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Easy & Delicious Indian Curry – Malai Koftas to Celebrate A Journey of Friendship

7 January 2012 45 Comments

creamy malai koftas

~’Friends are the most important ingredient in this recipe of life’ ~Anonymous. Some of them add spices to make it more entertaining while the others enhance, give body and add value to the recipe of life.

Opposites attract…Hmm..yes they do in real life too. I am not a movie person and she hates on-line world, so when we meet we talk everything under the Sun except the above mentioned topics. Celebrity in South India and winner of many national awards Saranya has been a dear friend for past eight years. A passionate dress designer, wonderful cook, cleanliness freak and a dedicated mother of two, she has been one of the most treasured friends of mine. We have seen our children grow together, shared some of our most precious moments, celebrated numerous functions and still continue to guide each other through our thick and thin.

Mom's who cook and party together

Mom’s who cook together

Every year we wait anxiously to co ordinate the New Year celebrations with a few other friends of her. I don’t know to which category should I add these friends of a friend, but I certainly enjoy and look forward to such occasions to celebrate with all of them.

We just need to drop the children to her house, from where she takes on and make sure that the children are comfortable and are sincere in their practice session. They practice their dance moves and drama lines for about 10 whole days.

new year celebrations

Fusion dance..

Her love for perfection in anything she does shows up in all the parties we organize. For every year she takes the pains of selecting songs for the children, choreographing and meticulously deciding upon the dress code for the same. And if that is not all she indulges the children with fresh juices and freshly baked cakes. Here are some snippets of the children performing for us.

new year celebrations

Shakira’ Waka..Waka..

Will share more about this journey of friendship, our cooking sessions and some scrumptious recipes from the party menu in the next post. But for now this is one of the dishes that I cooked and took to the party, for 25 persons. The recipe here is for a smaller portion to make it easy for you to follow, and is a slightly lighter version of the authentic Malai Koftas recipe.

Creamy Malai Koftas

 

Creamy Malai Koftas recipe in low-cal version

 

Ingredients;

(serve 4)

For Koftas;

  • 2 large potatoes
  • ½ cup grated cottage cheese
  • 1 carrot grated
  • 3 slices of fresh bread
  • 1 tbsp. shredded fresh coriander leaves
  • 1 tsp. red chilly powder
  • Salt as desired
  • Oil to shallow fry
  • A few raisins or cashew to stuff the Koftas

For Gravy;

  • 3 medium tomatoes
  • 1 large onion
  • 2 tsp. ginger-garlic paste
  • 1 green chilly
  • 5-6 soaked cashew nuts
  • 1/4 cup fresh low-fat cream or 1 cup whole milk
  • ½ tbsp dried Kasuri methi (optional)
  • 1 tbsp. oil

Whole Spices

  • 1 inch cinnamon stick
  • 2 cloves
  • 2 green cardamoms
  • 2 tsp. coriander powder
  • 1 tsp. red chilly powder
  • 1 tsp. garam masala
  • ½ tsp. cumin seeds
  • ½ tsp. Turmeric powder
Method;

Koftas;  Wash, boil and mash the potatoes. Take out the sides from the bread slices and crumble it into small pieces. Add salt, chilly powder, fresh coriander leaves, crumbled bread and knead it into soft and smooth dough.

Take another vessel and add grated cottage cheese in it. Add a pinch of salt if you wish.

Pinch small lemon size dough from the potato mix and roll it into a ball, flatten it slightly and make a small circle.

Add a little of cottage cheese (1/2 tp.) and a cashew or a raisin in the centre. Bring all the sides together to close the circle and roll it again into a ball Make all the Koftas in similar way and keep them aside.

Heat a pan and add a few teaspoos of oil in it. Add a few koftas gently into the hot oil and fry it till all the sides become golden brown in color.

Gravy;  Soak cashew nuts for an hour. Grind sliced onion, tomatoes, and soaked cashew nuts into fine paste.

Heat oil in a wok and crackle cumin seeds, add the above ground paste, diced green chilly, ginger-garlic paste, Kasuri methi and cook for a few minutes.

Add all the spice mix, cover the wok and sauté for 7-10 minutes till the raw smell from the ground paste disappears.

