Nargisi Kofta Curry

Apparently in India a show called Master Chef has become a big deal. Some of my relatives have suddenly become super interesting in cooking and I frequently get calls from them either suggesting something I should be making or asking about some recipes that they have seen in that show. Nargisi Kofta was featured in Master Chef but my aunt couldn’t keep track of the recipe in the fast paced show and asked me to make it. So after some research (we do not get Indian TV channels) this is what I came up with. Nargisi Kofta looked awesome and tasted great as well.

Ingredients For Kofta

• 4 hard boiled eggs shelled
• 1 raw egg
• 300 gm mutton keema
• 1 tsp. garam masala powder
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2” ginger
• 2 large onion finely chopped
• 5 tbsp. besan (Chic-pea flour)
• Salt to taste
• Dry roast and grind the following ingredients into a fine powder
  • 1” cinnamon stick
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 3 cloves
  • 1/2 leaf mace
  • 3 green cardamom
  • 1 black cardamom
  • 1 tiny piece of nutmeg
  • 10 white pepper corn
  • 1 tsp. shahi jeera
  • 1 tsp. poppy seeds
  • 10 dry rose petal

Procedure Of Making Nargisi Kofta

Boil mutton keema with 1 tsp. Bengali garam masala powder, salt and bay leaves. Cook till there is no excess moisture left. Allow it to cool.

Fry onion till they turn golden brown. In a grinder take 2tbsp. dry spice powder, fried onion, ginger, garlic along with boiled minced meat and make a coarse paste out of them. If required you may add a spoon of yogurt to make the process easier. Season it with salt and mix well.

Take about an egg sized portion of the meat mixture and wrap it around a whole egg.

Ina bowl beat one egg with a pinch of salt. heat enough oil for deep frying in a wok. Now take each keema coated egg and dip it in the egg batter. Gently slide the egg in the hot oil and fry till the outer shell is crispy and brown. Remove and drain it on paper towel.

Ingredients for gravy

• 2 onions thinly sliced
• 1” ginger
• 5 cloves garlic
• 4 large red tomatoes
• 1 tbsp. Kashmiri red chili powder
• 1/4 tsp. turmeric powder
• 1/2 tsp. coriander powder
• 1/4 tsp. cumin powder
• 2 tbsp. cashew paste
• 1/2 cup fresh cream
• 1/2 tsp. roasted and ground spice powder you made for kofta
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 4 tbsp. butter for cooking
• Salt to taste

Procedure

In a pan take butter and heat it on low flame till it melts. Fry onion slices till the edges turn light brown. Now add ginger garlic paste along with cumin and coriander powder. Sauté on low flame till raw smell of the spices goes away.

Add chopped tomatoes and fry on low flame till it turns mushy and you can see oil oozing out of the spices. Add red chili powder and turmeric and fry for few more minutes. Add half a cup of water to it and allow it to simmer for 5 minutes on low flame. Turn off the heat and let it cool down completely.

Once it is cold enough transfer the mixture in a blender and blend it to a puree. Now strain the puree and discard the residue.

Pour the strained spice mixture in a pan and turn the heat on. Add cashew paste, salt and sugar to it and mix thoroughly. Bring it to a boil. Lower the heat and add fresh cream. Stir it well.

Pour the gravy into serving dish. Cut the koftas lengthwise into halves and arrange it over the gravy as shown in the picture. Sprinkle ground spice powder on top of it and serve.