Malai Kofta in Spinach Gravy...story of how coconut got involved

Heart was set on eating Malai Kofta in Spinach Gravy, sooooooo lovingly made the koftas…with tons and tons and tons of patience... sorted, washed and chopped the spinach...started sautéing the spinach and when it was time to add the milk, opened the refrigerator and had a heart attack when couldn't find the milk in there...screamed and raged until hubz told me that the last packet got over when I had pestered him into making another cold coffee that I soooooo needed to drink while cooking!! BAH!...tried to call the shop to send over some more milk but the guy didn't pick up…BAH BAH!! So what do I do instead??...I add coconut milk…and so glad I did...wanted something different and here it was…thought I had invented something new with the whole coconut milk thingy but, NOOOOOOOOO!! There are plenty of people in the world who make spinach with coconut milk and not just when they run out of regular milk!! BAH BAH BAH!!!

Malai Kofta in Spinach Gravy

Ingredients:

For the koftas:  (makes about 6- 8 koftas)

• Potato, boiled and grated, 150 gm
• Paneer/Indian Cottage Cheese, grated/crumbled, 100 gm
• Onion, chopped, 1 medium
• Corn Starch, 1 heaped tbsp
• Coriander leaves, finely chopped, 1 tbsp
• Green chilies, finely chopped, 2-3
• Salt, to taste
• Red Chili powder, 1 tsp
• Aamchur/Dried Mango Powder, ½  tsp
• Garam Masala Powder, ½ tsp
• Roasted Cumin powder, ½ tsp
• Oil for deep frying

For the spinach:

• Spinach, 1 big bunch
• Onion, finely chopped, 1
• Coconut Milk, about a cup ( or regular milk)
• Dried Red Chili, 1-2
• Garlic, finely chopped, 4-5 cloves
• Red chili powder, ½ tsp
• Salt, to taste
• Oil, 1 tbsp

Instructions:

Mix/ Mash everything listed under the koftas thoroughly (except the oil). 
Pinch out a little and roll it into balls. 
Deep fry the balls in hot oil. 
Keep the flame low and fry for few minutes till golden brown all over. 
Place them on kitchen tissues to remove excess oil. 

Wash and chop spinach finely. 

Heat a tsp of oil in a pan and fry the spinach by adding a pinch of sugar to it. This will help maintain the color of spinach. 

Sprinkle water if necessary. Close the pan with a lid and cook for few minutes. Once it becomes soft, remove from the pan and keep aside.

Heat the rest of the oil in the same pan. 

Add the red chilies,onions and garlic. Cook till onions turn golden brown add the spinach, salt and chili powder. 
Sauté for 5-10 minutes. 

Lower the flame and add the coconut milk slowly stirring it continuously. Mix well and simmer for 5-10 minutes.

Add the koftas just before serving the curry. 



Note:

• Coconut milk is a sweet compared to regular milk, so do check for seasoning before serving.

• If you want a smoother gravy, wash, blanch, puree the spinach and then add to the fried onion mix.