Malai kofta curry is yum and delicious. This royal Indian vegetarian curry is one of the most ordered recipes at any restaurant. People love eating out on special occasions and they want smooth gravy which even kids can eat. Most westerners find Indian restaurants spicy but they are intrigued by the richness of Indian recipes.
If you are not allergic to nuts or vegan, it is one of the most popular vegetarian dish ever!! Good thing is this dish has a rich sauce minus the heavy spices which may upset your tummy. Kids love a creamy sauce and deep-fried koftas go perfectly with Indian bread.
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Recipe video for air fryer malai kofta
This recipe of malai kofta is very special to me. The very mention of this gravy transports me back to my childhood. Memories of yummy food at roadside dhaba en route to Delhi. Recreating this dish for a special dinner makes me smile always.
Equipment
For gravy:
- Blender
- Saucepan
For kofte :
- Air-fryer for low oil version
- kadai/frying pan for traditional frying method
Ingredients for malai kofta
Malai kofta is basically fried delicious dumplings cooked in a cashew gravy mixture. Ingredients are very simple for the kofta mixture. The stuffing consists of the inner stuffing of dry fruits(with coconut and cream).The outer layer of boiled potato and starch(potato/cornflour/tapioca) to make a vegan malai kofta.You can also add paneer or cottage cheese to it to make a paneer kofta. Bring the gravy to a boil and add the kofte to make the shahi kofta curry.
For kofte:
- Boiled potatoes
- Corn flour/arrowroot powder/tapioca starch
- Raisins & nuts
- Desiccated coconut
- Spices (salt, red chilli powder)
For gravy:
- Onions
- Tomatoes
- Ginger garlic paste
- Green chillies (optional)
- Cashews
- Turmeric powder
- Coriander powder
- Red chili powder (adjust according to taste)
- Dried fenugreek leaves/ kasoori methi
- Salt as per taste
- Cream / Coconut milk
- Oil
Refer to recipe card for details
Related recipes
There are many ways of making a vegetarian/vegan meatballs. You can grate a zucchini or bottle gourd to make a lauki kofta. Use shredded cabbage and carrots to make vegetable kofta. You can also make a mushroom kofta. Curry can be made vegan too if you want to ditch the dairy. Click on links below to make the yummy recipes.You may make this by frying or bake them in an air-fryer or oven.
Instructions for malai kofta balls
Read below steps on how to make malai kofta balls.
- Add mashed potatoes, corn flour and red chilli powder in a bowl to make the potato dough.
2. Mix all ingredients together to form a smooth dough.
3. Meanwhile, mix coconut, nuts and raisins for the filling.
4.Take some of the potato mix and add the coconut stuffing in the center.
5. Close from all sides, shape them into round smooth balls. Cover it and keep it aside.
Once all balls are ready you can air fry or deep fry them to make crisp kofte.
How to make malai kofta in air fryer?
For air fryer malai kofta, its very simple to make them and add them to the gravy. Once you cook them in the air fryer, you might notice that they have a very soft covering, however once they go into the gravy, they soak up the liquid and you cannot make much difference between the air fried and the fried version.
- Arrange the balls in an air fryer tray. Brush/spray with oil. Cook at 180 degree C | 355F for 10-12 minutes.
2. Brush/spray with oil again. Cook at 180 degree C for further 7-8 minutes or until golden brown.
4. Allow the kofte to cool a bit and toss them into the curry for few minutes. Follow the malai kofta curry recipe from our paneer butter masala recipe to make the malai kofta dhaba style.
How to deep fry kofte balls?
- Heat oil in a metal kadai/frypan to make deep fried kofte.Before adding , check if the oil is hot.
2. Cook them on medium heat until golden brown from all sides.3. Take out the kofte and let them rest on a paper towel. Paper towel will soak any extra oil.
How to make malai kofta gravy
You can use store bough curry/gravy packets or you can make your own.
The steps are quite simple, Cook the onions &tomatoes with spices. Add cashews and coconut milk. Blend until smooth. Once done , you can add the kofta balls.
The detailed recipe steps can be followed at out Vegan chana korma recipe.Below is a snippet.