Pour water to the paste if you require slightly runny gravy. Add fresh cream and immediately take off from the flame. If you are using whole milk, cook the gravy for another 5-10 minutes till the milk is absorbed and the gravy becomes creamy in texture.

Sprinkle chopped coriander leaves over it.

Assemble; Arrange the cooked cottage cheese balls or Koftas in a serving dish, and pour the gravy just before serving the dish.


Creamy Malai Koftas recipe in low-cal version

Tried adding extra lights to the picture..

Notes;

  1. As you are adding fresh bread slices in making the cottage cheese balls or Koftas, you don’t need any other binding agent to hold the Koftas in shape when shallow frying it.
  2. Deep fried koftas taste yum, do the same if you are not worried about the calories, you could also brush the Koftas with oil and bake them for healthier version of the recipe.
  3. Milk powder is added to make the Koftas which gives a rich taste to the curry, but you can avoid it and will not find a much difference (I did not find so).
  4. Make sure to shallow fry a few koftas at a time, to avoid breaking the koftas.
  5. Add grated cottage cheese to make koftas, I avoided it to make the recipe a little lighter.
  6. Reserve a few teaspoons of fresh cream to garnish the dish before serving.
  7. Do not let the koftas sit in the gravy for more than a few minutes, as they will absorb all the liquid and will make the dish look dry and unappealing.

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45 Comments »

  • sangita said:

    looks delicious!! loved reading your write up..so nice to have saranya as your best friend..Indeed am a fan of her ..do pass my love and regards from Kerala:)

  • Joyti said:

    Oh, yum yum! The malai kofta looks delicious. And your New Years looks like a lot of fun.

  • Pari said:

    Hi Dear.

    It was fun reading about your friendship and how kids get to learn new things before the new year. Must say a well chosen recipe for a party menu and I’m sure people must have licked their fingers too.

  • craftisland said:

    Wow, what a co-incident. I also cooked malai Kofta on 1-Jan for a get together. Since it is winter here in north, potatoes(type of potatoes is such) did not require binding. I used Mawa instead of cream and it tasted good.

  • Aggie said:

    What a delicious recipe & I just love your story about your friend. The photos of the kids & their joy warm my heart!

    Happy new year!

  • Priya Sreeram said:

    a cheerful toast to the healthy f’ship ! Have a great 2012

  • Aimee @ Food, Je t'Aimee said:

    Oh – so wonderful! I haven’t tasted malai kofta in almost a year. This dish would be a big challenge for me, but I’m determined to try it so I can taste those wonderful flavours again! 🙂 Thanks so much for sharing! xo

  • Jessie said:

    This sounds so good! I love that bowl, it’s so pretty. I am making a dal tonight. Was thinking of you.

  • sayantani said:

    beautiful post on friendship…hope to read more about this journey. the malai kofta looks scrumptious…creamy and flavourful.

  • rebecca said:

    love this post makes me smile

  • Terra said:

    What a beautiful group of friends, the smiles on all your faces were priceless! Your Malai Koftas sounds amazing! Hugs, Terra

  • Viswa said:

    What a wonderful way to celebrate. Gorgeous picture of kofta.. Are you also in the picture?

  • notyet100 said:

    Ummm thy do look deli ious,.:)

  • Jayashree said:

    A very Happy New year to you, Sanjeeta. The malai kofta looks yum.

  • Maayeka said:

    loved the recipe and the bowl too:) delicious looking kofta curry..
    feeling so good to see your celebration pics..great pics !!!!

  • Liz said:

    Such a treasured friend…love all the happy faces! Your dish is lovely…what a gorgeous serving piece~

  • Anu said:

    Looks interesting. Nice recipe too…………

  • juniakk said:

    i love homemade curries. i can’t wait to try making one~ 😀 happy new year sanjeeta!

  • mjskit said:

    OH MY – this sounds SO good!!! The process for this is a little more than what I normally do (I’m a lazy cook – remember? 🙂 ) but I’m sure it’s worth it! I’ll put this on my weekend meals list. Of course I might not get past making the Kaftas. These could easily get eaten before the gravy is finished! Thanks for sharing the friendship between you and Saranya. It sounds like a great friendship!

