Dad's New Zealand Mince Stew

I have nothing but good things to say about this recipe. This is the best way I've prepared ground beef in a long time; it could very well be the best ever! As suggested in the other reviews I added some corn, carrots, and frozen peas, then created a cheddar-topped sheppard's pie. My brother and I were in heaven; he even got up the next morning and ate the leftovers before I could, and this is a guy who won't ever touch leftover ANYTHING! So if you've just found this recipe and are reading this review, here's my advice: TRY IT TRY IT TRY IT!!! You'll be amazed! :)

I've been using AllRecipes.com for years, but this is the first time I've felt compelled to write a review. We LOVED this recipe! Kat's description planted the idea of shepherd's pie in my mind, so that's what I used the stew as a base for. I did take some other reviewers' suggestion and reduced the black pepper by 1/3, but that is the only change I made. I didn't simmer quite as long as the recipe calls for the second time. I made the stew in a large cast-iron skillet. When it was nearly done, I added a layer of sliced carrots to the top, then a thick layer of mashed potatoes to which I mad mixed in a little milk, butter, garlic powder, salt, and coarse pepper over that. I baked this, in the skillet, in the oven at 375 degrees for 30 minutes or so then added some shredded sharp cheddar to the top and baked another 15 minutes. The gravy baked up through the potatoes, which were a nice golden brown...it was SOOOO good! My husband hates leftovers, but the next day I warmed it up and made some homemade sweet cornbread to go with it, and he was very happy. I'm going to make up a big batch to freeze in smaller portions for easy quick dinners after work. I would like to see more family recipes from Kat!

I made a Sheppard's Pie out of this recipe. I tweaked it by adding some frozen peas and chopped carrots - then covering the meat mixture with garlic smashed potatoes. I adjusted the seasonings and only added 12 tspn of pepper and curry. The result was amazing. Mmm...

This is a really flavorful stew. It is very much like spicy sloppy joes or a sweet chili. My family enjoyed it, but we had to eat it with lots of bread or crackers to tame the pepper down! Next time, we'll use just 1 Tbsp of pepper, and keep everything else the same. Many of the recipes I find published are pretty shy about using spices, and I almost always need to add some more oomph -- it's kind of refreshing to find one where I need to back off some!

Made this for my honorary kiwi and we both loved it! After reading the reviews, I used less pepper and after accidentally mis-reading the recipe, I used a tablespoon of garlic powder (!) and it was still great. I substituted tomato sauce and stewed tomatoes for the ketchup, as well. This is a very flavorful soup/stew that was reminicent of a beanless chili, maybe. Delicious. Next time I'll double the recipe! Thanks for posting, Kat!

This is absolutely DELICIOUS!!!! I've mixed in noodles or topped with mashed potatoes or served it in bread bowls - absolutely delicious! Friends take one bite and IMMEDIATELY ask for the recipe. (The only thing I've changed is less black pepper - even 1 Tbs of it still gives it a nice kick.)

This is an excellent recipe and can be used many different ways. I did reduce the amount of pepper, 2 tsps.and added a small amount of cayenne since so many had suggested using less, and 3 T. seemed way to much for the average taste and it was still very spicy. I also used 1/2 T. curry and only one ex-large onion. I didn't have teriyaki so used worchestershire which worked and fixed it as a shepards pie by topping with mashed potatoes and shredded cheddar, excellent. Will make many more times and I found it to still be quite spicy even with these changes.

This is a close approximation of what I would consider a typical New Zealand mince stew. But we don't have onion powder here and don't use garlic powder or teriyaki sauce (we use soy sauce). I wonder if it's been Americanised a bit. We usually have peas and carrots in the stew as well. The first day we serve it on toast. The next day it will thicken up a bit so the leftovers become shepherd's pie. It's the traditional food for those on a tight budget.

