through befor adding them to the sauce_use a grill or a pan_kaluhiskitchen.com

 

grilling meatballs for the tikka masala gives them a pleasant char and shortens cook time_kaluhiskitchen.com

Once all of them are done, set them aside and begin working on the tikka masala sauce.

For the sauce:

***

If you want to make  minced meat stew and not meatballs, cook this sauce as instructed, but instead of adding the meatballs, add your boiled or seared minced meat. Utamu tu!

***

Add the onions, ginger and garlic to some heated oil in a sufuria and allow them to fry until they soften. This should be about 2-3 minutes. Be careful not to burn the garlic.

Then add the tomatoes, 3/4 of the carrots and 3/4 of the diced green bell pepper. Mix it all up then add tomato paste together with 1/4 cup of hot water. Mix your salt, royco, black pepper, turmeric and coriander powder to form a thick paste and add this to the sauce .Let this simmer for about 5 minutes.

add the bell pepper and the carrots to the sauce of the meatball tikka masala and leave some for later_kaluhiskitchen.com

Then throw in your meatballs into the sauce along with the remaining carrots and bell pepper. Add the rest of the yoghurt and mix it in until all white streaks disappear. Cover with a lid and allow this to simmer on low heat for 10-15 minutes. This time frame also allows the favor of the meatballs and that of the sauce to meld. If you feel the sauce is reducing, you can add some hot water or beef stock (1/4 cup at a time to retain the thickness).

kenyan food_kenyan food bloggers_meatball tikka masala_kaluhiskitchen.com

yoghurt thickens the broth and slightly tempers the spice of the tikka masala_kenyan food_meatball tikka masala_kaluhiskitchen.com

As the meatball tikka masala is simmering, finely chop your fresh coriander which will serve the purpose of your garnish.Once this is done, remove from the heat, garnish and dig in!!!

kenyan food blogs_ kaluhiskitchen.com_best meatball recipe_kenyan food

Not too spicy, but you can feel the heat nonetheless. The sauce goes really well with nearly anything and makes even the most normal meal and experience never to be forgotten.

kenyan food_kenyan food bloggers_best kenyan food blog kaluhiskitchen.com_meatball tikka masala

There is no better way than to accompany your starches than with these juicy meatballs bathed in a rich tikka masala sauce. You’ll never forget my tikka masala meatballs!

I hope you have added this to you to-make list :))

-Kaluhi


Download the full recipe here:

Kenyan food blog_downloadable recipes


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Watch the video of how to make the meatballs here:

39 Comments

  1. Linda Gaceri

    My mouth literally watered as I read this.You are succinct in your description I can actually smell the spices blending in….You go girlie!!!!!

    • Kaluhi's_Kitchen

      Now you can imagine the explosion of flavors once you actually give this a try… :)) #TooGood!

  2. Nancy Masila

    Love your blog to bits, photography is on point, the theme is great and the food … nom nom nom. We never get to see your face though lol

    • Kaluhi's_Kitchen

      Thank you so much for the compliments.

      I do share photos of myself, full photos. But not that often. I throw them in once in a long while LOL! I want the focus to be on my skill and not on my being. Then, I like to maintain my anonimity. I like walking in town like everyone else and no one recognizing me. I like blending in. But I do not know how long I can avoid being known 😀

  3. Cheptoo Cece

    Thanks for this recipe. I’ve got to try this very soon.
    Love your blog.
    http://tastiedine.wordpress.com {Foodie}
    TD

    • Kaluhi's_Kitchen

      You should. It is a definite crowd-pleaser!! And thank you for the compliment :))

      • That girl is a real crowd pleaser

        *Laughs in Rae Sremmurd*

        • kaluhiskitchen

          LOOOOOOOOOOOLLLLL

  4. Tshidi

    Hi Miss, do I boil the minced meat before i mix it with anything?

    • Kaluhi's_Kitchen

      As the pictures show, I did not boil. I recommend the same for you. Do not boil. I feel they would not stick together as well when the beef is boiled as compared to when they are rolled up raw. I totally understand why you would want to boil. But trust me, the balls cook through when you seer them even without boiling. I had two batches and cooking each batch took just 10 min.

