Lauki Kofta

                                                                             

What do I say about Lauki Kofta....the most familiar of all koftas? I can remember eating it since childhood and cooking it since early years of marriage.  In summers especially it used to be a life saver when expecting guests. Those days  there used to be just a few vegetables available in summer so it used to be a challenge to come up with something nice with the limited options.

I try to make the koftas with as little besan as possible so that, while they do not crumble either while frying nor when  soaked in the gravy,   they are absolutely melt in the mouth with a slight crunch factor provided by the finely chopped onions and the subtle taste of  grated ginger. I prefer to  keep the gravy fairly light, with no cream or crushed cashew, so that  the focus stays on the koftas. I do add a small amount of  yoghurt to enhance the texture of the gravy but it is okay to skip that too.

Ingredients:   

For Koftas
11/2 cups grated lauki ( bottle gourd)
3-4 tbsp besan ( gram flour)
2tbsp chopped onion
1 tsp grated ginger
1/2 tsp carom seeds ( ajwain)
1 green chilli or 1/2 tsp red chilli powder
Salt to taste

For Gravy
1 medium or 2 small onions
1 tomato
1 inch ginger
4-5 cloves garlic
2 tbsp yoghurt
1/2 tsp red chilli powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp coriander powder
Salt to taste
1 tsp all spice ( garam masala) powder
1 tsp kasuri methi
Whole spices: 1 bay leaf, 1 big cardamom, 3-4 cloves, 1 tsp cumin, 1 inch cinnamon
Oil to fry + 3-4 tbsps for gravy
Garnish: Green coriander leaves

Method:    Peel and grate lauki. Squeeze the grated lauki and keep aside the juice to use later in the gravy. Add the chopped onion,  grated ginger, besan, salt to taste, ajwain and chopped green chilli or red chilli powder. Mix well and form small balls.

                                                                       

Heat  oil in a heavy bottom pan and gently drop one kofta in it.  The oil should not be too hot or the kofta will not get cooked till inside. First fry one kofta to check if it retains its shape.  If needed you can add little more besan to make firmer koftas. Keep stirring gently to let kofta get evenly browned. Remove on an absorbent paper. Continue to make the rest of the koftas.

                                                                               

To make the gravy grind the onion, tomato, ginger and garlic together in the mixer with a little water. Remove the excess oil from the pan in which the koftas were fried leaving 2-3 tbsps. Add the whole spices to the oil ie bay leaf, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon and cumin.  After they start spluttering add the prepared paste.  Also add the turmeric powder, red chilli powder and  coriander powder. When the masala starts to dry up, add the yoghurt and continue to stir till the oil separates from the masala. Add the lauki juice and warm water to make up the gravy.  When the gravy starts boiling, lower the flame and add the koftas.  Let it simmer for a few minutes.  Add the salt, garam masala powder and kasuri methi. Garnish with green coriander leaves and serve hot.