Chula (Mince meat curry)

This is my all time favourite mince curry that can be prepared in hurry. I love curry called chula as it’s so tasty with rice and easy to make. It used to be my favourite dish when I was a kid. Whenever my mom had to impress me or pamper me, she would bring buffalo mince meat and make this beautiful curry. It never failed to please me after eating a thaal (plate) full of rice and chula.
In Kathmandu, buffalo is the main meat that people consume on daily basis. I’m an avid buff meat lover. You can make so many dishes of buff meat. However I’m here now so I can’t get my hands on buffalo meat easily.
I make this chula curry with chicken mince. I’ve tried with lamb but it turns out really fatty. I’m not much of pork lover so chicken is ideal for this recipe I’m about to share.
It takes 15 mins to prepare this dish. I do this curry when I’m too lazy to cook other protein as I can’t be bothered cutting it or I’m in hurry.

Here is the recipe:

Vegetable oil
5-8 fenugreek seeds
1 large onion
2 bay leaves
1 stick of cinnamon
500 gms chicken mince
1 tablespoon (tbspn) of garlic paste
1 tbspn of ginger paste
1 teaspoon (tspn) cumin powder
1 tspn coriander powder
1/2 tspn chilli powder
1/2 tspn turmeric powder
1 tspn garam masala
Salt as per taste
1/4 of green peas
1 med size tomato
1/2 cup of water or chicken stock
1/4 cup of chopped coriander to garnish

Marinade chicken mince with half of garlic and ginger paste and a tspn of oil. Leave it on the side for 5-10 mins. It will tenderize the meat and retain the moisture.

In a pan, heat 2 tbspn of vegetable oil. When the oil is hot, crack fenugreek seeds and cook it until it turns black. Add onion and fry until golden brown. Throw in cinnamon stick and bay leaves to infuse the onion. Add all the other spices and cook until it leaves the oil. Add chicken mix and mix well. Ensure the mince is mixed well so it doesn’t have any lumps. Cook it for 2-3 mins to make sure it’s not over cooked. Add 1/2 cup of water or chicken stock, tomato and peas and cook it for another 3 mins. Turn off the heat, garnish with coriander. Serve with steamed rice.