Healthy malai kofta in a creamy white gravy without cream
Make melt in the mouth stuffed kofta cooked in appe pan and then dunk them in a healthy creamy white gravy with a secret ingredient no one will be able to guess!
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The traditional malai (cream) kofta is what it suggests. Deep fried potato and paneer balls in a creamy rich gravy that is full of cream. It is rich, delicious and a pure indulgence.
However, in my recipe we will make both the components to this dish healthy and add a secret ingredient – a vegetable and loads of it too!! – to the gravy that will give it a great flavour base that can be easily worked with.
Let’s talk about the kofta first. Many recipes on the internet ask for kofta ingredients to be combined in a mix which is then rolled in balls and then deep fried or pan fried. But in my opinion, nothing comes close to a stuffed kofta. Imagine a melt in the mouth kofta opening up to another layer of surprises when broken in half. If you are doing a stuffed kofta for the first time, try making a bigger sized one first to help you understand the process better. Once stuffed, you can either fry it in a non-stick pan or an appe pan with minimal oil.
Then to the gravy. You must be wondering what the secret ingredient is. Well, it is dudhi/lauki/bottle gourd and loads of it too! Don’t frown yet. You have to trust me on this. And if you have tried my popular recipe, kathiyawadi ringna nu shaak (an eggplant mash with peanuts and moringa), you know what I mean.
Bottle gourd is an extremely versatile vegetable that adopts beautifully to the flavourings that are added to it. Melon seeds are a great economical substitute to cashew nuts and so much healthier as well. Combined with the aromats and few cashew nuts, bottle gourd and melon seeds come together in a deliciously creamy and yet healthy white gravy.
And when it all comes together with my soft and healthy whole grain naan (Indian flatbread) that has a combination of whole wheat, chickpea and jowar (sorghum) flour, it is a meal no less in taste than the one you will eat in the restaurant minus all the fats!
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Healthy malai kofta in a creamy white gravy without cream
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AUTHOR
Hema B Kathrani
CUISINE
Indian
PREP TIME
1.30 hours
COOK TIME
30 minutes
SERVINGS
serves 4-6
Author: Hema B Kathrani | Cuisine: Indian | Category: Mains
Prep Time: 1.30 hours | Cook Time: 30 minutes | Servings: serves 4-6
Make melt in the mouth stuffed kofta cooked in appe pan and then dunk them in a healthy creamy white gravy with a secret ingredient no one will be able to guess!
Ingredients
- For the kofta:
- Paneer mix:
- 200 gm paneer
- ¼ cup raisins
- ¼ cup cashews, broken in small pieces
- 2 green chilies + ¼ inch ginger paste
- 2 tbsp coriander leaves, finely chopped
- ¼ tsp cumin powder
- 1 tsp black salt
- Salt to taste
- Potato mix:
- 4 large potatoes
- 2 green chilies + ½ inch ginger paste
- 1 tsp black salt
- ¼ tsp cumin powder
- 2 tbsp coriander leaves, finely chopped
- Salt to taste
- Corn flour for dusting
- Oil to cook the koftas
- Paneer mix:
- For the gravy:
- 500 gm lauki/dudhi/bottle gourd
- 1 large white onion
- ½ inch ginger
- 3 green chilies
- 3 garlic
- ½ cup magaz seeds (melon seeds)
- ¼ cup cashew nuts
- Salt to taste
- 1 cup water
- For the tempering:
- 2 tbsp ghee
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 cloves
- 1-inch cinnamon
- 2 ½ tbsp sugar
- For the garnish:
- Coriander leaves finely chopped
- Kashmiri red chili powder
Method
- Make the paneer mix:
- Rehydrate the raisins by pouring hot water over a bowl of raisins. Keep it aside for 5 minutes.
- In another bowl, grate paneer.
- To it, add cashew nuts, chili-ginger paste, coriander leaves, black salt, cumin powder and mix well.
- Drain the raisins thoroughly and add to the paneer mix.
- Adjust the seasoning.
- Take 2 tbsp of the mix and roll it in a ball. Keep it aside. Continue the process with the remaining mix till you have 12 balls.
- Keep the leftover mix aside.
- Make the potato mix:
- Cook the potatoes either by steaming in the pressure cooker or in the microwave. Do not boil the potatoes in the water.
- Once cooked, fork through the potatoes to gently mash them.
- Add chili-ginger paste, black salt, cumin powder, coriander leaves and combine.
- Add the leftover paneer mix to the potato mix and combine well.
- Adjust the seasoning.
- Make the kofta:
- In a plate, put some corn flour for dusting.
- Dust your hands thoroughly with the corn flour and take 4-5 tbsp of the potato mix in your non-dominant hand.
- Gently flatten it in a disc. Continue to dust your hands with the corn flour if needed.
- Put the paneer mix ball in the middle of the potato disc and gently fold the potato mix over it.
- Seal the edges and roll the kofta in the corn flour to shape it in a smooth round ball.
- Keep the kofta aside and continue to roll the kofta with the remaining mix.
- Cook the kofta:
- Heat an appe pan over a medium heat.
- Add few drops of oil in each mould.
- Gently put the stuffed kofta in the mould and cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Roll the kofta carefully to cook until golden brown all over its surface.
- Remove once golden and keep it aside.
- Make the gravy:
- Chop dudhi/lauki/bottle gourd and white onion in big pieces.
- In a large pan, add chopped bottle gourd, white onion, ginger, chili, garlic, magaz seeds, cashew nuts, salt and water.
- Cook the veggies with a lid on until tender. Add additional water only if needed.
- Once cooled, blend the veggies into a thick paste.
- Temper the gravy:
- In a large pan, heat ghee.
- Add cinnamon, clove and bay leaf and fry for 2 minutes.
- Add the gravy paste, sugar and ¼ cup water and fry for at least 10 minutes or until it starts to leave the sides and thickens.
- Adjust the seasonings.
- Serve:
- Put the kofta in the gravy just before serving. Do not mix much as the kofta are tender and break easily.
- Garnish with coriander leaves and sprinkling of kashmiri red chili powder.
- Serve hot with naan.
Notes
- Stuffing the kofta is a time-consuming recipe so quite often, I double up the quantity of the kofta and once cooked and cooled, freeze half of it. It stays well in the freezer for one month. When the mood strikes, make the gravy and dunk the kofta. As easy as that.
- Melon seeds can be substituted by equal portion of cashew nuts.
- Rehydrating the dry fruits before using makes them plump and enhances their flavour.
- Cooking the potatoes in water will increase the liquid content in the potato which in turn will make it difficult to roll as a kofta.
- Use the corn flour sparingly. Too much of corn flour will make the kofta tough and will affect the melt in the mouth texture we are looking for.
- Kofta can be shallow fried with minimal oil in a non-stick pan as well. Flatten the kofta a bit after rolling and fry them till golden brown.
- You can also pressure cook all the ingredients listed under gravy to save time and energy. Use PIP method (pot in the pot) so that you can cook in minimal water and also to ensure that it does not burn.
Did you make this recipe? Follow me on Instagram handle @acookwithin or @acookwithin on Facebook.
www.acookwithin.com
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to share your creation😊 It would make my day!
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2 thoughts on “Healthy malai kofta in a creamy white gravy without cream”
Beautiful combination!!! I just adore your way of cooking…
Thank you so much for your feedback Sangita. Words like these are a huge motivator 🙂