Lentil Keema Pav Casserole Recipe

Lentil Keema Pav Casserole! 1 Pan Handsfree! A time consuming mince meat curry with dinner rolls, made into an easy-to-make, one-pot meal! It all comes together in a single pan. Think spiced and super flavorful Indian Sloppy joes. Gluten-free option

Keema is an Indian minced meat curry. There are many variations depending on the region, like this Madras Keema, Green Keema, North Indian Keema naan. This version is adapted from the famous Mumbai keema Pav, which is a super flavorful street style keema served with fresh toasted and buttered dinner rolls. Think super flavorful and spicy Sloppy joes style sandwich. I often use lentils as a meat substitute for the ground meat in keema. Walnuts add great texture as well.

Instructions

• Cook whole spices: Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Place a 9×12” baking dish in the oven to heat up while the oven is preheating. Once hot, remove the baking dish carefully from the oven, add the oil and whole spices, mix well, and set it aside.
• Bake the aromatics: Add the onion, garlic, ginger, green chili, and cilantro stems to a food processor, and process until everything is finely chopped. Then add this mixture to the whole spices mixture. Add the ground spices and 1/2 teaspoon salt, mix really well, and even them out. Bake for 15-18 minutes in the preheated oven, stirring once in between.
• Once the mixture is somewhat golden, remove the baking dish from the oven and add the tomato paste, yogurt, and veggie stock, and mix really well.
• Bake the lentils: Add the drained lentils, peas, carrots, walnuts, and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and mix in. Even it out and cover it with parchment paper. Bake in the oven for 1 hour. Brown lentils take a little bit of time to cook.
• Check at the 50-minute mark to see if the lentils are cooked to your preference, and if you need more liquid. add more warm water or stock (roughly 1/2 -1 cup).
• Once the lentils are cooked to your preference, remove the baking dish from the oven.
• Halve the hot dog buns or dinner rolls and place on top of the lentil mixture and brush them with oil or melted vegan butter. Sprinkle salt, paprika, and place the baking dish back in the oven to bake until the bread is golden, 10-12 minutes.
• Remove it from the oven and add cilantro and lemon juice. Slice and serve immediately.

Ingredients

For the lentil keema:

• 2 teaspoons oil
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 black cardamom pod partly open (or use 2 green cardamom pods partly open)

For the aromatics:

• 1 (110 g) medium red onion chopped
• 6 garlic cloves
• 1 inch ginger
• 1 green chili
• 1/4 cup (4 g) cilantro stems

For the ground spices:

• 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
• 1 tablespoon coriander powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 teaspoon dried fenugreek leaves, Kasuri methi
• 1/2 – 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 1/4 teaspoon dried dill
• 1/4 teaspoon dried sage

For the lentils:

• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 3 cup veggie stock or more if needed
• 3/4 cup (144 g) dried lentils washed and soaked for 15 minutes
• 1/4 cup (35 g) frozen peas and carrots mix
• 1/4 cup (29.25 g) coarsely chopped walnuts
• 3 tablespoons non-dairy yogurt or cashew cream
• 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided

To top the keema lentils:

• 4 vegan hot dog buns or 8 dinner rolls
• melted vegan butter or oil as needed
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• Cilantro and lemon juice for garnish