by Sarah Mir · Updated August 23, 2023
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Qeema Chawal. Rice and Ground Beef. Is this a qeema biryani? I don't know, but when I think of biryani I think of headier spices, bolder flavors. Qeema Chawal for me is it's more mellow beautiful counterpart. It is more pulao like in it's simplicity of flavors and it is one of the few dishes where I will not be able to resist seconds (and maybe thirds but whose counting). This is another one of my mothers recipes and one of those which I make almost as well as she does. Almost. That's more than good enough for me.
I wasn't sure whether I should post this recipe or not, but the further we get into Ramzan the more my body craves foods that are light yet flavorfully spicy and this checks those boxes. I love it most with a loaded raita, but then I love most things with a loaded raita. This rice dish improves in flavor and the best way to reheat is to sprinkle it with a little water before microwaving it. If you feel like your beef has become too 'dry' then add two additional tbsp of room temperature whipped yogurt into the qeema mixture before layering it with the rice.
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4.80 from 35 votes
Keema Chawal and 12 Must Cook Pakistani Beef Recipes!
a simple delicious Pakistani pilaf!
Prep Time5 minutes mins
Cook Time30 minutes mins
Total Time35 minutes mins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Pakistani
Keyword: Keema, Pakistani, Beef
Servings: 6
Author: Sarah Mir
Ingredients
- 3.5 cups basmati rice
- 1 lb lean ground beef little less is fine
- ¾ tsp cumin seeds
- 3-4 cloves
- 6-7 black peppers whole
- 1 inch cinnamon stick
- 1 regular sized onions or two small
- 1 garlic paste
- 1 heaped tsp ginger paste
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tablespoon red chilli powder
- ⅓ tsp turmeric
- 2 to matoes
- ¾ tsp garam masala powder
- 2 tablespoons yogurt
- 4-6 green chillies
- juice of half a lemon
- ½ cup cilantro
- ¼ cup mint
- oil for cooking
Instructions
Rice
* wash and soak your rice
* parboil your rice in briny (gnerously salted) water and drain.
Qeema
* whip your yogurt in a small bowl to make smooth and set aside
* dice your onion & tomatoes then chop your cilantro, mint and chillies and set aside.
* heat a lug of oil in a large bottomed pan or a wok - it will make for faster cooking than a small pot
* add the cloves, peppers, cinnamon and cumin seeds
*when the dry spices start to sizzle and give off an aroma then add the onion and saute till translucent
* in go the ginger and garlic paste, stir fry for a minute
* add the salt, red chilli powder, and turmeric powder. saute for another minute
* now in goes the ground beef, cook on medium high till well browned. this takes 5 minutes or so, if it starts to stick add more oil and continue to cook stirring frequently till the beef takes on a darker brown color
* add the yogurt and diced tomatoes and cook on medium heat till the tomatoes become one with the ground beef, you may see v thin tomato 'skin' pieces and that's fine.
* now in go the garam masala powder, green chillies (start w 3-4), cilantro, mint, and lemon juice, cook for 1 minute and taste. It should be slightly salty, spicy, and tangy. If not then adjust seasoning.
Layering
Put half the rice in a large pot, then add a layer of ground beef, then top it with the remaining rice. If you want you can scatter over some green chillies and lemon pieces for their aroma. Leave the pilaf to cook on low temperature for about 20 minutes and then fix carefully so as to not break the rice
Notes
* I usually start cooking the rice before the beef and then whenever it is done I drain it and set it aside till ready to use
* Salting your rice is so important, but if you underdo it then adjust the seasoning in the raita/yogurt to compensate.
* For a more 'chatpata' (spicy & strong) taste you can always add two spoons of achar masala to the ground beef.
PIN this Keema Chawal recipe for later!
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Reader Interactions
Comments
Kim saysI'm definitely trying this one! Looks fantastic.
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- sarahjmir@gmail.com says
Thanks Kim! Hope you do and keep me posted!
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- Sumbul Jafri says
You know Sarah,I'm fasting. This qeems chawl actually had my mouth watering.
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- sarahjmir@gmail.com says
I learnt from the best of them!
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- Shumaila says
Sounds flavorful. Do you think I could try this with ground lamb or chicken? Husband doesn't eat beef.
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- sarahjmir@gmail.com says
Chicken for sure 🙂
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- Siham Gheewala says
Sarah, I'm trying to make this tonight but I'm too much of a noob to understand a few things. So 1. How long would you say it takes to parboil the rice? and 2. When you're layering it all and then cooking on low, do you need to add water at all? Also I want to add potatoes, should I roast them first then layer them in or just add at the end?
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- sarahjmir@gmail.com says
Hey Siham! So parboiling the rice honestly depends on the brand and your cooktop. I have a ceramic cooktop so it takes me aeons to get rice to boil. Generally though use your nose as your guide, if you can smell that rice smell check on it, for me think it is usually about 8-10 of a healthy simmer. for the layering you don't need to add water at all. also for the potatoes (yum!) roast them add them, add them at the end or even cook them w the qeema and you'll be fine either way. Hope this helps - keep me posted!
