Showing posts with label Paneer. Show all posts

Monday, April 27, 2020

Malai Kofta Curry | How to make Malai Kofta Curry

Malai Kofta Curry, a popular and delicious indian curry !! Malai means cream and koftas means deep fried balls. Deep fried balls made from mashed potato and paneer dunked in a velvety & creamy tomato based sauce. It taste awesome with both roti and rice.

There are many variations in the malai kofta curry, here i'm using the basic onion tomato curry which tastes so good with koftas . Even you can make the base curry ahead & refrigerate, for details check out here. So on the day of making malai kofta curry, you only need to make koftas and add into curry. It's one of the best and easiest malai kofta curry that you can prepare!!!

Back in years, when we were in Colorado, we visited one of the indian restaurant for dinner on my birthday. On that day, i had ordered malai kofta and some indian flat bread as main. The curry was so disappointed and finally we ended up eating our rotis with raita. Back then we were not used to return back the food. The koftas are too oily and the curry is so creamy with lot of cream and we were satiated even with couple of spoon of curry. Later we were not even dare to order malai kofta in any restaurant. Actually i'm wondering how clearly i remember that instance while started writing this post, but if you have asked what day is today, i have to check my phone for the answer 🙆

So honestly i didn't know how good malai kofta tastes until i had tried on my own. I learned this recipe from one of my north indian friend, it turned out so good even on my first try itself, ever since it became staple in my kitchen. Mostly prepared this curry for any special occasion along with some roti. Don't overwhelmed by looking at the long list of ingredients, i have split the ingredients list for curry and kofta separately. So it seems so long. Now let's check out how to make this delicious malai kofta curry.

Malai Kofta Curry

Preparation Time : 20 mins | Cooking Time : 20 mins | Serves : 2
Recipe Category: Curry | Recipe Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients
Onion(medium) - 1
Tomato(small) - 2
Garlic - 2 pods
Ginger - 1/2 inch piece
Cumin seed - 1/4 tsp
Fennel seed - 1/4 tsp
Cashew - 5
Oil - 2 tsp
Cinnamon - 1/2 inch piece
Cloves - 2
Cardamom - 2
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Red chili powder - 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Garam masala - 1/2 tsp
Kasthuri methi - 1/2 tsp
Salt - to taste
Cream - 1 tbsp
For Kofta
Cooked Potato - 1(medium size)
Paneer(grated) - 1/2 cup
Khoya - 1 tbsp
Corn flour - 2 tsp
Turmeric powder - a pinch
Red chili powder - 1/4 tsp
Kasthuri methi - 1/4 tsp
Salt - to taste
Oil - for frying

Procedure

First let's make kofta, in a bowl add all the ingredients listed under "For Kofta " except oil and make a thick dough, pinch a small ball from it and make a small balls.

Heat the oil for frying and fry the koftas in low flame until it's golden brown.

Drain the koftas from oil and place it on tissue paper. Next for the curry, chop onion, tomato, ginger & garlic into small pieces.

Heat a kadai with 1 tsp of oil, add fennel and cumin seed, let them splutter and then add the onion,ginger & garlic. Let the onions become translucent, then add the tomatoes.

Cook both the onions and tomatoes are soft, finally add the cashews and let it cool a bit. Add into the mixie/blender jar and grind into smooth puree.

Heat the same with the remaining oil and temper with whole spices (cinnamon,cloves, cardamom) and then add the onion tomato paste. Wash the blender jar with some water and add into the masala. Next add all the spices(turmeric,red chili,coriander and garam masala powder) & salt.

Add more water if needed, let the curry boils and keep it in low flame & cook till the oil floats on top, next add the cream & kasthuri methi.

Finally add koftas and garnish with coriander leaves.

Tasty & rich Malai Kofta Curry is ready to serve.Serve it with your favorite roti.

