You can easily introduce different spices and herbs to your baby with recipes like this one, which features ground coriander and fresh zucchini

Keema (also known as ‘Kheema’ and ‘Queema’) is a traditional Indian dish that is classic Indian comfort food — easy to make and eaten in millions of households around the world. Ground meat (usually lamb) is made into a curry with onion, garlic, ginger, tomato, spices, and often with diced potatoes and sweet green peas. It’s deceptively simple but deeply satisfying, and something you can make quickly at home, as I described in my Lamb Keema post. As you may know, I’ve been sharing my experiences (and recipes!) introducing my baby to Indian food, and this is a recipe I created which is a ‘baby version’ of keema. Since my little one seems to like dishes made of ground meat like Turmeric-spiced Vegetable & Chicken Meatballs for Babies, I thought I would give this a whirl. It replaces ground lamb with ground chicken, gives me a chance to give him vegetables like zucchini in a tasty way, and offers me the opportunity to introduce more spices and herbs like fresh mint and ground coriander. Best of all, it’s a one-pot dish that makes it easy for Mommy or Daddy to pack a lot of nutrition and flavor into baby’s dinner.

What are your go-to dinner recipes for babies exploring solid food? Let me know by posting a comment below, I’m always on the lookout for winning baby recipes for Liam!

Keema for babies: mint and coriander-spiced chicken, zucchini, peas, and potatoes

Ingredients

• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1/2 small onion, finely minced
• 1/2 pound ground chicken (or turkey)
• Dash ground coriander powder (1/8 teaspoon)
• Dash dried mint (1/8 teaspoon)
• One small raw zucchini, grated
• 4 – 5 tablespoons pumpkin puree (I used canned pumpkin, you can always substitute with carrots or sweet potato)
• 4 – 5 tablespoons green peas puree (I used Gerber’s ‘first peas’)
• 1/2 cup cooked mashed potatoes (I used small Yukon Gold potato and mashed with a little formula)
• Tiny bit of finely chopped fresh mint or fresh cilantro, if desired

Preparation

1. Heat oil in a wide, non-stick skillet over medium flame. Add onion, sautéing for a few minutes until glassy, then add ground chicken or turkey and cook over medium-high flame.
2. Once the meat is browned (basically loses its color), add ground coriander powder, dried mint, and grated raw zucchini and cook, reducing the flame a little if needed, until zucchini is just cooked (doesn’t take long, maybe 5 minutes), then add pumpkin and green peas puree and mix well.
3. Add cooked mashed potatoes (you can add a little finely chopped fresh mint or cilantro here if you like), and fold to combine everything together. Ta-da! Your baby keema is ready for serving!