The Yummiest Malai Kofta Curry

Malai Kofta Curry

Hii..
Being a Bengali I am a die-hard non-vegetarian..Yes from Fish, Lamb to Prawns and Crabs, I am crazy about anything non veg. But still there are a few Vegetarian dishes which make me drool and one of them is Malai Koftas..Yes these soft Paneer Koftas in a smooth creamy gravy always makes me drool..I have had these at some wedding or at someone's place but never tried my hand at it looking at the cumbersome process.. But one fine day I decided no I really need to try this and to my surprise it wasn't that much of an Herculean task, in fact I was done in an hour. (I have taken the recipe from a site 'Veg Recipes of India'

Note: The two highlights of this dish is that the Koftas should be really soft, melt-in-the-mouth and the gravy shouldn't be very oily and spicy..just a smooth creamy light flavoured gravy.Thankfully I could fulfil both the points on my first trial.

MALAI KOFTA CURRY

Makes: Around 24 Koftas (For 8 people)

Ingredients

For the Koftas

    400 gms paneer/cottage cheese, grated
    3 medium size potatoes, boiled, peeled and mashed
   1/2 tsp red chili powder/lal mirch powder
    2 tablesps cornflour
    1/2 teasp garam masala
    2 tablesps chopped coriander leaves
    Salt as required
    Raisins - 60 pcs
    Refined Oil for frying the Koftas

For the Gravy/Curry:

    3 large Onions (paste)
    200 gms cup Tomato Purée
    25-30 Cashewnuts soaked in warm water for 30 minutes and then blended to a smooth paste
    1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
    3/4 tsp Red chili powder/lal mirch powder
    2 inch Ginger/adrak - 8-10 Garlic cloves/lahsun - made in to a fine paste
    1/2 tsp Garam masala
    4 cups water
    2 tsp kasuri methi/dry fenugreek leaves
    Salt as required
   Sugar as required (optional)
   Refined Oil
   200 ml Fresh Cream
  Whole spices/garam masala :1 bay leaf/tej patta, 1 inch cinnamon/dal chini, 1 or 2 black cardamom/badi elaichi, 2-3 green cardamom/hari elaichi or choti elaichi, 2-3 cloves/laung

Procedure1. Mix all the ingredients mentioned under kofta ingredient list except oil in a bowl.

Combining the ingredients for the Koftas

2. Take a portion of the mixture, flatten it in your palm and place 2-3 raisins then bind it into medium sized balls.

Binding the Balls

3. Fry the koftas in medium-hot oil till golden. Keep aside.

Frying the Koftas

4. In another wok, add 2 tablespoons of Refined Oil and add all the whole spices and fry till the oil becomes fragrant.

Preparing the Gravy

   
5. First add the onion paste and brown it.Now add the ginger-garlic paste and fry for some seconds till the raw aroma of the paste goes away.

6. Add the turmeric powder, red chili powder, garam masala powder and Sugar(if required) and saute.

7. Add the Tomato Puree and mix further and fry till the oil separates from the masala.

Left: Tomato Puree --------------------------Right:Cashewnut Paste

8. Add the Cashewnut paste and mix well.

9. Add the water, mix and cover the wok and let it simmer

10. While it is simmering add the Salt.

Gravy almost done

11. Add the Kasoori Methi leaves and the fresh cream (keep aside 2 tablespoons of cream for garnish)

12. As the gravy thickens switch off the flame

13. In a bowl place the Koftas and pour the gravy over it. Garnish with Fresh Cream and coriander leaves.

14. Serve Hot with Naan or Roti.

Tips: While combining the ingredients for the koftas, initially add the given amount of cornflour and make a small ball and fry it in hot oil. If the ball doesnt retain its shape and breaks down then add a little more cornflour to the kofta mixture an test again. Try not to put extra cornflour as it will spoil the texture of the Koftas, put just enough so that the koftas hold together while frying.

Bon Appetite

Thanks for reading!! Ciao!