We had it with chapati. For more roti and side dish ideas, check it out here

Related : How to make Lachha Paratha

Related : How to make Palak Paneer

Notes:

Add more or less of water in the curry as per the consistency you like.
Add more cream on the curry while serving for extra richness.
You can add the koftas into the curry right before serving to avoid kofta became soggy.
Khoya used in kofta making is for extra richness, if you don't have, you can skip that.
Cook the kofta in low heat for even cooking and coloring.
If you're cooking in high flame,the koftas easily turned out dark outside and leave the inside uncooked

Tuesday, March 31, 2020

Palak Paneer | Indian Cottage Cheese in Spinach Curry

Palak Paneer, a creamy, healthy and delicious curry made from spinach puree and indian cottage cheese. ST is not a big fan of paneer, to be precise, he didn't like it all and for me, i like it but not so crazy about it, so paneer dishes are rare at home.

But ever since started making malai paneer at home, we both really enjoy eating paneer dishes occasionally at home. With the store bought paneer, whatever the tips and tricks i had followed, never able to make soft paneer dishes. Always ended with chewy paneer and didn't blend with curry at all.

After all this year of cooking, finally realized unless the paneer are soft, whatever you do, it doesn't work. My search of making soft paneer at home ends with this malai paneer recipe, i'm not exaggerating here, honestly, the paneer is so soft and literally melt in your mouth. And whatever the dish you add, it incorporates well with the dishes. As it is, paneer is very bland, so it works well with all flavors.

Now coming to the palak paneer recipe, i have followed my veg palak recipe with little tweaks and made this palak paneer, it was awesome with creamy texture & wonderful spinach flavor. To get that vibrant green color on the curry, few things need to be taken care.

First, the spinach should be fresh and green, personally i like to use baby spinach for its bright color.
Second, don't cover cook the spinach, it changes its color.
Finally, adding little sugar in blanching and cooking the puree helps to retain the color.

Ok, that's it, now let's check out this delicious palak paneer recipe.

Palak Paneer | Indian Cottage Cheese in Spinach Curry

Preparation Time : 10 mins | Cooking Time : 20 mins | Serves : 2
Recipe Category: Curry | Recipe Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients
Spinach - 2 cup
Onion(small) -1
Tomato(small) - 1
Paneer - 1 cup
Garlic - 2 +2 cloves
Ginger - 1/2 inch piece
Oil - 1 tbsp
Cinnamon - 1 inch piece
Cloves - 4
Cardamon -1
Cumin seed - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Red chili powder - 1/2 to 3/4 tsp
Coriander powder - 1 tsp
Garam masala - 1/2 tsp
Salt - to taste
Sugar - 1/2 tsp
Dried kasthuri methi - 1/2 tsp
Lemon Juice - 1 tsp(optional)
Cream - 2 tbsp + more for serving.

Procedure

First let's blanch the spinach, bring the water to boil in a sauce pan, add 1/2 tsp of salt & sugar.

Add the spinach, let it in boiling water 30 -40 secs, remove from the heat immediately. Drain the water.

And run it under cold water for few mins to stop further cooking instantly & keep it aside.Heat the oil in a sauce pan, add cinnamon, cloves and cardamon into it and fry for 30 secs.Then add the cumin seeds, onions and garlic(2 finely chopped), saute till onions became translucent.

In a mixie jar add the spinach, tomato, ginger and the remaining garlic and grind into smooth paste.

Add the spinach puree and the spices (turmeric, red chili,coriander & garam masala powder),salt & sugar. Give a good mix.

Let it simmer for few mins and then add the the paneer,cream & kasthuri methi and keep it in flame for further 2 mins.

Switch off the flame and squeeze a little lemon juice(optional) .

Tasty and healthy Palak Paneer is ready to serve. Drizzle some cream on top before serving. Serve it with your favorite indian flat bread or with rice.We had it with lachha paratha.

Notes:

Adding sugar into spinach while blanching helps to retain the color.
Cream gives richness to the curry.
For vibrant bright green color, baby spinach is used.
Instead of oil, butter can also be used for more richness.

