Malai Kofta – Easy Malai Kofta Recipe, Step by Step

TH loves Malai Koftas and they are a regular whenever we eat out (that or Palak Paneer!). I have eaten the whole range of Malai Koftas you can come across – the good, the bad, and the downright rubbery balls in goop.

I’ve been wanting to try some of my own and finally got around to it couple of months back. It’s not a short and easy recipe, let me be honest, but it’s all worth it at the end, trust me.

The first step is to make the aloo paneer koftas so go on ahead and do that, I’ll wait.

Ready?

Ok now to the gravy to complete the Malai Kofta Recipe.

Malai Kofta Recipe

Preparation time: 20 mins
Cooking time: 1 hour

Ingredients:
1 batch of aloo paneer koftas
1 large onion, pureed
1 tomato, pureed
12 cashew nuts, soaked in warm water for 30 mins and ground to a paste
1 tsp of red chilli powder
1 tsp of coriander powder
1/4 tsp of turmeric powder
A generous pinch of hing / asafoetida
1 tbsp of kasuri methi / dried fenugreek leaves
1 tbsp of tomato sauce (optional)
2 tbsp of cream
Salt to taste
2 tbsp of oil
1 tsp of ginger garlic paste
1/2 tsp of jeera / cumin, powdered
1/2 cup of milk

How to Make Malai Kofta Recipe:

1. Heat oil and add the cumin powder. Fry for 5 seconds. Add the tomato and onion puree. Saute for 2-3 mins until the raw smell disappears.

2. Add the chilli powder, coriander powder, salt, turmeric, ginger garlic paste, and hing.

3. Fry for another 2 mins. Now add the kasuri methi and the tomato sauce (if using). Top it off with the ground cashew pate. Mix well and let it cook for 5 mins on low flame.

4. Add the milk. Bring to boil and simmer for a minute.

5. Finally add the cream and mix well. Test for salt.

6. Gently drop in the koftas and cover with the sauce. Turn off fire and let it sit for some time for the gravy to soak through.

Serve with warm jeera rice or rotis, with a garnish of grated paneer or fresh coriander leaves. I

Notes:

– If you prefer a white base for your malai kofta, skip the tomato and tomato sauce and add more cream and cashew paste.

– Some prefer to omit the onion, and that’s fine too but I feel like it gives the gravy a nice base. I also wanted to avoid using too much cream.