  5. Judy

    Hi, Kaluhi,
    I love, love your blog…i have already tried several recipes but this is my absolute favorite. I now have constant guests in my my house who always request for this dish. Keep up the good work!!!!

    • kaluhiskitchen

      Hey Judy!

      Thank you so much for your compliments! 🙂 This is also a favorite in our house, My father’s all time favorite actually. I am so glad you and your guests enjoy is as well. Cheers!

  6. Steffi

    Hello, could you please tell me which spices the royco contains as I am from Germany and don’t seem to be able to find it anywhere on the internet. Thanks. The recipe sounds delicious!

    • kaluhiskitchen

      Hey Steffi!

      I hope life in Germany is a s fab as it is her in Kenya :)). Royco contains the following ground spices: coriander, cinnamon, fennel seeds turmeric,ginger, garlic, cumin and methee seeds and some cornstarch. Maybe you can prepare this in large quantity and just keep it in a jar for your own use :))

  7. Miss Kui

    Amazing recipe girl… Keep it up as u always do…. Tho was kindly asking wea did u use the lemon in the recipe? Can’t seem to see it… Thank u

    • kaluhiskitchen

      Hey Miss Kui!

      Thank you for the compliment. I am sure you will love this one too :)) I added the lemon while mixing all the meat ball ingredients with the raw meat just before rolling them.

  8. Saisi

    Dinner for today has been identified. Your recipes are super awesome and easy to follow

    • kaluhiskitchen

      I am sure you will love this! I am also super thrilled that you enjoy my recipes :))

  9. Ythera

    The meatballs were absolutely fantastic. I enjoyed them thoroughly and they were even better the next day. Om nom nom. In the ingredients part, the garlic and ginger appear on the meatball side so I used them there but saw them again on the masala side. I didn’t mind it in both the sauce and the balls though. ☺

    • kaluhiskitchen

      Awesome! Thank you for your feedback

  10. Eve

    This is the recipe that landed me on this blog last year, and its still my favorite.. Napenda Napenda.. Thanks kaluhi ????

    • kaluhiskitchen

      You guys really loved this recipe I must admit :)). I will make a video for this soon :)))))))

  11. Ciku

    Yummmm! This turned out so well. The sauce is everything…it was like fine dining at an Indian Restaurant but for cheap.Lol.
    Thanks KK! 🙂

    • kaluhiskitchen

      LOOOOOOOL! Fine dining at your very own home using a recipe you managed to make yourself! It doesn’t get any better than that!. Glad you enjoyed :*

  12. Wanja

    I just loved watching the vblog bit! so well articulated… I’ll try the recipe! You are doing a good job!

    • kaluhiskitchen

      Thank you so so much for your feedback.

  13. Winnie

    Wooiii thanks for sharing! Dinner leo leo…. with ugali will taste like heaven!
    W.

    • kaluhiskitchen

      Definately fantastic with ugali!!! Glad you loved this recipe :))

  14. Maureen

    So, I tried out these meatballs and they were the truth! Didn’t have plain yogurt so i ended up using flavored yogurt…I don’t think it distorted the taste too much. And i used store bought pasta sauce instead of tomato paste. I love the creative recipes.

    • kaluhiskitchen

      So glad you enjoyed it. I like your use of substitutes, but I urge you to use plain yoghurt next time. You will see the difference :))

  15. Sharon

    Hey.
    I love your recipes.

    I don’t have a grill… What do you suggest I do to get the meatballs ready?

    • kaluhiskitchen

      Thank you :)) A pan is totally ok since you just need to shallow fry. Make sure it is none stick.

  16. Soni

    I made this for friends uallalalala. They think I’m a good cook thanx to you.

  17. Nick kithinji

    WOW yammy meat balls i will follow your recipe I did try but didn’t cook inside thanks K.

    • kaluhiskitchen

      Practice makes perfect. Next time you will totally ace it!!!!

  18. Zii

    Hi Kaluhi, instead of using minced beef can I substitute by using minced turkey (turkey is more healthier), and instead of using plain yogurt can I use Plain Greek yogurt?

    • kaluhiskitchen

      That would be ok

  19. Gee

    I’m so salivating as I read through.
    Must try this.

    • kaluhiskitchen

      Let me know how it goes

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