Thursday, October 3, 2019

Home made Malai Paneer | How to make Paneer at home

Paneer, an Indian cheese made by curdling milk with lemon juice/vinegar. Unlike other cheese, paneer is easily made at home without any special ingredient or utensils. To make malai paneer, a small amount of cream is used in addition to the milk. Adding cream helps to increase the fat content of milk which in turn yields a large quantity of paneer and stays super soft when compared to regular paneer. Once you tried this way of making paneer then you won't turn back to regular paneer or store bought ones.

Since I'm from South Tamilnadu, I didn't get the chance to eat paneer while I grew up. Paneer was first introduced to me when I was in Chennai for work. To be honest, i was not quite fond of it earlier. After marriage when I started to cook on my own, I bought the paneer from the store and started to include it in our meal, it was chewy and very bland. I thought that the store bought paneer is the problem, so I started to make it at home, that too was not great.Even ST also didn't like paneer much hence i lost interest in making paneer at home, so rarely make some dishes with store bought paneer for a change.

But recently I heard about malai paneer and without much expectation i gave it a try, to my surprise it was so perfect and still i couldn't believe how soft the paneer is !!! It's just literally melting in your mouth. Now i understand that the softest paneer blends with the curry well and you don't feel that bland taste of paneer at all.

Ever since I shared this post, I have got so many questions on my social media handles so here I'm trying to answer them to my knowledge

Frequently Asked Questions !!

Why is paneer hard & chew ?

Over cooking of the cheese makes the paneer hard & chewy, so make sure to stop cooking when all the milk is curdled and also immediately run it under cold water.

Why does paneer taste tangy?

Too much usage of lemon juice or vinegar. To avoid that, add the lemon juice or vinegar little by little until the milk is all curdled. Besides, keeping the cheese under running water helps to avoid the tangy taste.

How to get perfect cubes of paneer ?

Using heavy weight on the panner helps to shape them nicely. Don't tempt to cut the paneer immediately. Press it with heavy weight and leave it aside for at least 1 hr for perfect cubes.

Now let's check out how to make this softest malai paneer. If you're a beginner in cooking or first time making paneer, read the notes also before giving it a try.

Home made Malai Paneer | Indian Cottage Cheese

Preparation Time : 4 hrs | Cooking Time : 20 mins | Makes : 2 Cups
Recipe Category: Cheese | Recipe Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients
Whole Milk - 4 cups/1 litre
Cream - 200 ml
Lemon Juice - 3 tbsp

Procedure

First add the milk and cream in a sauce pan, mix it well and then turn on the stove & bring into boil.

In the mean time, keep the colander lined with cheese cloth and lemon juice ready.

Once the milk & cream mixture starts to boil, turn off the heat and then add the lemon juice slowly and stir.

Once the milk curdles completely, immediately pour into the colander and keep it under cold running water for few mins and then squeezes out the water completely.

Next gather all the paneer & try to shape as square and cover with cheese cloth.

Now for resting the paneer, this is what i have used, take a plate and steamer plate. Place the steamer plate upside down over the plate.

How to make Paneer Paratha

How to make Paneer Fried Rice

Then place the paneer on it, again place another plate on the paneer and put some heavy weight(i have used hand motor & pestle) on it. The whole setup helps to shape the paneer and the excess water is drained through the steamer plate and collected in the bottom plate. Leave it aside for 3-4 hrs or overnight at refrigerator.

