Malai Kofta

Fast Facts

A vegetarian recipe

Delicately sweet in taste

Indian cuisine

Did You Know

A main course preparation

Enjoyed with rice, chapattis, and parathas

Introduction

Main Ingredients-

Potatoes
Paneer
Vegetables like peas, beans, sweet corn, carrots, etc.
Chopped nuts (cashew nuts, almonds, walnut, and so on)
Chopped raisins
Tomatoes
Onions

Malai kofta, an Indian recipe is a vegetarian alternative for meat balls in gravy. This main course preparation goes well with rice varieties, chapattis, and parathas. Vegetarians across the globe have a penchant for this delicately sweet vegetarian delicacy.

Ingredients

Malai kofta is made of vegetable balls (kofta) in thick gravy (malai). The ingredients for kofta are:
2 cups of boiled, peeled and diced potatoes;
1 cup of paneer (casein) cubes;
1 cup of boiled mixed vegetables like peas, beans, sweet corn, carrots, etc.;
½ cup chopped nuts (cashew nuts, almonds, walnut, and so on);
¼ cup chopped raisins;
2 tbsp of thickened cream;
1 tsp of coriander powder;
1 tsp of cumin powder;
½ tsp of red chili powder;
Salt to taste
Cooking oil

The constituents of malai include:

2 tomatoes cut in quarters;
2 onions cut in quarters;
3 tbsp of nuts;
3 tbsp of cooking oil;
2 tbsp of garlic paste;
1 tbsp of ginger paste;
1 tbsp of cumin powder;
2 tsp of coriander powder;
2 tsp of garam masala;
1 tsp of poppy seeds;
½ tsp of red chili powder;
Salt to taste

Preparing malai kofta

Begin preparation of malai kofta by mashing the boiled potatoes, vegetables, paneer and cream together in a large bowl. Add the kofta spices to this mixture and knead all the ingredients well to make firm dough. Season this dough with salt.
Make small balls of this dough and put ½ tsp of nut and raisins inside each of these balls. Thereafter roll them into perfect rounds.
Deep fry these balls into pale golden color over medium heat.
Drain excess oil from these balls by placing them on paper towels, and keep them aside.
For preparing the malai (gravy), start with frying the onions in a deep pan to a light brown color.
Prepare a paste using the tomato pieces, garlic, ginger, coriander, cumin and red chili powder.
Place this paste into the pan and continue frying till oil and masala separates.
Then add the nut paste and poppy powder and fry for further 2 to 3 minutes.
Subsequently add warm water to make the gravy thick and mix it well. Add salt to taste.
Boil the gravy slowly and thereafter allow it to simmer.
To this simmering gravy add the kofta balls carefully and cook uncovered for about 2 to 3 minutes.
Extinguish the fire, sprinkle garam masala, and cover it for around five minutes.