Recipe Description
Spinach koftas cooked in tomato gravy.
Ingredient Quantity
For Kofta
Bundles spinach 2 medium
Green chillies, finely chopped 2 no
Garlic, peeled and finely chopped 6-8 cloves
Cornflour 3 tablespoons
Salt to taste
Cottage cheese (paneer) 125 grams
Oil 3 tablespoons
For Tomato gravy
Fresh ginger, peeled and chopped 1 inch
Garlic, peeled and chopped 5-6 cloves
Butter 1 ½ tablespoons
Cloves 6 no
Green cardamoms 4 no
Bay leaf 1 no
Green chillies, chopped 2 no
Tomato puree 2 cups
Red chilli powder 1 tablespoon
Garam masala powder ½ teaspoon
Salt to taste
Sugar or honey 3 tablespoons
Dried fenugreek leaves (kasoori methi), crushed ½ teaspoon
Fresh cream 1 cup
Method:-
- Clean, trim and wash spinach in plenty of running water. Blanch in boiling hot water in a deep non stick pan for two to three minutes and refresh in cold water. Squeeze out water and chop finely.
- Mix the spinach, green chillies, garlic, cornflour and salt to taste. Divide into twelve equal portions.
- Grate cottage cheese. Add salt to taste and mash well. Shape into twelve equal balls.
- Flatten a portion of spinach on your palm and top with a cottage cheese Bring the edges of the spinach together to form a ball (kofta).
- Heat the oil in a non stick pan and fry the koftas, six at a time, on medium heat for two to three minutes on each side . Drain and set aside.
- To make the tomato gravy, grind ginger and garlic to a smooth paste.
- Heat the butter in a non stick pan, add cloves, green cardamoms and bay leaf. When they begin to splutter, add ginger-garlic paste and green chillies; cook for two minutes.
- Add tomato puree, red chilli powder, garam masala powder, salt and one cup of water. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer for ten minutes. Add sugar or honey and dried fenugreek leaves to the gravy. Stir in fresh cream.
- To serve, cut koftas in half and arrange in a pool of tomato gravy.
Chef’s tip: Before frying all the koftas, fry one to check if it holds its shape. If it breaks, add some more cornflour to the spinach mixture.