Soft Paneer is ready. Cut it to desired shape and use it in curries, starters, pulao and so on. For more kitchen basic recipes, check out my collections here

How to make Palak Paneer
How to make Paneer Peas Curry

Notes:

I have used heavy cream with 35% fat content. It may also known as fresh cream or cooking cream.
Don't add more cream than the mentioned amount, otherwise it won't curdle nicely.
Instead of whole milk, you can also use 2% milk.
No need to make the setup exactly like me, you can use whatever utensils available in your kitchen and shape the paneer.
All you need is one strainer/plate with holes to drain the water and some weight to put on the top.
Instead of hand motor & pestle, you can use any bowls filled with rice, wheat or sugar. That gives enough weight to shape the paneer.
Add lemon juice slowly, you may/may not need all the juices, once you see the clear water, stop adding the lemon juice.
Keep it under running water helps to cool down immediately and also remove the lemon flavor.
Cools down the paneer immediately gives you soft paneer, otherwise it's bit rubbery.
You can store the remaining paneer in the ziplock bag at refrigerator for up to 10 days for fresh paneer. If planning to store for longer days, then freeze it.

Thursday, October 25, 2018

Homemade Rasmalai | Bengali Sweet | Deepavali Sweet

Rasmalai, a delicious indian sweet/dessert made from the indian cottage cheese soaked in thickened & flavored milk(Rabri).

Rasmalai is ST's favorite sweet, when we were in Bangalore, he bought it often from the little sweet stall on the way back to home from the office. The taste of that rasmalai was heaven, literally melt in mouth and the rabri was so flavorful with lots of nuts and saffron.

To this day, i never seen him buying any other sweets on his own except rasmalai, that really motivates me to try my hands on this delicious bengali sweet. After a few attempts, i nailed the recipe, it turned out as delicious as i would expected and even ST gives a big thumbs up for every time i make.

Now this has became one of the our favourite sweets to make at home for every special occasion.

Rasmalai can be very easily made from the rasgolla, have heard from friends that even haldiram's rasgolla is best for making rasmalai, but i haven't tried it so far, always make my own rasgolla.

If you make everything from the start to finish on one day, you make find it tiresome, so i always make the rasgolla on the first day and let it soak in syrup for atleast a day in the refrigerator and then the next day, i will make the rasmalai. So if you have plan to make them from the scratch, that tip might be helpful.

Homemade Rasmalai | Begali Sweet | Deepavali Sweet

Preparation Time : 10 mins | Cooking Time : 15 mins | Serves : 2
Recipe Category: Sweet | Recipe Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients
Rasgulla - 15 small
Milk - 2 cup
Sugar - 1/2 cup
Saffron - few strands
Pistachio - 10
Cardamom powder - a pinch

Procedure

First take the rasgulla squeeze out the syrup gently and place it on the plate. For the rabri, take the milk in a pan and bring to boil.

In the mean time, soak the saffron in a tbsp of warm milk for few mins. Once the milk comes to boil,reduce the flame to low and add the sugar.

Next add the saffron along withe soaked milk, let the milk boil in low flame for 5-7 mins or until it reduces to about 1/2.

Switch off the flame and add the rasgulla immediately. Finally add the roughly chopped pistachios, let it come to room temperature, then transfer into the bowl and refrigerate for 2-3 hrs before serving.

Tasty Rasmalai is ready. Serve chilled for the best taste !

Related : How to make Mawa/Khoya Burfi

Notes:

Depends on the size of rasmalai and how much rabri you like to have along with rasmalai, you may need more or less of rabri.
Rasmalai tastes best on next day, give it a good soaking time for best taste.
Add good quality of saffron, the saffron flavor makes the all difference.

Monday, October 22, 2018

Homemade Rasgulla | Bengali Rasgulla | Deepavali Sweets

Rasgulla, a delicious sweet made from cheese balls soaked in thin cardamom flavored sugar syrup. Rasgulla needs only a few ingredients but getting that soft, smooth and melt in your mouth texture is quite challenging. After a few attempts, I have learned to make soft cheese, once the cheese is well made and soft, rest is all breeze.

Here are the key things to take care of making yummy & soft rasgulla.

