My First Koftas

Well, I've eaten koftas before... lots and lots and lots of them.  But I've never made them before.  Until yesterday.  Hence, "My First Koftas."

Some of you Indian food lovers out there will already know that the word "kofta" is a term used for a patty of some kind.  Koftas are very much like we think of meatballs here.  They can be made of a variety of different ingredients, such as meats, cheeses, or veggies, are often grilled or sauteed and then can be served a variety of ways, sometimes in a sauce, sometimes on a skewer, but the possibilities are endless.  Kofta really just means that it's a ball of something.

One of my favorite Indian dishes for a long time has been Malai Kofta.  I have had mulitple versions of this dish, but generally it is koftas made of potatoes, paneer, and veggies with lots of seasonings, in a creamy, tomatoey sauce.  The word 'malai' refers to the cream used in the dish. 

I finally tried my hand at making this dish myself.  I am a crazy person who should be committed to a mental institution, so I decided not to consult any recipes - just to go for it.  What the heck?!  I know.  I'm so weird.  I probably could have had an easier time of it if I looked at a recipe, but I was just sortof going for it in the kitchen.  Luckily it was not a disaster.  I know I didn't do everything super authentic, however.  For starters, I didn't use actual ghee, which is clarified butter.  I used regular butter.  I also didn't use cream, especially Malai cream - I instead used a combination of milk, flour, and yogurt.  And my final atrocity was that I used a little flour and egg to get my koftas to stick together, because they weren't doing so otherwise.  I think my potato wasn't starchy enough. 

At any rate, the day before, I had made a batch of homemade paneer cheese.  The main bulk of the koftas was a combination of smashed russet potato, paneer, and minced cauliflower.  I also added minced green onion, carrot, and ginger, as well as a blend of spices such as cardamom, cumin, turmeric, cinnamon, etc.  Once I got the mixture to hold together I sauteed dollops in a shallow amount of oil til golden brown on all sides.  I made a simple creamy sauce with tomato sauce, garlic, ginger, onions, the same seasonings as in the koftas, and the milk, flour, and yogurt.   I then smothered the koftas in the sauce, and we dug in.

Luckily, they were yummy despite my silly decision to go commando.  They were a little soft.  Even after adding the flour and egg, they still needed some firmness and structure.  Perhaps I should have cooked the potatoes a little less or perhaps I should mix in a little chickpea flour.  I will consult some kofta recipes (heh) and see what they do for theirs so perhsps next time mine won't need the egg.  I got the flavor right on, though, so I will stick to the seasonings I used and the amount of ginger, garlic, etc.

I'm glad I finally tried to make koftas at home because it was much easier than I thought and I can use the basic idea to make all sorts of different kinds of koftas.  I have been thinking of these as Malai Koftas but I'm not sure if they qualify.  Technically I could call them Aloo Gobi Paneer Koftas if I wanted, which means Potato Cauliflower and Cheese Koftas, but that's a mouthful.  The Spice Goddess made some out of just cauliflower and paneer - gobi paneer koftas - and they sounded like something to try; also I was thinking about adding tofu to some.  We'll see.

Happy eating!