Quick and Easy Beef Mince and Pumpkin Melts

We don’t know about you, but we’re in the mood for cooking. So, we thought we’d share another delicious MLA recipe with you. This is one of our favourites when it comes to simple beef mince recipes, and it’s a quick + easy (did we mention tasty?) family-pleaser.

Preparation: 10 minutes | Cooking: 20 minutes

Ingredients

• 400g beef mince
• 400ml jar tomato pasta sauce
• 300g peeled pumpkin, cut into 1.5 cm cubes (can be substituted with sweet potato or potato)
• ½ cup grated tasty cheese

Method

1. Place mince in a bowl and mix in a little oil. Heat a large frypan until moderately hot and then crumble in the mince. Brown the mince, breaking up any lumps with a fork.
2. Stir in the tomato pasta sauce. Reduce heat, cover and simmer the beef mixture for 15-20 minutes. While beef mixture is cooking, cook the pumpkin pieces until just tender.
3. Stir the cooked pumpkin through the beef mixture, spoon into small ovenproof bowls and sprinkle with the cheese. Preheat grill to hot and place bowls under the grill to melt the cheese.

It’s that easy!

Tips for Cooking Beef Mince

• Cook the mince until any liquid (water and fat) has evaporated. The mince can now begin to brown. Make sure you keep your eye on it, as it will begin to cook quite quickly at this stage. Keep the mince moving in the pan so that it browns evenly but doesn’t dry out.
• Freeze any mince you don’t intend to use. Uncooked mince can be frozen for 2-3 months. Rather than freezing loose mince in a roundish shape (as you bought it from the butcher), lay it out flat. This allows the mince to freeze and (subsequently) thaw evenly. Cooked mince dishes can also be frozen for later use.
• Thaw frozen mince (and any meat) in the fridge, on the lowest shelf, below and/or away from any ready to eat food. Only thaw in the microwave if using the mince immediately thereafter.

The Australian Beef website is full of great beef and lamb cooking tips, recipes, nutritional information and more. The website is brought to you by Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) – the marketing, research and development service company for Australia’s cattle and sheep producers. Check out how to cook grass fed beef to absolute perfection and our tips for cooking Australian beef cuts.