Real tasty, I think the ketchup is the key BUT does it need to be cooked for so long? Who knows? I cooked it for about half an hour, mixed some broccoli sprigs with curly pasta as the pasta was almost cooked and was eating and ENJOYING 45 mins from the start. Luvly grub. :o)

Thank you for such an awesome recipe. When I make it I double it and freeze half. Had no teriyaki sauce so put in Worchestire (sp?) instead. Followed the comments from others and used it for sheperd's pie, added some veggies and had it on pasta, just plain on toasted garlic bread. I freeze it in large ziplock bags and throw it in the cooler for camping. Very adaptable!

The recipe was good and I followed a few suggestions like putting veges in and making it into a shepards pie, but I think the ketchup was too much flavour for me. Next time I think I'll put in half tomato sauce and half ketchup.

Good base for extra's, I also added diced carrot, corn & peas. Topped it with a cheddar mash, I think it needs the tangy taste from the cheese to cut the richness of the mince. I kept to the recipe other than that, don't think the pepper is overwhelming at all.

I accidentally burned it a little but it was still incredibly delicious! We also used ground turkey which smells very bad but tastes great.

very tasty, no complaints at all!

This is still in my crock-pot, it smells divine. I adjusted the recipe a bit. I cut the amount of mince in half and added 3 peeled and cubed potatoes, 2 peeled and cubed kumara (sweet potato if you are North American), 2 diced carrots, 2 diced stalks of celery. I also added an envelope of Wattie's dark gravy paste along with the recipe ingredients. I'm going to make biscuits to go with it and some corn on the cob. YUM! Can't wait until dinner!

HUM..Interesting dish. I would say this is a tweaker recipe. A good base, but you would really have to modify this dish to your taste. Maybe the amount of curry? I followed as instructed! Reviews from my family were, edible, but ple...ase do not make again. Sorry, it's just not for our taste buds. I like trying recipes as they are written, not when you have to tweak them, otherwise they become MY, recipes. TWO STARS for EDIBLE, and DELETED from my recipe box.

Add lots of vegatable, was a bit sweet, which was a good thing.

This was delicious! I used stewing meat instead of ground beef and reduced the pepper by half. Served over rice. Yum!

full of flavor, but I will have to modify for my family's taste.

Super tasty but whoa, too much pepper! I only used 1 tablespoon and that was still too spicy for my family. I served it like chili...topped with sour cream, shredded cheese and some cilantro. I am going to use the leftovers for tacos.

I made this for my husband and I. For the time it takes to cook, it really didn't seem worth it. It was okay, but we couldn't bring ourselves to eat the mountain of leftovers we had. Probably won't make again.

This went down a treat and I served it with corn bread! So easy to make, such a treat to eat! Thank You for sharing!

Very easy and super tasty - The only change I made was a bit less ketchup and a bit more teriyaki and garlic!

We really enjoyed this dish. I used less pepper - and am glad I did! Had no teriyaki sauce so used soy sauce instead.I cooked the meat and onions together in one step, and shortened the cooking time by 1/2. I also didn't need to add the flour and water, it was quite thick enough. I added sliced carrots and peas to the pan toward the end of the cooking period. Served over rice. My husband loved the mix of spices. Will make again (with less pepper).

After all of the previous reviews I expected something fantastic. While this has a nice flavour it is far too sweet. For all the time needed with all the simmering etc. this is really just okay, and according to my family NOT a keeper. Thanks for sharing just the same.

I enjoyed this recipe and my husband raved about it. As I was in a hurry I simmered for about 20 mins, added some peas, carrot & mushrooms then topped with potato & cheese and baked in the oven. As recommended by others I didn't add anywhere near as much pepper as the recipe calls for. This would be great over pasta so I am going to try that next time.

This was pretty good - like a spicy sloppy joes, as a previous reviewer mentioned. I used a couple of ingredients I'd never cooked with before; I guess "Soy Vay" Veri Veri Teriyaki sauce counts as a real teriyaki sauce - there are so many variations on teriyaki sauce, I find. And I belatedly noticed that "Kitchen Basics" Beef Flavor Stock isn't a pure beef stock but includes vegetables and other flavorings. But I guess these more or less suffice for the teriyaki sauce and beef stock ingredients. Anyhow, this recipe was a bit of work! It was very tasty and lasted me for a few meals. I like spicy food, and was pleasantly surprised by this (I'm not used to curry powder). But my palate is not too sensitive, so I'm not sure I even noticed some other flavors, like teriyaki and garlic - maybe the pepper and curry are too overwhelming. I enjoyed eating this New Zealand recipe, but I probably won't make it again since it's so much work. Thanks for an interesting recipe though.