Use full fat milk, 1%,2% and all is not working here.
Keep a tray of ice cubes ready, once the milk is curdled completely, we should stop the cooking process instantly, so adding ice cubes once the milk is curdled is a must for getting soft cheese.
Hang or squeeze the cheese until almost all the water is drained from the cheese.
Rub the cheese with your palm until it's all smooth.
The sugar syrup should be watery while cooking the rasgulla.

These are the things i have followed religiously whenever i make rasgulla or rasmalai, it will give the softest rasgulla every SINGLE time.

Here in the recipe, I have used lemon juice to curdle the milk, but vinegar or curd can also be used. Don't add all the lemon juice at once, add little by little lemon juice in one hand and stir the milk in another hand, once you see all the milk is curdled and the water is clear, stop adding the lemon juice, depends on the acidity of the lemon juice, you may need more or less of lemon juice than i have mentioned in the ingredient list. Guess that i have shared all the key information to make the softest and tastiest rasgulla, do give it a try on this diwali and enjoy with your family. With this rasgulla recipe, the diwali celebration is officially started here 😁

Why is my rasgulla chewy ?

Overcooking the cheese would result in chewy rasgulla.Once the milk is fully curdled ,add the ice cubes to stop cooking instantly will help to get soft and melt in your mouth rasgullas.

Why is my rasgulla break?

Too much water in the cheese would be the cause for breaking. Make sure to squeeze the chenna/cheese well before start making rasgulla.

Why is my rasgulla hard ?

Dry cheese/chenna is mostly the reason for hard rasgulla. Also make sure to knead the chenna until it's soft for spongy rasgulla.

How do I store my rasgulla?

Like any milk sweets, rasgulla also should be refrigerated. It stays well for up to 10 days in the refrigerator.

Hope i have answered most of the FAQs, now let's check out on how to make rasgulla

Homemade Rasgulla | Bengali Rasgulla | Deepavali Sweets

Preparation Time : 10 mins | Cooking Time : 25 mins | Serves : 4
Recipe Category: Sweet | Recipe Cuisine: Indian

Ingredients
Milk - 2 cup
Lemon juice - 2 tbsp
Sugar - 2/3 cup
Water - 2 cup
Cardamom powder - a pinch
Ice cubes - a tray

Procedure

Heat the milk in a sauce pan, bring into boil, immediately add the lemon juice.

Stir it continuously until all the milk is curdled and the water become clear, immediately add the ice cubes and stir it well.

Strain the paneer in a cheese cloth and squeeze out all the excess water.

Transfer the paneer into the plater and kneed well with the palm of your finger until it become smooth.

Pinch a small size paneer and roll into smooth balls. Next for the syrup, take the sugar in a sauce pan.

Add the water and cardamom powder, bring into vigorous boil.

Keep the flame in medium and add the rolled paneer into it gently. Cover the pot with lid and cook until it's doubled in size, it may take 18-20 mins. Let it cool completely and store them in refrigerator.

Tada, the rasgulla is ready. Serve them chill for best taste. Have leftover rasgulla?? Try this Rasmala i

For more diwali sweets, check out my deepavali collections

Notes:

Adding ice cubes help to stop the cooking process immediately and gives the softest paneer.
Once the rasgulla is cooked, if the sugar syrup is not having enough sweet, remove the rasgulla from syrup and boil the sugar syrup little more and reduces the syrup further, it will improve the sweetness in the syrup. When the syrup comes to room temperature, add the rasgulla into it.
Instead of cooking the rasgulla in a open pot, you can used the pressure cooker also and cook it for 2 whistle in medium flame.

Pages

Monday, April 27, 2020

Malai Kofta Curry

Tuesday, March 31, 2020

Palak Paneer | Indian Cottage Cheese in Spinach Curry

Thursday, October 3, 2019

Frequently Asked Questions !!

Home made Malai Paneer | Indian Cottage Cheese

Thursday, October 25, 2018

Homemade Rasmalai | Begali Sweet | Deepavali Sweet

Monday, October 22, 2018

Homemade Rasgulla | Bengali Rasgulla | Deepavali Sweets