Malai Kofta

As I told you in my last post that I am planning to cook Malai Kofta next, and two days ago my mom and I made some delicious malai kofta.  Good news is that it came out really good...bad news is that it took me 2 hours to make it :P...with few problems but that to discuss later.  I got the recipe from http://www.vahrehvah.com/Malai+Kofta:3262 where they show you the entire process on video.  Again I didn't do everything as it was told and had few variations.  I will post the preps and process that was used in making our Malai Kofta.  Not to make your mouth watery or anything, but here is a snap of the Malai Kofta prepared.

Ingredients:
Vegetables:
- Grated/mashed boiled potatoes (1 cup - 3 potatoes), grated boiled mix vegetables, chopped green chili, chopped cilantro, onions - 1, tomatoes - 3

Spices:
- Cardemom (elaichi - 2), cloves (laving - 2), coriander powder, cumin powder, garam masala powder, ginger paste/shredded ginger, garlic paste, red chili powder, jeera, salt, turmeric

Other:
- Oil, cream/yogurt (1/2 cup), cashew/almonds powder (not too crushed), grated paneer (1 cup)

Preparations: 
1) Finely chop cilantro and green chilies. 
2) Shred ginger if you are not using ginger paste 
3) Chop onions and tomatoes to make puree 
4) Boil potatoes
5) Grate Paneer 
6) Boil mixed vegetable and mash/grate them

Kofta Process:
1) Mix grated paneer, grated boiled potatoes, and mix vegetables together.
2) Add some chopped chilies, coriander powder, cumin powder, red chili powder, little bit chopped cilantro, little bit salt, add some crushed nuts, and mix everything well.
3) IMP: Make sure there is no moisture in the mixture you just made.  If there is then add some bread crumbs which will take in the moisture and make the mixture firm.  This is where I had trouble because the mixture was soft and when I tried to fry the koftas, the koftas started to break off in the oil :(.  But no worries...that's where my mom came to rescue and she added the bread crumbs in the mixture to make it firm.
4) Make the kofta balls out of the mixture.  Roll the koftas in corn flour or all purpose flour.  Fry them in oil on medium heat and fry until they turn little golden/brownish color. 
5) Keep the koftas aside.

Gravy Process:
1) Make puree from onions and tomatoes and 1/2 green chili.
2) In a pan, add oil and put it on medium heat.  Add Jeera, cardamom, and cloves to the oil. Now here there are two options you can use.  I used procedure A. 

A) Add puree to the oil.  Let it come to the boil.  I used malai kofta ready-made masala from Rasoi Magic.  I added that masala, garam masala powder, chili powder, and salt to the gravy.  If mixture is getting dry, add little bit water (depending on how much gravy you want).
B) Add puree to the oil, add garlic paste, shredded ginger, turmeric, salt, cumin powder, coriander powder, red chili power, garam masala powder, and mix everything well.  If mixture is getting dry, then add little bit water (depending on how much gravy you want).
3) Once the gravy comes to boil, add 1/2 cup cream to the gravy.
4) After adding cream, bring the gravy to the boil and then add some cashewnut powder (2-3 spoons). and mix the gravy well.
5) Then add koftas to the gravy and let it cook for another minute or two and put off the heat.
6) Add cilantro on top for garnishing.

And Walaah! You have your malai kofta!!

After making these last two recipes, shahi paneer recipe seems like piece of cake :D.  Well, don't know what I will be making next and when, but hopefully something new soon.  Until then, take care and see ya :).

Vegetable Navratan Korma

From 3 days I was thinking of trying out a new recipe and in one of the online lists, I saw vegetable navratan korma and decided to make that.  This time instead of manjulaskitchen.com, I tried the recipe from vahrevah.com.  If you search up Korma on this site, it will give you 6 different variations for veg-main dish.  But the recipe I followed is located at: http://www.vahrehvah.com/Navrattan+Korma:6176.  I have to warn all those people who want to try out this recipe that this recipe took me 3 times more time to prepare than it did for Shahi Paneer.  This proved to be very time consuming recipe.  Even in this recipe, I did some variations and this time I am going to list all the steps and ingredients used to make Veg. Navratan Korma.  One thing you need to make sure is that you have all the things ready before you actually start the process.  Because once I started cooking, I realized I didn't have green chilies chopped or ginger shreaded.  But I had help from my mom who was not just supervising the process but helped chopping some of the vegetables and in last minute preps.  The dish came out very well and looks good too.  Here is a snap of Veg. Navratan Korma that I made and then if you also want to try it, I am listing the entire process.

