Vegetarian malai kofta

Vegetarian malai kofta with paneer, potatoes, cashews and tomato sauce: creamy, warmly spiced and pleasantly mild – a hearty Indian comfort dish without meat.

At a glance

• Serves 3
• Prep time: 25 min
• Cooking time: 20 min
• Total time: 45 min
• Calories: 440 kcal per serving
• Protein: 16 g
• Fat: 28 g
• Carbs: 30 g

Ingredients

• 200g paneer
• 2 potatoes
• 2 tbsp cornflour
• 400g passata
• 50g cashews
• 100ml cream
• 1 onion
• 3 cloves of garlic
• 1 piece of ginger (about 2 cm)
• 2 tbsp ghee
• 1 tbsp garam masala
• 1 tsp turmeric
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 pinch of salt
• 1 handful of coriander

Method

You’ll need: saucepan · blender · chopping board · knife · sieve · wooden spoon

1. Boil the potatoes until soft, drain and mash them finely. Crumble the paneer and knead it with the potatoes, cornflour and salt into a smooth dough.
2. With slightly damp hands, shape the mixture into small kofta. Briefly soak the cashews in hot water, then blend them with a little water into a fine paste.
3. Very finely chop the onion, garlic and ginger. Heat the ghee, fry the kofta until golden brown all over and carefully lift them out.
4. In the same pan, soften the onion until translucent, then cook the garlic and ginger with it. Briefly stir in the garam masala, turmeric, cumin and cayenne, then add the passata and cashew paste and simmer gently.
5. Stir in the cream and season the sauce to taste with salt. Return the kofta to the sauce and just let them warm through briefly so they stay moist.
6. Serve with fresh coriander. Basmati rice or a simple flatbread goes well with it (flatbread contains gluten).

Good to know

Malai kofta is one of those dishes that tastes of weekends and taking it easy. Tender outside, soft inside, with a creamy sauce full of warmth.

Swaps

Paneer → plain halloumi (also provides protein, a little stronger in flavour); cream → coconut milk (dairy-free, provides fat and a soft texture); cashews → blanched almonds (also provide fibre and some vitamin E); ghee → olive oil (mainly monounsaturated fatty acids)

Allergens

Contains milk (paneer, cream, ghee) and cashews (tree nuts). The heat is easy to reduce for children; in pregnancy, the dish is generally fine with pasteurised dairy products and when everything is heated through well.