Keema Cutlets Recipe with beef or mutton

Beef or mutton kheema cutlets are the most loved Ramadan food in every bohra or bohra home. These soft, juicy, and flavorful keema cutlets will melt in your mouth and you are most likely over-eat these.

Kheema or Keema Cutlets

Mutton or Beef keema cutlets are flattened mince cutlets that are coated with breadcrumb. The thin cutlets are then dipped in egg wash and deep-fried. They are also called Indian cutlets, mince cutlets, beef cutlets, and bohra/bohri cutlets.

It's a favorite snack made in every Dawoodi Bohra house and often dubbed as 'cutlais'. Kheema cutlets are another handy food like Hunter's beef. Just freeze them raw and they are good for up to a month (although, they'll be gone within a week) and are as tasty as freshly made when fried.

The best beef or mutton keema cutlets are juicy and soft. The recipe also guides in how to make cutlets soft and how to fry cutlets and freeze them. Fried cutlets are great for traveling food and picnic food too. They are good snacks and can be used as burger patties or sandwich patties. They also pair well with daal chawal.

Tips to make soft and juicy Kheema cutlets

• The main trick in making cutlets is adding soaked bread in the mince that makes it soft and juicy. While the mince tends to shrink upon cooking the bread keeps the moisture trapped in the cutlets.
• Cutlets are traditionally made with beef mince. But I have tried it with mutton and it tastes good too. Chicken cutlets are also yummy and popular but chicken needs slightly extra spices and fats for good taste.
• Make the cutlets thin but not too thin. As mince cutlets tend to shrink upon cooking so you need to keep the cutlets thinner than the final product.
• Testing a small portion of cutlet's dough by cooking on a pan and tasting can help adjust the taste and salt to your preference.

Why do my cutlets break?

The mince tends to fall apart and we need a binding agent that is soaked bread in our case. Another trick is finely grinding all ingredients in the chopper or meat mincer. That makes a homogenized dough which is unlike to break.

How to make gluten-free cutlets?

Add 1 ¼ cup mashed potato in mince instead of soaked bread. And use any gluten-free flour instead of bread crumbs to roll the cutlets.

How to store and freeze Beef or Mutton keema cutlets ?

• The best way is to spread the cutlets on a tray and freeze them for 2 hours. When cutlets are hard,  stack them one on top of the other and place them in a container or zip-lock bags. If cutlets stick together separate by sliding a knife in between. For frying directly dip frozen cutlets to egg and fry directly without thawing.
• You can also store raw cutlets in the fridge in an airtight container for 2 days.

How to store Fried Cutlets?

• You can store fried cutlets in the fridge for 2-3 days or you can freeze them as well. Thaw and reheat in a covered container in the microwave.

• The cutlets that you find in the Pakistani bohra wedding are fried and kept in a foil. The foil is then kept on a double boiler to keep cutlets warm and hence you get the moist juicy cutlets. (The first cover with baking paper then cover with foil to avoid contact with aluminum.)

How to make Pakistani keema cutlets recipe (soft and juicy)

Soak breads in milk and squeeze. Set aside. I suggest using karak bread which soaks more milk and doesn't have added sugar like many other breads. However, any sliced bread is fine.

Wash mince , and drain all water in strainer. Also squeeze lightly to remove excess water. Add all spices to mince.

Mince mutton with spices in a mixer or chopper. The fine mincing of meat softens the cutlets and your cutlets will not break.

Add  bread slices, jalapeno, fresh mint and coriander. Next squeeze lemon juice for tangy flavor.

Add ½ of beaten egg first, mix then add more egg, if required. Addition of eggs makes cutlet juicy and also helps binding of meat.

Mix very well, and make sure the mixture is really soft , or add more milk soaked bread.

Cook a small part of mixture to taste it. Adjust salt and spice level to your taste, if required. (This step is optional)

Take bread crumbs in a flat surface. Make a round ball of mince and place on it. Cover the ball completely in bread crumb and make a flat disc.

On a flat surface further shape it into a thin cutlets of 3 inch. Keep in mind that cutlets will shrink a bit upon frying.

Make more cutlets similarly.

Whisk the egg white separately in a bowl until foamy. When we fry cutlets dipped in egg, the oil in fry pan gets very foamy so separately whisking egg white reduces foam.

Add egg yolks , salt and pepper mix well. Dip each cutlets in egg and fry.

Fry for 4 minutes on each side medium heat.

Increase the heat when cooked to give final golden brown touch. Dry oil on a towel. Serve with green chutney.

Hungry for fried snacks? Try these!

• Bohra Fried Chicken
• Aloo kheema Patties
• Chapli kabab
• Seekh Kabab
• Kheema Samosa