Indian Meatball Curry
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Meatballs and curry – together at last! This Indian meatball curry features tender, lightly spiced meatballs. They soak up the aromatic Indian spices as they simmer in the rich curry, creating a warming and comforting dinner. This delicious dinner is so easy to fall in love with!
This Indian meatball curry starts with a classic masala base made from slowly cooked onion, ginger, garlic, tomatoes, and warm spices. Blending the sauce creates an extra-velvety texture that feels rich and luxurious without being heavy. The meatballs are gently spiced so they complement the curry rather than compete with it, staying tender and juicy as they simmer.
The result is a beautifully balanced dish with layers of flavor—savory depth from the masala, subtle sweetness from the tomatoes and onions, gentle warmth from the spices, and just a touch of tang. Each bite brings together creamy sauce and succulent meatballs, making this curry deeply comforting and incredibly satisfying.
Is this a traditional Indian recipe?
This recipe is made with the wonderful flavors that we associate with Indian cooking – cumin, coriander, and curry powder infused into a tasty masala made from onion, ginger, garlic, and tomatoes. We can’t claim that this recipe is authentic, but we can tell you that it is very delicious.
Tips for making Indian meatballs
Tender meatballs might not be a common protein in Indian cuisine, but they are SO easy to fall in love with. For this recipe, we went back to our lemongrass Vietnamese meatballs and tweaked them by adding flavors we associate with Indian cuisine.
The flavor has been toned down enough that it doesn’t compete with the curry sauce – but they’re still delicious on their own!
Make sure you mince the onion, ginger, and garlic until they’re almost a paste to help keep the meatballs tender.
Another tip is to avoid packing them tightly. You want to use a gentle hand and avoid really squishing them together. Easy does it!
What to serve with Indian meatball curry
Enjoy this with some naan or roti over a bed of rice, with some cilantro sprinkled over top! Keep it simple, or add a dash of flavor:
Recipe FAQs
How do I store leftovers?
Leftovers taste even better the next day! Store in a covered container in the fridge for 3-4 days. When reheating, be mindful not to reduce the sauce too much. If it’s too thick, you can always add a bit of water to reach the desired consistency. This recipe stores well in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Can I adjust the spice level?
Yes, this has been made without chilies, but feel free to add some red or green chilies, or some chili flakes or chili powder.
Can I change up the protein?
Sure! As you’ll see in the recipe, we suggest a variety of proteins: pork, beef, lamb, or a combination.
Indian Meatball Curry Recipe
Ingredients
- ¼ cup oil
- 2 medium onions (minced)
- 4 cloves garlic (minced)
- 2 inch piece of ginger (minced)
- 2 teaspoons curry powder
- 1 teaspoon EACH: cumin and coriander
- 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
- ¼ cup plain yogurt, whipping cream, coconut milk, or cashew cream (see notes)
- 2 tablespoons almond butter or tahini
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
- 2 tablespoons brown or coconut sugar
The Meatballs
- 2 lbs. ground beef, or ground pork, or ground lamb, or a combination
- 2 tablespoons EACH: very finely minced ginger and onion
- 1 tablespoon EACH: sea salt, curry powder, and fish sauce
- 4 cloves garlic (minced)
Instructions
- Heat 3 tablespoons of the oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until well caramelized, about 15 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, and spices and cook for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes and scrape any stuck on bits off the bottom of the pan.2 medium onions, 4 cloves garlic, 2 inch piece of ginger, 2 teaspoons curry powder, 1 teaspoon EACH: cumin and coriander, 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
- Transfer to a blender and add 1 cup of water, the cream, almond butter, sea salt, and sugar. Blend on high until smooth.¼ cup plain yogurt, whipping cream, coconut milk, or cashew cream, 2 tablespoons almond butter or tahini, 2 teaspoons sea salt, 2 tablespoons brown or coconut sugar
- While the onions are cooking, make the meatballs. Add all the meatball ingredients to a large bowl. Using your hands, mix the meat well. Form into 12 balls, being careful to use a light hand and not to pack the balls tightly.2 lbs. ground beef, or ground pork, or ground lamb, or a combination, 2 tablespoons EACH: very finely minced ginger and onion, 1 tablespoon EACH: sea salt, curry powder, and fish sauce, 4 cloves garlic
- Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the meatballs and cook, turning occasionally, until well browned all over, about 15 minutes.
- Pour the curry from the blender into the skillet with the meatballs. Bring to a simmer and then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover the pan, and cook for 15 minutes. If the curry gets too thick, add a little extra water to the pan to thin it.
- Serve the curry over rice with some cilantro on top.
Notes
Nutrition
We have thoroughly tested this recipe for accuracy. However, individual results may vary. See our full recipe disclosure here.
This is simply the best recipe@ easy, delicious. I did add finely minced lemongrass to the meatballs for a bit of contrast.
Absolutely delicious! Added a bag of baby spinach at the end to include some veggies and lighten the sauce. Used coconut peanut butter which was all I had. Cut back the ginger and salt as suggested by others and used 1 tbsp of cane sugar. Used a little more curry powder and added 1/8 tsp cayenne for some heat. This is the type of recipe that one can add a few modifications to taste however the basics of the recipe are very good. Thank you Kristen!
This is a delicious curry dish, everyone asks for the recipe. I do add a small tin of curry paste if only adults eating. I did reduce the salt in both sauce and meatballs. It uses lots of ginger and garlic, so have plenty on hand. A winner.
Super tasty – I must have used a different curry as mine was more red coloured, but that didn’t matter. I love every recipe I’ve tried from this site, by the way, and always tell others!
For this I found it a bit acidic, probably too much ginger – that’s me winging it, not the recipe! So I just blobbed a some extra yogurt in. Oh, I made some roti to eat it with with… thank you so much.
Thanks so much, Sandra!!
Thanks for sharing the recipe, but I am disappointed to say that, even though I followed the recipe to a tee, I found the meatballs were lacking in flavors and way too salty. The only thing that was tasty is the sauce. I dont know how you cooked everything in 20min, as the browning of the onions took 15min, then another 1min to cook the spices, then another to blend the sauce. Then 15min to fry the meatballs which were made while the onions were caramelizing. So even with overlapping time the sauce and the meatballs took more than 20min. Took another 15 min to simmer the meatballs in the sauce. I’d say this recipe will not satisfy a palate that is accustomed to robust flavors/spices. And please, mind your salt consumption.
I added toasted coconut to the cauliflower rice delious
This makes a really nice flavorful sauce that goes well with rice and we enjoyed it a lot. You could substitute the meatballs for any other protein since the sauce carries the dish…but these meatballs are so good why would you? A couple of tweaks I made was to add some whole dried chile peppers to the sauce while it simmers for a little kick and some minced cilantro to the meatballs because everything needs cilantro. Thank you for the recipe I make it a few times a month.
Thank you for letting us know you loved the recipe!
This recipe is top tier and I’m in love with it
That is so wonderful to hear, Aysha!
So simple and quick! This sauce was so creamy and flavorful we used the leftovers as a chilled dip. The meatballs were perfectly spiced – not over-the-top, but just perfect, subtle and fresh. And both the sauce and meatballs get even more flavorful after they sit overnight, making awesome leftovers for lunch (especially as a wrap). We didn’t have almond butter but subbed macadamia nut butter and it worked great!
What a great idea for the leftovers!!
Love this recipe SO much!
Have you tried this with ground chicken? Seems a good match to me…
I haven’t but I think it would work really well!
Genuinely delicious!
My wife and I made this and was amazed by the depth of flavour and already turned into one of our favourites when guests are round ??
So happy to hear the recipe was a hit! Thank you for coming back to comment!