One mughlai dish that I never get bored of and it does not go out of my ‘to-order’ list is malai kofta for sure. Traditionally, it is white creamy gravy served with potato & paneer dumplings. That is how I had in restaurants back in India. But, when I first went to an Indian restaurant in USA, I was really surprised to see an orange malai kofta (thats what my husband says 🙂 ). It was for sure delicious but I was upset about not being what I expected. I felt may be this restaurant chef doesn’t know how the actual malai kofta looks. But then, after trying it at couple of restaurants I accepted the fact that it is just a north indian version of mughlai dish and of course everybody likes it. Well, to be frank even I relish this version of malai kofta now.
Malai Kofta is a rich creamy tomato gravy served with potato-paneer dumplings or kofta as we all say. Malai means cream and that is what makes the gravy so indulgent. Some people like to use mixed vegetables in koftas but I prefer only potato and paneer. And if you are someone like me who keeps tasting and trying while cooking, I recommend to keep an eye on these koftas because they are crispy from outside and so soft and pillowy inside..ahhh irresistible.
This gravy recipe is full proof and cannot go wrong. It is quick to prepare with basic ingredients. When my son turned one and half, I use to make him this gravy (minus the chillies and spices) with small pieces of paneer. He always looks forward to this gravy but now instead of paneer he asks for chicken in it.
Making malai kofta at home sounds difficult but it is really easy to make and can win hearts. It is not time consuming if you have all the ingredients on hand. But the pleasure you get making such restaurant style dish at home is aaaaaamazing.
Malai Kofta
Ingredients
For Puree
- 1 medium chopped white onions preferable
- 6 medium chopped tomatoes
- 2 green chillies
- 10-12 almonds
- 10-12 cashews
- 1 tbsp watermelon seeds optional
- 4 green cardamom
- 1 1/2 cup water
For Gravy
- 1 tbsp butter or ghee
- 1 tbsp oil
- 1 tbsp ginger paste
- 1 tbsp garlic paste
- 1 tsp red chilli powder
- 1 tbsp coriander-cumin powder
- 1 tbsp garam masala
- 1 tbsp dried fenugreek leaves or kasoori methi
- 1/2 cup of fresh cream or half and half
- 1 tsp sugar
- Salt to taste
For Kofta
- 3 medium boiled and mashed potatoes
- 1 1/2 cup shredded paneer
- 2-3 tbsp corn flour
- 1 tbsp coriander-cumin powder
- 1 tsp red chilli powder
- Salt to taste
- Handful of broken cashews and raisins to stuff kofta balls
- Oil for Frying
Instructions
To make Puree
- In a saucepan, add all the ingredients with water. Let it boil till the onions and tomatoes are soften.
- Using a strainer, separate the liquid or the broth from onions-tomatoes mixture (do not throw away the liquid). Let it cool.
- Once its cool, blend the mixture into smooth puree using little bit of leftover liquid.
To make Gravy
- Heat up ghee and oil in a pan. Once its slightly hot add ginger-garlic paste and cook it for a minute.
- Add red chilli powder, coriander-cumin powder, garam masala. Make sure your flame is in between med-low so the spices don't burn.
- Add 1/4 cup of leftover cooking liquid and let everything cook till oil starts separating.
- Now add the blended puree and mix it with all the spices. Add sugar and salt at this point. Cover it and cook it for 5 minutes.
- Turn of the flame. Add fresh cream and dried fenugreek leaves (crush it in between your palms).
For Kofta
- In a bowl take boiled and mashed potatoes and crumbled paneer. Add red chilli powder, coriander cumin powder, corn starch and salt to taste. Mix them together and form a dough.
- Divide the mixture into equal portions to make small (golf ball size) balls. To stuff the kofta, flatten each ball it in your palm and add 2 pieces of cashews and raisins in center. Pull up the edges and roll into a smooth ball.
- Heat up the oil for frying. For frying, oil should be really hot otherwise koftas break.
- Add 2-3 balls at a time in the oil and gently stir them around for even cooking. It takes around a minute to get the golden brown color if the temperature of oil is correct.
- Take it out on an absorbent paper.
To Serve
- Add Koftas to the hot gravy just before serving.
- Drizzle from more fresh cream on top.
Notes
- If using high efficiency blenders then the puree with be nice and smooth. But, if you see any tomato seeds or peel in the puree then pass it through a seive to make it smooth.
- I used homemade paneer for this recipe as I feel its much softer then the store bought. But both works fine. Just make sure to crumble the paneer nicely or shred it.
- For frying: Key to get nice and soft koftas are to fry them quickly in hot oil or till they turn goldenish from outside. By keeping them more in oil makes paneer inside it hard.
- For healthier version, you can use low-fat cream or half and half.