  • sumi said:

    love to try this lighter version of the malaikofta…Happy New Year

  • Priya said:

    Woow nice to have saranya as your best friend.. am a great fan of her, such a fantastic person she is na..Rich looking malai koftas looks marvellous..

  • misbah/cupcakeluvs said:

    Love friends like this. I call them family of chois.
    I love your gravy style I make my other way, must try yours 🙂
    Misbah/cupcakeluvs

  • Sukanya said:

    It was a delight reading through your story on friendship and how it weaved through time. Malai kofta looks damn tempting and kudos to u for its healthier version

  • Ananda Rajashekar said:

    Friend ship is tonic for life and best that can happen to any one, nice to see celeb Saranya there, oh the kids looks adorable and curry yum!

  • Karen said:

    What a fun celebration. Everyone looks like they’re having a great time…children and adults!
    This dish sounds perfect for a celebration!

  • Zee said:

    Lovely pictures and great recipe.. I love malai kofta, though we have a different recipe but your sound pretty amazing too.. I shall give this one a try very soon 🙂

  • Joanne said:

    There’s nothing quite as much fun as sharing delicious food with good friends! What a great dish!

  • shanthi said:

    Hope u had a great time. Nice and creamy gravy

  • Faith said:

    I hope your New Year is off to a wonderful start, my friend! This meal is perfect — very healthy and full of flavor! My hubby would love it too. 🙂

  • Jennifer (Delicieux) said:

    What a fun celebration!!!! It looks like everyone had a fantastic time. And your curry looks so delicious too!

  • Nami | Just One Cookbook said:

    Sounds like you had a great time! The curry looks delicious! My Indian neighbor makes super delicious curry. I wish I live near your home too! =P

  • Jacqueline said:

    Happy New Year Sanjeeta x

  • Latha said:

    Malai kofta looks so creamy and delicious. Saranya is a fantastic actress and I am a great fan of her natural acting. Happy New Year!

  • Radhika | Just Home Made said:

    Sanjeeta,

    I always tend to avoid Malai Kofta dreading its richness and heaviness that follows after indulging. Should give your lighter version a try..

    What a small world this is! I’ve always liked Saranya in every role that she plays, she’s a talented actress. She gets into the skin of every character that she plays and makes it her own. How fascinating to know that she’s your friend and the lovely friendship you two share..

  • kankana said:

    YOu know malai kofta is my husband’s fav recipe and i only wish i could have made this dish perfectly. I tried but failed 🙁 Have to try again and again ! This post is so full of joy 🙂

  • EA-The Spicy RD said:

    Love the first photo of all the gorgeous moms cooking together, and this recipe looks so yummy too! What a fun party 🙂

  • Jamie said:

    Sanjeeta, what a beautiful post! Lovely friendship! And I love the photos – especially the moms that cook together. How wonderful (oh I am all teary-eyed now!). And fabulous curry! Wow! I am bookmarking this amazing recipe!

  • foodwanderings said:

    love this dish and your story of friendship Sanjeeta!! Now I want this for lunch!!

  • balvinder ( Neetu) said:

    I am not sure why your post did not show up in my updates even after following you. The dish does look scrumptious. What a delicious way to share your joy.

  • Magic of Spice said:

    What a beautiful way to celebrate the new year…the kids look like they are really enjoying themselves. And this dish is just wonderful…amazing flavors and photographs 🙂

  • Kalyani said:

    wow ! that must have been one wonderful celebration with friends !! and yummy Malai Koftas.. bookmarked and will try soon 🙂

    Wish you a very happy new year (and belated Pongal wishes too)

    cheers

  • Kiran @ KiranTarun.com said:

    That looks like a great way to celebrate new year!! And malai kofta is a spotlight in any celebration. Drool-worthy 🙂

    Here’s wishing you and the family a very Happy 2012!!!

  • Asmita said:

    Wow, those malai koftas look awesome! Happy New year to you and your family!

  • latha said:

    hey sanjeetha really wonderful malai koftha. it came very well. thanq very much. nice to see u with ur friends enjoying cooking together

  • Heather | Farmgirl Gourmet said:

    This looks amazing Sanjeeta! I have never had it before, but now I am going to be thinking about it all day long! I love it and this post.

    xo
    Heather

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