Malai Kofta

Here s tapping into my north-indian bonds. Ever since my in-laws made the lauki kofta its been in my head to try out koftas made with a variety of vegetables.

Koftas are basically meatballs. The vegetarian variety has a lot of possibilities - you could make vegetarian koftas with 'lauki' (bottle gourd), potato, paneer and a mix of other veggies. What I have attempted here is a vegetarian kofta cooked in a spicy curry.

for the Kofta:
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Ingredients:

1 small potato boiled and mashed
1/4 cup green peas boiled
1/4 cup corn kernels
1/2 cup shredded paneer
1/4 cup khoya
corn flour
red chili powder
cumin powder
garam masala
salt to taste
vegetable oil to fry the kofta

Directions:

Mix all the above ingredients except for the corn flour by hand to form a dough that can be rolled into small balls. If the mixture is too dry and doesnt stick together then add more potato or paneer. You will have to eyeball the spice levels. Taste the mixture before you roll it and increase the spice level accordingly. The curry will be spicy, so go easy on the spices here.

Once you have rolled them into a ball, gently dust it with some corn flour - just enough to make them a little crispy.

As you roll the balls and let them rest, cover them with a wet cloth or paper napkin so that they do not dry out. Once you have rolled them all, heat some oil in a deep pan and fry the koftas. Keep truning them so that they are cooked all the way through and evenly.


for the Curry:
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Ingredients:

2 onions quartered
2 tomatoes halfed
2-3 green chili
small piece ginger
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1/4 tsp cumin powder
1/4 tsp garam masala
salt to taste
2 Tbs olive oil

Directions:

Heat the oil in a pan and saute the onions until translucent. Add the ginger and garlic and saute for a minute. Add the tomatoes and green chili and fry for a minute. Add all the spices and fry for 2-3 minutes. Turn the heat off and cooll the mixture for about 5 minutes. Add the onion-tomato mixture to a blender along with the cream and a little water and grind to a smooth paste.

Once you get the smooth paste return it to the pan on medium heat and add the fried koftas to the curry. Let is cook for 5 minutes and turn off the heat. Do not mix too much once the koftas are added. You might end up breaking them apart.

Serve with Roti or Jeera rice.

Tips: You could try different koftas with the same curry. For a lauki kofta, peel and shred the lauki, mix in besan and the spices. Fry them up like pakoras. These will not be regular balls but more like the odd shaped pakoras.

bon appetit !!!