- Sauté onions, ginger, tomatoes, and cashews with spices, then add coconut milk and blend until smooth with water. Adjust water as per the desired consistency
2. Boil the curry base , add kofta balls, simmer for few minutes., and serve hot with rice or flatbread.
air fryer malai kofta recipe (without paneer)
Equipment
- Air fryer
- Vitamix blender
- pan
Ingredients
For Kofta dough
- 2 large boiled potatoes 500 grm . Use boiled and cooled down potatoes.
- 2 tablespoon cornflour can be replaced with arrowroot powder/tapioca starch
- 1 teaspoon chilli powder/lal mirch or as per taste
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Oil for airfryer - 2 tablespoon is good enough.
For kofta stuffing
- 2 tablespoon nuts raisins,cashews/peeled almonds,finely shopped
- 2 tablespoon desiccated coconut
- 1 pinch Salt as per taste
For gravy:
- 1 cup onion chopped
- 1 tablespoon ginger garlic,chillies
- 1-½ cup tomatoes chopped
- 4-5 cashews
- 3 tablespoon oil for curry Adjust if reqd
- ½ teaspoon turmeric powder /haldi
- 1 tablespoon coriander powder /dhania powder
- 1 teaspoon red chili powder or as per taste
- 1 tablespoon dried fenugreek leaves /kasuri methi optional
- Salt as per taste
- 2-3 tablespoon coconut cream can be replaced with dairy based cream if you prefer for garnish
Instructions
For Koftas
- Mash boiled potatoes,Add the spices,salt and cornflour.Mix well.
- Roll it into equal sized small balls and add small stuffing of dry fruits in the middle.
For air fryer option
- Arrange the balls in an air fryer tray
- In a pre-heated air fryer (5 mins) Brush/spray with oil, cook at 180 degree C for 10-12 minutes.
- Brush/spray with oil again, cook at 180 degree C for further 7-8 minutes or until golden brown.
- Allow the kofta to cool a bit and toss them into the curry for few minutes before serving.
For traditinal deep fry option
- Heat oil in a wok/kadai.Add the kofta balls one by one.
- Add the kofta balls one by one.Fry them until golden brown,keep it aside
For the curry:
- Heat oil in a pan. Add onions & ginger to it.
- Cover and cook for 2 minutes until soft.
- Add chopped tomatoes, spices and salt. Cook till tomatoes soften, mixing with a spatula.
- Turn off the heat, add cashews with 1 cup water
- Blend the curry base. Pass it through sieve.
- Cook the gravy in a pan, along with spices and coconut milk.
- Add the koftas. Garnish with coriander.
- Serve malai kofta with rice or roti or any flat bread.
Video
Notes
Variation:
- This kofta curry unlike others is generally slightly sweet. If you like spicy food, you may add a teaspoon garam masala and increase the amount of chilli/ chilli powder as per your choice.
- A teaspoon garam masala can be added when you are reheating frozen leftovers. I feel it freshens up the gravy.
Top Tips:
Always add a teaspoon of kasuri methi to your tomato based curries to get your umami flavor.There is another secret benefit. Methi is very good for digestion and helps digest any heavy meal. It also increases iron level in blood. If you have a lot of cream at home.Use it to make methi malai matar.
FAQ
Yes, you can fry kofta in advance and store it in an airtight container in freezer.Make a fresh gravy and add kofta to it.Serve with roti or of your choice.This saves time on the day of party. Also,you are always ready to serve a good meal.
Alternatively you can freeze the curry and warm it in a microwave or on low heat whenever you wish to eat.
Yes, as you see in the recipe, the only non-vegan items used is the cream/ghee. You can easily bypass those and replace milk cream with coconut cream and ghee with oil.
Serve it with plain basmati rice or jeera rice. I love to add some bay leaf and jeera tadka to my rice as it instantly elevates the flavor if I am not cooking an elaborate pulao. You may also serve it with garlic naan or rumali roti. Tandoori roti or phulkas also go well with the curry. You can make a yellow or a white gravy as per your choice. Below recipe is with yellow gravy.
Conclusion: Whether you use traditional frying methods or you use the low oil one, delicious malai kofta is a recipe for keeps.
Deepali says
Ur recipe is amazing but if u add paneer to your koftas...that will add zing to them...keep up the good work guys...u are simply awesome
Gaurav says
Thank you very much, yes we will try that input as well..