The protein cooking time listed in this recipe has been updated.
As of December 2025, we’ve revised cooking times for all our proteins to reflect improved food safety guidance.
Check out the latest recommended times in our Cooking Guidelines.
Middle Eastern Beef Penne & Cucumber Yoghurt
Spice up British beef with our homemade Middle Eastern spice blend! Simmer in garlicky tomato sauce and dollop over fibre-rich penne to soak up the flavour. Serve a fresh mint and cucumber yoghurt on top.
Ready in 20
High protein
7 plants
Serving size
Ingredients
- 1 beef stock cube (use half) (Celery) (sea salt, potato starch* , palm oil* , vegetables* 4.8% (onions* 4%, carrots* 0.5%, mushrooms* 0.3%), sugar*, natural flavour caramelised* , yeast extract, beef powder* 1.5%, beef* 1.2%, spices and herbs* (parsley* , black pepper* , rosemary*, garlic*, turmeric*, bay leaves*) * Organic ingredients)
- 280g beef mince (british beef mince (10% fat))
- 1 midi cucumber
- 2 tsp dukkah spice blend (buckwheat, pine kernel, coriander, pumpkin seeds, poppy seeds, cumin, oregano, paprika, sea salt)
- 2 tsp garlic paste (Garlic, Olive Oil, Sea Salt, Citric Acid)
- 1 handful of fresh mint
- 200g passata (tomatoes, salt, citric acid)
- 75g seasonal tomatoes
- 80g baby spinach
- 1 tbsp Middle Eastern spice mix (galangal, cinnamon, ginger, pimento, cardamom, kalonji seeds, lavender flower, coriander, cassia, cumin, mace, nutmeg, clove, black pepper, chilli powder)
- 1 onion
- 120g brown rice penne (Eggs)
- 80g coconut yoghurt (Organic Coconut Milk (98%) (Organic Coconut, Filtered Water), Thickener: Organic Tapioca Starch, Live Vegan Cultures)
Nutritional Information
Calories: 697
Protein: 42g
Carbs: 64g
Fat: 30g
Ingredients
- 80g coconut yoghurt (use half) (Organic Coconut Milk (98%) (Organic Coconut, Filtered Water), Thickener: Organic Tapioca Starch, Live Vegan Cultures)
- 200g passata (use half) (tomatoes, salt, citric acid)
- 80g baby spinach (use half)
- 1 tbsp Middle Eastern spice mix (use half) (galangal, cinnamon, ginger, pimento, cardamom, kalonji seeds, lavender flower, coriander, cassia, cumin, mace, nutmeg, clove, black pepper, chilli powder)
- 140g beef mince (british beef mince (10% fat))
- 75g seasonal tomatoes (use half)
- 2 tsp garlic paste (use half) (Garlic, Olive Oil, Sea Salt, Citric Acid)
- 1 midi cucumber (use half)
- 2 tsp dukkah spice blend (use half) (buckwheat, pine kernel, coriander, pumpkin seeds, poppy seeds, cumin, oregano, paprika, sea salt)
- 1 beef stock cube (use a quarter) (Celery) (sea salt, potato starch* , palm oil* , vegetables* 4.8% (onions* 4%, carrots* 0.5%, mushrooms* 0.3%), sugar*, natural flavour caramelised* , yeast extract, beef powder* 1.5%, beef* 1.2%, spices and herbs* (parsley* , black pepper* , rosemary*, garlic*, turmeric*, bay leaves*) * Organic ingredients)
- 120g brown rice penne (use half) (Eggs)
- 1 onion (use half)
- 1 handful of fresh mint (use half)
Nutritional Information
Calories: 684
Protein: 40g
Carbs: 64g
Fat: 29g
Middle Eastern Beef Penne & Cucumber Yoghurt
Spice up British beef with our homemade Middle Eastern spice blend! Simmer in garlicky tomato sauce and dollop over fibre-rich penne to soak up the flavour. Serve a fresh mint and cucumber yoghurt on top.
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Cooking Instructions
- Heat a large frying pan with 1 tsp oil on medium-high heat. Once hot, add the beef and season with sea salt and black pepper. Cook for 5-7 mins, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until golden brown.
- Roughly dice the onion, add to the pan and cook for 2-3 mins until softened. Add the garlic paste, tomatoes and Middle Eastern spice mix. Cook for 2-3 mins, then the passata and 100ml hot water (50ml for 1 person). Crumble in the half the stock cube. Simmer for 3-4 mins, until the sauce has thickened.
- Bring a large saucepan filled with salted hot water to a boil. Add the penne and boil for 7-8 mins, until cooked. In the final minute, stir in the spinach to wilt, then drain together.
- Meanwhile, make the cucumber yoghurt; dice the cucumber into 1cm chunks. Pick the mint leaves from the stalks and roughly chop. In a bowl, mix the cucumber, yoghurt, half the mint and half the dukkah. Season with sea salt and black pepper to taste.
- Stir the cooked pasta and spinach into the beef pan. Mix well and season to taste. Serve in bowls, topped with the cucumber yoghurt, the remaining dukkah and chopped mint.
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