Dam ka Keema, Smoked Beef mince

Ingredients:1kilo fresh organic fillet (you can mince this at home in a food processor or ask the butcher to do this for you)2 cups of natural yoghurt3-4 medium tomatoes - chopped2 medium onions - chopped very finely1 big tbpn of ginger and garlic paste2 tsb of already fried brown onionsWhole garam masala: a cinnamon stick, 3-4 cloves and 3-4 small green cardamom, a tsb of saunf (aniseed) about 2 tsp of both whole cumin seeds and whole coriander seeds - about 2 tspFor the garnish: Fresh coriander leaves, chopped cherry tomatoes, julienne ginger, red and green sliced fresh chilli  and sliced spring onionsA piece of naan or breadGhee and cooking oilA piece of quick light coalServes 4 hungry people and takes about an hour or so to prepare

My mother has always been fanatical about using the best meat when making any beef dish but especially Keema. In Pakistan she only ever uses ‘undercut’ beef which would be fillet in the West. The quality and flavour of the Keema greatly depends on the meat used. I would only ever use the best, besides the fact that fillet / undercut has less fat it also cooks fast and evenly.Keema to me equals comfort food. I reminisce about  lazy hot days after school or long rainy afternoons during the monsoons, the waft of keema and daal and the smell of freshly cooked rice reminds me of good old days in Karachi, Pakistan where I grew up.I would accompany this keema dish with a Kathi Daal recipe (piquant daal soup) which Mummy improvised from a Sri Lankan recipe she picked up on her travels there in the Merchant Navy ships that I grew up on. Daddy has had two professional lives, one as a navy officer followed as a captain on Merchant Navy vessels then later a legal career and a judge. On the various travels my mother extended her interests in cooking by learning different cooking techniques and recipes from every part of the worls, she left no stone un-turned in gathering as much information about the food and culture that she could possibly could. I suppose my interest developed vicariously!I would say it’s a basic  keema recipe, and the only part which is not diffcult, but rather a bit arduous is smoking the keema. But then the taste that it imparts to the dish is so worth it!I should also mention that a few of the ingredient measurements are random as I use a lot of 'andaza' (estimation) in my cooking! As do most Pakistani cooks! Also, I do insist that you spend the time to 'bhuno' (fry, while stirring continuously) the Keema as that really adds that special flavour we're after! Don't be daunted by the coal part!Method:1. Heat some oil in a saucepan and add sabut garam masala (as above) until they impart a spicy smell then add onions - fry until lightly brown. Then add ginger/garlic paste, and fry until the raw garlicy smell disappears. Ensure that the masala does not burn, hence keep on medium low heat.2. Now add all the  chopped tomatoes and bhuno - once this starts to dry up a bit add the mince beef and fry that until the meat is no longer pink. Then add the yoghurt and now constantly keep stirring and continue to bhuno. When the whiteness of the yoghurt disappears, cover the saucepan and keep on low heat and allow to cook in it's steam  in 'dam'.3. Keep checking on the keema every few minutes and stir until the water starts to dry out and then this is when you really bhuno the keema allowing it not to stick to the bottom of the pan and ensuring that it gets nice and brown - but not burnt. I leave it to you to control the amount of heat under the pan. But bhuno-ing the keema is key!4. Now add the already fried onions and cover and allow to dam for about 5 mins. Once the keema is ready sprinkle half the garnish (as above). Cover and allow to dam for a few more minutes.5. Smoking the Keema: Light up a piece of coal (be careful not to get your smoke alarm going! I usually do this in the garden) - make a well in the middle of the keema, place a small piece of bread, drop the burning coal on top and a tablespoon of ghee over it - now cover immediately and allow the smoke to flavour the keema, for about 5-7 minutes. Once this is done, throw away the bread and the coal. Sprinkle the remaining garnish and you're done! See it's not all that hard!