BEEF CURRY

I really dislike certain spices! And because of that I have never been able to eat curry. I'm thinking it may be the actual curry leaves or tumeric that I really don't like. Because every time I taste a curry the flavour is NOT to my liking. The burn is not what I want either but the actual taste is what makes me not like it. So for the very first time a few weeks ago I made my very first curry that I could actually eat! :) yay! I took several recipes and decided what spices I would use and what I would leave out as well as what I actually had in my cupboard. So this curry was my first curry LOVE and I'm proud to say my husband and daughter liked it too and I will actually make it again!

If you like very hot curry - add MORE chillis and fresh ginger.

INGREDIENTS
1 garlic clove
large pinch of coarse salt
2 teaspoons mustard seeds
1 smallish piece of star anise
some woolworths steak rub (contains, mustard green peppercorns, black pepper, sugar.. etc)
a thumb size piece of ginger grated on medium small
1/2 - 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tiny 1cm piece of star anise
half a red chilli ( finely diced)
sugar
salt
pepper
600 g beef steak
3 medium onions (peeled and diced)
olive oil
2 tins or 1 large bottle organic tomato puree
1 small tin organic coconut milk
1 tablespoon tomato paste
*note to self - (next time add some fresh tomatoes too)

METHOD
Cube the beef into bite sized chunks/blocks.
Fry the beef in a frying pan with some olive oil and some steak rub until sealed/brown on the outside.
Take the steak out the pan and let rest in a bowl to one side.
Add the mustard seeds and the cinnamon and star anise and add a dash more olive oil and fry until toasty.
Take out and crush in a pestle and mortar and add back to the frying pan.
Mash your garlic and salt into a paste in a pestle and mortar and add to the frying pan.
Add the peeled and grated ginger to the pan. Stir.
Add the onion. stir and fry until light brown.
Add the tomato paste, tomato puree, chilli and the meat to the pot and stir.
Bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes.
Add a little sugar if needed.
Then add the coconut milk. continue to simmer until thick and the meat is tender. (maybe 40 min to an hour.. the longer you cook it the more tender the meat )
Season with salt and pepper.
Serve with rice