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- Siham says
I made it! It doesn't suck! The rice looks like actual rice instead of some vague mush and I'm actually looking forward to eating through it. You'd have to know more about what's being going on in my kitchen to understand what a victory that is but short version: thanks Sarah!!
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- sarahjmir@gmail.com says
hahah that's awesome to hear! If its any consolation rice used to be my nemesis. That and tea. Let's not talk about tea anymore... *slowly skulking away*
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- Najia Masood says
At what point we need to add the whipped yogurt?
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- sarahjmir@gmail.com says
Hi Najia! they go in with the tomatoes, thanks for catching it! Am updating the recipe now - let me know how it turns out 🙂
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- Najia Masood says
It's turned out amazing Sarah! I just guessed and put the yogurt after tomatoes. Everyone loved it at my house.
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- sarahjmir@gmail.com says
Yay! I am SO SO happy to hear that.... and kinda feel like making some myself now hehe
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- Najia Masood says
When ever I am confused about what to cook today, I turned to your recipes to try something new. I'm glad that I found this blog.
Thank you for making me a good cook. - sarahjmir@gmail.com says
oh my goodness - I am totally blushing here!
- Asma says
Hello! I found this recipe on Pinterest and made it this morning for dinner for my 5 year old and 1 year old, i added some frozen veggies (a corn, carrot, pea, green bean mix) to the keema. Omg, I know i made it for them but i can't stop eating it. It's so light flavorful and Perfect for the kids!!! Thanks for sharing this recipe, I will definitely try some of your other ones now!
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- sarahjmir@gmail.com says
Yay! AM SO THRILLED to read this! Also I love that you added some veggies to the qeema, I want to try that now too!
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- Sana says
Absolutely delightful! Just made it for the third time today 🙂
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- sarahjmir@gmail.com says
that makes me day! THANK YOU!!!
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- Nermeen says
I can't wait to try this recipe, but would like to clarify, is it 1TBSP of red chili powder or 1 tsp? I think 1 tbsp would be very spicy. Thank you! 🙂
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- sarahjmir@gmail.com says
Hi Nermeen! So when I say a tbsp I mean a measuring spoon so it sounds like a lot more than it is. That said totally feel free to scale back to suit your tastes! Can't wait for you to try it and hope you enjoy it as much as we do!
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- Susan says
Just made this and it's yum. I used Quorn mince instead of beef as cooking for a veggie and everyone loved. Didn't do the layering, just put the rice in the wok at the end and gently combined the keema with the rice.
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- sarahjmir@gmail.com says
What an excellent idea! We are definitely trying to eat less meat and that would work so well! Glad you enjoyed the recipe and thank you for sharing the substitution!
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- Salma says
Just made this on my wood stove; turned out amazing! My cook time was a bit longer though due to cooking on wood and I used brown basmati rice.
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- sarahjmir@gmail.com says
I’m so glad you enjoyed it and how cool that you have a wood stove!!!
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- Sarah says
This recipe was good. However, I think if you could update it with exactly how you parboil your rice - it would be useful to your newbie chefs. You include 3.5 cups of rice in your ingredient list - do you double the water, how much salt do you add and for how long do you allow it to boil? These things would have made a world of difference in my chawal as the grains were still quite hard.
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- Sarah Mir says
Hi Sarah! noted - I will try and put something together on how to boil rice. it's totally something I struggled with when I was newer in the kitchen too
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- Sonia Naz says
My mouth really watered to see your recipe. I'll try it myself tomorrow. Is it really tasty in real?
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- Sarah Mir says
I think so and I hope you do too!
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- Sonia Naz says
I came across your website during the search result and found your article very informative. Thanks for sharing such good information.
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- Sarah Mir says
thanks Sonia!
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- Sadia Rehman says
Absolutely amazing 🤩 made it for the first time today and just wow wow wow my kids went bonkers for it 😬
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- Sarah Mir says
I am so happy to hear that! Thank you for sharing it here!
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- Zehra says
Deeeeeeelicious! My son calls it "burger chawal" 🙂 It's an official staple in my rotation - thank you!
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- Sarah Mir says
Okay that's the best name for it and I want to start calling it that in my house! Thank you for sharing this, I was so happy to read your comment!
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- Aneta says
Hi , If I don't add water do I mix layers over 20 min cooking ? I worried that it will be burning at the bottom. Can I use any sort of pan?
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- Sarah Mir says
Hi Aneta! On your very lowest heat setting you should be ok. All layered rice dishes are made this way!
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- Somayya says
Assalaamu alaikum. Love the simplicity of the recipe. My go to when I'm short on time.
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- Sarah Mir says
That's wonderful- thank you!
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- Saarah says
We loved this but it still was too spicy for my kids. I substituted the red chili powder with kashmiri chili powder and we finally have a winner.
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- Sarah Mir says
I am glad you found a way to make it work for your family! Thank you for sharing that and the review!
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