Curried Beef Pot Pie

Ingredients
For Filling
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon whole cumin seeds
1 large onion, diced
1 jalapeno pepper, diced
1 pound ground beef
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced
2 tablespoons curry powder
¹⁄₄ teaspoon cayenne pepper
¹⁄₃ cup raisins
1 cinnamon stick
Salt, to taste
2 large potatoes, diced
1 large carrot, peeled and diced (or handful of baby carrots)
1 cup frozen peas
2 tablespoons cilantro, minced

For Topping
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
¹⁄₂ teaspoon salt
¹⁄₃ cup cold butter, cut into ¹⁄₂ inch cubes
1 tablespoon green onion, minced
1 tablespoon cilantro, minced
³⁄₄ cup milk

Instructions
1. Heat oil and butter in Dutch oven over medium heat.  Add cumin and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.  Add onions and cook, stirring often, until golden brown, about 10 minutes.  Add jalapeno and ginger and cook 1 to 2 minutes.  Add ground beef and cook, stirring to break up large pieces, until cooked through.  Add curry powder, cayenne pepper, raisins, cinnamon stick, potatoes, and carrot.  Add water to cover by 1 inch.  Cover, reduce heat to low, and cook 30 minutes.  Remove cover, increase heat to high, and continue to cook until most of liquid evaporates and curry has thickened. (This takes at least 30 minutes for me.) Stir in peas and cilantro. 

2. Heat oven to 400*F. 

3. Meanwhile, whisk together flour, baking powder and salt in large bowl.  Cut in butter with pastry cutter, two knives, or fingers.  Stir in green onion and cilantro.  Add milk and toss with fork to combine.  Knead 10 to 15 times then form dough into golf ball-size balls. 

4. Place dough balls directly on top of curry filling in Dutch oven.  Transfer to oven and bake 20 to 25 minutes or until dough is golden brown.

Comments
This recipe comes from Foodess and it was awesome.  I wish that I had doubled it.  The biscuit dough balls were tasty, light, and flavorful.  The curry was grand.  The house was filled with delicious curry smell while it was simmering.  This would probably work quite well with ground lamb too.  This is definitely a winter dish, so I’m glad I was able to sneak it in during one of the last cold weeks of spring. 

The original recipe called for rolling out the dough and cutting it into biscuits, but I’ve got no patience for that.  The dumpling style biscuits worked perfectly, so I’d suggest that you thick with this method if you’re lazy like I am!

Internet - Foodess