Mayai Mani (Spiced Beef topped with Eggs)
Okay, I get that this dish may look odd to some. But it is so delicious! Not to mention, it’s ranks pretty high on the healthy meal meter in my opinion too!
It is not hard to make, you brown the beef with some aromatic spices, onions and tomatoes, then top it with some eggs and bake it in the oven to perfection.
Growing up we used to eat this with toasted white bread, but you could have it with any kind of bread, rotli, naan, pita, or even on its own too! I used to mix this with some basmati rice for my daughter to eat and she loved it.
Pro tip - Use your choice of ground meat inside this dish! I often make it with ground turkey as well.
Grab your ingredients and make this dish along with me! Watch the video and we can make it step by step.
Recipe for Mayai Mani (Spiced beef with Eggs):
Ingredients Needed:
2-3 tablespoons oil (you can use canola or olive oil)
**you can probably use less oil if you use ground beef vs chicken or turkey
1/2 large onion or 1 medium onion diced
1 package (16oz) ground beef (you can use ground chicken or turkey also)
Salt to taste
1 green chili (serrano or similar)
*You can also use cayenne powder to taste
1/4 teaspoon turmeric powder
1 - 6oz can tomato paste
1/2 can of hot water or more (3 oz)
*I just use the empty tomato paste can to measure water in
1 ½ teaspoons each coriander and cumin powder
Fresh cilantro chopped (about a handful plus some for garnish)
3-4 eggs
1/4 teaspoon garam masala powder
1 - 1 ½ tablespoons each garlic and ginger paste
1-2 teaspoons lemon juice or to taste
Servings Made: 4 servings
Time to Prep: 10 minutes
Time to Cook: 35 minutes
How to Make:
In a large pot, heat up oil over medium high heat. Sauté onion in oil until softened. Add ground beef, salt and green chili. For extra spice, chop up the chili pepper or slice in half. You can use cayenne powder also. Cook this for about a minute then add garlic and ginger and continue to cook until meat is browned. Break apart meat with wooden spoon or meat masher as it cooks.
Add turmeric powder, tomato paste, cumin and coriander powder. Stir to combine, cook for a few minutes then add water and mix well. Turn heat down to medium or medium low and cook for about 10-15 minutes stirring frequently.
Taste and add salt or more chili if needed. Add one handful of chopped cilantro, garam masala powder and lemon juice if desired. Turn off heat and put beef mixture into an oven safe dish. I use a glass Pyrex dish either 8x8 or 8x6. Smooth the mixture into the dish and using the back of a spoon, make 3-4 indents in the top for the eggs with some spacing in between.
Crack your eggs and separate the yolks from the whites. Place the yolks on top of the meat mixture in the indents you made. Gently whisk the egg whites with a fork and pour over top off the mixture so it covers all the meat.
Place dish uncovered in the oven for about 15-20 minutes or until egg whites cooked. Bake at 325°F.
Pro tip - to speed up the egg cooking, you can broil this dish for the last 2-3 minutes but be careful not to overcook the eggs or burn them!
Serve with naan, rotli or toasted bread.
Enjoy!
Pro Tip
Make your own garam masala powder. This homemade version that tastes much better than store bought!