I loved this recipe!! I too however tweaked it just a tad.. I used 1 medium sized onion instead of the 3 large onions that are called for in the recipe, and instead of using onion powder (which I couldn't find anywhere) I used a packet of dry onion soup mix. This helped to thicken the stew and cut back on the extra half a cup of water. I used ordinary tomato paste (half a cup) instead of ketchup and added some chili flakes for a little more kick. I also followed the suggestions of many other reviewers and cut the pepper down slightly, although I ended up adding more to my serving anyway! Frozen mixed vegetables were added to the stew but I think the recipe will be better with some chunky cut potatoes. All in all very delicious and will definitely be making again.

I halved this recipe and was glad I did since it wasn't the hit I thought it would be with my husband. I added some carrots, peas and a layer of mashed potatoes on top. I also cut the pepper to 1 tablespoon and put everything in the crockpot after completing step one. I don't think I'll be making this again.

The perfect kiwi tucker during winter time! The entire family loves it and comes out perfect every time.

As the submitter suggested I used this recipe as a base for Shepards Pie. I did make a few changes. I only used 1/4 cup of ketchup (it is full of sugar so 2 cups would not be too healthy) and made up the rest with tomato paste. I also used worcesterchire suace instead of teriyaki and added frozen peas and corn. I think the curry powder is what makes this dish. A great recipe!

this is exactly like MY dads mince stew :) love it!

This is a keeper! I cut the black pepper back to 1 tablespoon and the curry to a half, i used 2 chopped onions and didn't thicken it, so many different things you can do with this, i think next time i'll quarter some potatoes and throw in some carrots while simmering. thanks for the great recipe!

This loose meat mixture was good, sweet, and very flavorful. I followed the recipe EXACTLY except I halved it because we are a small family. I only put in two teaspoons of pepper because my family doesn't like hot things and thats all I did differently. Not bad served on a bun, or over a potato. It reminds me of a German curry wurst, except instead of bratwurst there is ground beef in it.

Yummy! I thought this recipe was delicious. I didnt have any teriyaki sauce on hand so I used my favorite bbq sauce instead. I also listened to everyones recommendation on the pepper. It turned out great.

Went on a limb looking for shepherds pie and thought Id try this. Let me say this is THE only recipe youll need. I took the basic recipe and added here and deleted there. Its great. Thanks very much for the excellent recipe.

This was yum! As another reviewer mentioned, this recipe has been heavily americanised but if you improvise a bit it'll turn out ok.

Husband loved it and he is difficult to please .I made it according to the recipe, with the exception of the black pepper where I only used 1/3 of it and it was plenty. As some suggested I added chopped carrots near the end and I also made garlic mashed potatoes and put on top with some cheddar. Baked for 20 minutes and served. It was delicious. The only thing I will change next time is a little less ketchup or exchange some of it for canned tomatoes or canned tomato sauce, just to reduce the sweetness. Don't get me wrong it has a kick to it with the other spices also.

Omg I love this recipie. I added bbq sauce and Lea and Perrins worchester sauce, my dad was English and he used it in everything. I also added cubed potato and carrot and corn. Reminds me of the mince my dad used to make and I miss him. Food brings back memories. Even making it made me closer to dad!

This recipe is delicious. I did not have teriaki sauce, so substituted oyster and soya sauces instead. I also cut back on the amount of pepper to 1 tablespoon. It made an unusual and tasty base for my shepherds pie, much more flavourful than the typical beef base. Thank you for a great recipe Kat!

Use 3 teaspoons, instead of 3 tablespoons of black pepper. I skipped curry powder and substituted 2 teaspoons chili powder for the onion powder.