Ingredients:
Vegetables:
- Potatoes (1 large potato), Caroots (1 cup), Green Peas (1 cup), Green Beans (1 cup), Capsicum (1/2 cup), Cauliflower (1/2 cup), Onion (1 onion finely chopped), Green Chilies (1 to 2 finely chopped), Cilantro (finely chopped)

Spices:
- Cardamom (eliachi - 2), cinnamon (taj - 1), Cloves (laving - 2), Jeera, coriandar powder, cumin powder, garlic paste (1 spoon), shredded ginger, salt, black pepper, garam masala powder, hing

Dry Fruits:
- Cashews (1/2 cup), almonds (1/4 cup), raisins, pineapple

Other:
Paneer (chopped in cubes), Cream/Yogurt, oil, and butter

Preparations:
1) Chop all the vegetables (potatoes, carrots, capsicum, peas, beans, cauliflower).
2) Cut the Paneer in cubes.
3) Onion, green chillies, and cilantro should be finely chopped.
4) Shred the ginger.
5) Boil the vegetables (add cauliflower to the boiling bowl after the other veggies are half cooked so cauliflower doesn't get over boiled).  Also I boiled potato cubes separately in microwave (3 times 5 minute cycles).
6) Boil onions and cashews in water separately.  Once cashews are bit tender, remove the water (leaving little bit in there) and make a paste out of it.  Keep the paste aside.
7) Cook Paneer in butter and once they turn light brownish, keep them aside.
8) Cook cashewnuts, and almonds in butter until they get little brown and keep them aside.

Process:
1) In a pan, add oil, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, and jeeru.  Mix well and add garlic paste, shredded ginger, and a pinch of hing.  Mix everything together and let the mixture get little brownish.
2) Add the cashewnut + onion paste, and chopped green chilies to the mixture.
3) Add coriander powder, cumin powder, and garam masala powder.  Mix it all well.
4) When the oil starts to separate and the mixture becomes little bit dry, then you can add little bit water (half or full cup).  Mix well and bring it to boil.
5) When the mixture is bit creamy, add the boiled vegetables, fried paneer, and cooked dry fruits.  Add raisins, and few pineapple pieces.  Mix everything well.
6) Add salt to taste, cream or yogurt as an alternative, and black pepper.  Mix everything and let the mixture cook for 5-7 minutes and let it come to boil.
7) When it's almost cooked, add finely chopped cilantro and turn off the heat and let the pan sit on stove for a minute or so.

And there you have your Vegetable Navratan Korma :D.

This was definitely a lot of work compared to Shahi Paneer, and that's why a 45 minute recipe took me 1.5 hours.  After using up 6-7 bowls, 2 pans, and couple of other cooking vessels, for cooking, the navratan korma was so worth it!  The kitchen was in a bit mess afterwards, but also got it cleaned after eating :).

Hope the detailed preps and process helps you if you decide to make this for yourself.
Next, I am planning to make Malai Kofta, so stay tuned!

Tata until next time :)

Shahi Paneer

When it comes to cooking, I don't have much advice to give or much to say because I don't really cook much....I help a lot in the kitchen but barely cook.  But recently I have started cooking different things starting with Aloo paratha (potato stuffing tortilla), Bread pakora, Onion Pakora, Bhindi masala (Okra), Aloo sabji (potato vegetable), and few more things.  Couple of days ago I wanted to try a paneer vegetable recipe, and from list of all the delicious choices such as Shahi Paneer, Butter Paneer Masala, Palak Paneer, and Paneer Tikka Masala, I decided to make Shahi Paneer.  One of my friends had recommended manjulaskitchen.com site couple of months ago to me and I had saved it in my bookmarks, so when I decided to make Shahi Paneer, I referred to this site with few variations.  With following the directions from the site, Shahi Paneer turned out to be Deeeeeeeeeelicious!!!  Here is a snap of it...

From the recipe online, what I changed was that instead of frying the paneer in oil, I fried in butter and then added oil for the puree.  Also I added half onion to make the puree.  I did not use ginger or paparika in the ingredients.  Also I had to add just a little bit more sugar since my yogurt was bit sour...so the best for anyone making this would be to taste the gravy after adding all the spices and yogurt to make sure it is tasty and you are not missing anything.  And with that, you have the delicious Shahi Paneer ready.  You can eat it with toritilla, paratha, or naan.  Enjoy!