Gravy is a great way to add flavour to a variety of dishes. Making gravy does take some effort, but it’s easy once you understand how the ingredients work together to produce a texture that’s smooth and rich. For light gravies, stick to the likes of onion and tomato, or just tomato. If you are looking at something rich, use green masala, curd, cashew nuts, cream, milk, coconut, poppy seeds, etc. While making gravy with whole milk or cream, too much heat or too little stirring can lead to scalding. Once you have mastered the art of making gravies, it’s only a question of blending various ideas and ingredients to create exotic new dishes.
Here are recipes of some easy-to-make kofta dishes in a variety of gravies.
Paneer Kofta
Ingredients
For Kofta:
Paneer: 250 gm
Plain flour: 3 tsp
Baking powder: Half tsp
Chilli powder: Quarter tsp
Oil: For frying
Salt: To taste
For Gravy:
Chopped tomatoes: 4
Chopped onion: 1
Chopped ginger: 1-inch piece
Minced garlic: 5 pods
Chilli powder: Half tsp
Turmeric powder: Half tsp
Coriander powder: Quarter tsp
Garam masala: Half tsp
Cumin seeds: Quarter tsp
Fresh curd: Half cup
Fresh cream: 2 tsp
Chopped coriander leaves: For garnishing
Oil: For cooking
Salt: To taste
Method
Take all the ingredients for kofta and grind well in a mixer to make a dough. Make uniform balls from the dough and deep fry them on a medium flame. Keep aside. Heat oil and fry cumin seeds, onion, ginger, garlic and then add turmeric, coriander powder, chilli powder and salt. Cover and cook for three minutes. Add tomatoes, beaten curd and garam masala. Cook for two or three minutes, add koftas and cream. Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot with chapattis.
Vegetable Kofta
Ingredients
For Kofta:
Grated bottle gourd: 1 cup
Gram flour: Half cup
Wheat flour: 1 tbsp
Chopped green chillies: 2
Chopped onion: 1
Grated ginger: 1-inch piece
Oil: For frying
Salt: To taste
For Gravy:
Chopped onion: 1
Finely chopped tomatoes: 2
Tomato puree: 1 tbsp
Coriander seeds: 1 tbsp
Whole red chillies: 4
Finely chopped garlic: 2 tsp
Finely chopped green chillies: 1 tsp
Dried fenugreek leaves: 1 tsp
Garam masala: 1 tsp
Chopped coriander leaves: For garnishing
Oil: For cooking
Salt: To taste
Method
Mix all the ingredients of the kofta to form a stiff dough. Make small balls and deep fry till golden brown. Combine the red chillies and coriander seeds and dry roast on a hot griddle for 30 seconds. Cool and blend in a mixer to a fine powder and keep aside. Heat oil in a pan. Fry onions, garlic, and green chillies on a low flame for a few minutes. Add the prepared powder and sauté on a low flame for a few seconds. Add tomatoes and mix well. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes on a medium flame till the oil separates, stirring continuously. Mash the mixture a little; add tomato puree, dried fenugreek leaves, garam masala, salt and a little water. Cover and cook for five minutes, add koftas and cook for another two or three minutes. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve hot.
Mutton Kofta
Ingredients:
For Kofta:
Minced mutton: 500 gm
Eggs: 8
Chana dal: 1 cup
Chopped onion: 1
Ginger garlic paste: 1 tsp
Cinnamon stick: 1
Bay leaf: 1
Cardamom: 2 pods
Cloves: 2
Oil: For frying
Salt: To taste
For gravy:
Chopped onions: 5
Garlic: 6 pods
Chopped ginger: 1-inch piece
Chopped tomatoes: 2
Cinnamon stick: 1 inch
Cardamom: 4 pods
Cloves: 4
Bay leaves: 2
Turmeric powder: 1 tsp
Coriander powder: 1 tsp
Mustard seeds: 1 tsp
Poppy seeds: 1 tsp
Dry coconut: 2 tbsp
Red chilli powder: Half tsp
Chopped coriander leaves: For garnishing
Oil: For cooking
Salt: To taste
Method
Cook the minced meat, chana dal, one chopped onion, ginger-garlic paste, cinnamon stick, cardamom, cloves, bay leaf — all together on a medium flame until the moisture of the meat is gone. Now remove the cinnamon stick, bay leaf and the skin of cardamom, and grind the mixture into a soft consistency. Knead this mixture with a well-beaten egg. Boil the rest of the eggs hard. Now roll the meat dough around the eggs in such a way as to leave no portion of the egg visible. Deep fry these until they attain a dark brown colour. Now fry the remaining onions in another pan, add garlic and ginger, and fry these for three minutes. Grind the remaining ingredients to a fine paste and add it to the pan. Fry it for five to 10 minutes, until they turn golden brown. Add two cups of water, then boil the gravy for half-an-hour. Gradually drop the koftas in the gravy and let it simmer for 10 minutes on low flame. Garnish with coriander. Serve hot with rice or chapattis.
