Monday, March 30

Malai Kofta


This dish comes for special occassions, Malai ( Cream) Kofta; it has the richness of cream and dry fruits and lots of aromatic flavours. First time when i tried this , it was a total mess. I don't know, i think the potatoes were some new ones(for that season, as i remember told by my mom ..or were they old ?? ). Anyways, the result was the potatoes were too sticky and even after dipping my hands in oil, i wasn't able to make balls out of it. Somehow with the help of my mom ,with the tips given at last, finally balls were made and i was able to make delicious Kofta's.
These koftas are served in a creamy gravy (which i got correct without her help). Malai Kofta is served best with Naan (tandoor-baked flatbread), kulcha's or Jeera rice.

Ingredients:

For koftas:

250 gms(4 large) boiled potatoes
50 gms paneer mashed
50 gms Khoya(thickned milk, optional)
1/2 cup chopped nuts (almonds,raisins and cashewnuts)
1 tsp garam masala powder
Salt to taste
Oil to deep fry the koftas

For the sauce:

3 tbsps cooking oil
2 large onions grated
1 tomato pureed
2 tbsps garlic garlic paste
2 tsps coriander powder
2 tsp kashmiri red chilli powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
2 tsp garam masala powder
1 cup milk(approx)
1 tbsp khoya
1 tbsp fresh curd
Salt to taste
Fresh cream to garnish

Method:

Grate the potatoes(so as there's no lumps and its even thoroughly). Season with salt.
Mix all the other ingredients separately for koftas, add salt to taste and make small small balls out of it.
Shape the potato mixture like a bowl and put the paneer mix balls in the center and then roll into perfect rounds.
Heat the oil to fry the koftas, on a medium flame. Deep fry these rounds till light golden brown in colour.
Drain on paper towels and keep aside.
If the potatoes are sticky, and are not manageble, add a bit of cornflour in the mix, or can coat it with cornflour paste and then fry. More tips in the end.

For the gravy, first heat the 3 tbsps of oil in a deep pan and add ginger garlic paste to it.
Then fry the onions till it is light brown in color and the oil begins to separate from the onions.
Then first add red chilli powder and then all other dry spices and then immediately add tomato puree to it. Fry till oil separates.
Add khoya ,a bit of salt and curd. Fry .
Then add milk slowly and water to get a desired thick consistency (not too thin), and cook. Mix well.
Bring the gravy to a boil and then reduce the fire to a simmer.

Serving:

At the time of serving, place the kofta's in the dish, and pour hot gravy over it. And then garnish each kofta's with the whipped cream and serve.
Serve with hot Naans ,Kulcha's or Jeera Rice.

Tips:

Instead of directly pureeing the tomatoes you can blanch them first in hot water and then puree, it gives better taste n color too.
If potatoes are sticky still, you can add a bread slice (edges removed), or even soaked pooha(rice flakes) to it.
If you don't have khoya, use Ricotta cheese.Just bake the same in Microwave,the cheese will crumble and can be substituted for khoya.
And most important DO NOT add kofta's in the gravy beforehand. The balls will absorb lots of gravy and will be tooo soft, to pour.Can see my gravy is looking thin a bit in snap, but eventually it got thicker.

Also, there's some flowers, Rose, that i tried making with apple's peel. Did u liked them???
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Sending this Malai Kofta to RCI: Lucknow started by Lakshmi

24 comments:

Priya Suresh said...

Yummy malai kofta!! makes me hungry..

Chutneytales said...

Wow..your malai kofta is tempting me..Looks so yummy :)

Saritha said...

Neha thanx for sharing the kulcha recipe,i made it yesterday and it is a big hit.Thanx dear.
Will post the recipe soon on my blog.

FH said...

Great looking dish, love the size of the Koftas, yum! :)

Ashwini said...

This is my fav..They look so perfect and very inviting.

Vaidehi Bhave said...

Hey,

looks perfect and absolutely delectable. yummy!

Vaidehi
Delicious Marathi Recipes

delhibelle said...

perfect malai kofta!i could have all those koftas, just like that, even without the gravy:)
The flower is really pretty

Bindiya said...

loved the gravy, i make the koftas without potatoes, pic looks tempting!

FewMinute Wonders said...

YUmmmmmmmmmmmmmm..Is all I can think of.

Pooja said...

Looking delicious neha..

Lavanya said...

lovely malai..yummy yummy :)

Cham said...

Koftas itself looks gorgeous!

Manju said...

they look soo yummy and delicious!!!!!

Vani said...

That looks wonderful! The picture of the crispy koftas look great too

VIDYA VENKY said...

i love malai kofta..lovely post

saffronapron.blogspot.com said...

That looks great. Makes me hungry.

Deepthi Shankar said...

that is very delicious & is making me hungry

Priya Sriram said...

Hi Neha, thanks for stopping by my blog! Really appreciate your comments! :)
Wonderful snaps with awesome recipes dear! :)

EC said...

Wow..it looks so delicious and lovely colour

Lakshmi said...

yummy looking Koftas! drooling over them.

admin said...

Looks great,yummy...
http://recipes-planner.blogspot.com/

ARUNA said...

Hi Neha......this dish looks yum! Yesterday i bought ready to eat Malai kofta, but was not at all satisfied with the taste! I think i shud try this one!

Shifa AbduRehman said...

Neha.. ur blog is yummier than ever!!!! :) its been a long time since i visited here :)

Priyanka said...

tht looks so yummy!