Malai kofta/ kofta makhni is an Indian Punjabi vegetarian dish. Soft paneer and potato balls, lightly spiced and fried, simmered in a silky smooth mild curry, served with hot garlic roti, naan or rice is a delicacy from North India which is served in almost every Indian restaurant around the world. My personal favorite is from “Aangan” restaurant on Derrimut road in Melbourne, Australia. I loved it so much that I have to figure out the recipe after 20 different recipes trial.

So this recipe is my configured recipe after trying 20 different recipes from known youtube chefs….. ❤

Ayesha’s Kitchen

Ingredients:

FOR KOFTAS

• 1 cup boiled, peeled and grated potatoes
• 2 cups grated paneer/ cottage cheese/ ricotta cheese
• 4 tbspns broken cashews
• 4 tbspns finely chopped green chillies (I use Bengali/ Thai green chilli because it is rich in flavour and heat, you can use any of your choice and adjust it according to your heat tolerance level)
• 2 tbspns finely chopped green coriander
• 1 tspn roasted crushed cumin seeds
• 1 tspn crushed coriander seeds
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 tbspn corn flour
• 1 cup flour (to coat the koftas before frying)
• Oil for deep frying

FOR CURRY

• 2 generously big knobs of butter
• 3 tbspns cooking oil
• 1 large onion or 2 small onions (chopped)
• 2 large tomatoes (cut into chunks)
• Salt to taste
• 1 tspn red chilli powder (preferably Kashmiri red chilli because it is rich in bright red color)
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 green cardamom
• A piece of cinnamon
• 2 cloves
• 1 tbspn ginger and garlic paste
• 2 green chillies
• 2 tbspns raw cashews
• 1 tspn cumin powder
• 2 tbspns cooking cream
• 1 tspn kasuri methi

Method:

1. For koftas, combine everything (except oil for frying and flour for coating) in a mixing bowl and add a pinch of salt and mix until it combines into a tough dough. We add corn flour in these koftas because it absorbs all the extra moisture and this helps in frying the koftas without breaking. It will be difficult to shape out koftas from this tough dough but it is doable.
2. Roll the koftas in plain flour and shake off the excess flour. Refrigerate for 15 mins.
3. Meanwhile, lets prepare our curry.
4. For curry, heat oil in a pan and add bay leaf, cardamoms, cinnamon, green chillies and onions. Saute until the onions are translucent BUT NOT BROWN. Add ginger garlic paste and cashews and saute for further 2 minutes. Add tomatoes and cook until tomatoes are mushy. Add 2 cups warm water and let it simmer for 5 minutes with the lid on.
5. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a deep pan, take out the koftas from the fridge and deep fry until golden brown.
6. Take the curry pot off the flame and let it cool. Take out the bay leaf and cinnamon stick. Pour the mixture in the blender and blend it into a fine puree. Pass it through a sieve to collect the silky, smooth curry. Discard the residue.
7. In the same pot, melt some butter and pour the silky curry in it. Simmer on medium heat for 5 minutes. Add cream and crush the fenugreek leaves/ kasuri methi with your palms and add to the curry. Mix gently.

Now you have 2 options:
1. Either put koftas in the curry now and simmer for 1 minute and turn off the flame and serve with a garnish of cream and coriander.

2. Or plate the koftas in the serving dish and pour over the curry and serve with a garnish of cream and coriander.