2 medium onions, peeled and chopped

4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

1 inch by 1 inch chunk ginger, peeled and chopped

4 T vegetable oil

1 2″ stick cinnamon

4 whole cloves

4 black peppercorns

1 bay leaf

1-2 hot peppers

1 T ground coriander

1 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp ground turmeric

1 large canned tomato or 2 small, coarsely chopped

2 lb ground beef or lamb

3/4 – 1 tsp salt

1 T lemon juice

Blend onions, garlic, ginger with 3 T water into a smooth paste.

Heat oil (medium).  When hot, add cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns, bay, red peppers.  When peppers turn dark, add paste from blender.  Fry about 10 minutes, stirring pretty constantly, sprinkling water if it starts to stick.  Add coriander, cumin, turmeric, fry another 5 minutes.  Add tomato, fry another 2-3, add meat and salt, fry on high heat 5 minutes.  Break up meat and brown.  Add 1/2 c water and the lemon juice.  Bring to a boil and cover.  Lower flame and simmer an hour.

This was pretty nifty.  And there seem to be about a hundred ways one could use this basic stuff… with vegets added as you cook it initially, or in tandem with other things.