Creamy Spinach & Panir Kofta Curry ( My Award Winning Vegetarian Curry)

This is one of my absolute favourite dishes to make.  If you want to impress or there’s a special occasion, no doubt this is the dish to make 🙂

Creamy Spinach & Panir Kofta Curry (Award Winning Vegetarian Curry)
Kofta
Panir made from 2L of milk
2 bunches spinach (blanched in boiling water)
Oil for deep frying (1 ½ litres)
1 Tsp Cumin powder
1 Tsp Coriander powder
1 Tsp Garam Masala
2/3 Green Chillies (chopped finely)
(use more or less as desired)
1 Tsp Salt
1 Tbsp Channa flour (to bind)
1 Tbsp Potato flour
(Add more or less of binding ingredients if
Mixture is too wet)
Roll mixture into small balls (12 to 15)

To make panir: bring 2 litres of milk to boil allow to rise, but not overflow,
add 1 to 1/1 ½ tsp tartaric acid to boiling milk. Turn of the heat. The milk will curdle and curds
will float to the top, the whey will turn greenish yellow. Collect curds in a cheese cloth and
squeeze out the water. Rinse under cold water.
Put a heavy weight on it to remove excess water.

Gravy
60 ml oil (use more or less)
2 Tbsp ghee
3 Star Anise
2 – 3cm cinnamon sticks
3 cloves
3 elachis (cardamoms)
¼ tsp mustard seeds
½ tsp cumin seeds
1 bay leaf
1 large Onion finely chopped
2/3 sprigs curry leaves torn up.
1 Tbsp freshly ground ginger
1 Tbsp freshly ground garlic
2 Tbsp coriander powder
1 Tbsp Cumin powder
2 to 3 heaped Tbsp Mixed Masala
2/3 green chilli for extra heat.
½ can plum tomatoes liquidised
Salt to taste +/- 1tsp
1 tin can coconut milk (good quality)
½ tin can coconut cream (good quality)
Fresh Coriander
Let’s Cook 🙂
• Crumble panir in a medium size bowl
• Remove the stalks from the spinach and wash the spinach out thoroughly
• Blanch spinach for a few minutes in boiling water. Squeeze all the water out from the spinach, chop the leaves finely and add to panir.
• Mix all the kofta ingredients; Cumin seeds, Coriander seeds, Garam Masala, Green Chillies, Salt, Channa flour, Potato flour. Roll into balls – deep fry and keep aside.
• Heat oil and ghee in a medium size pot – add mustard seeds, star Anise, cinnamon sticks, cloves, elachis, cumin seeds and bay leave. Fry for a couple of seconds on medium heat.
• To this add the onion & curry leaves – Fry onion until golden brown.
• Add garlic and ginger fry for a few seconds
Lower the heat, add all the powdered spices; coriander powder, cumin powder, mixed masala. Fry for 2 to 3 seconds
• add tomatoes, salt and cook through. Add green chilli for extra heat. (optional)
• At this point add the canned coconut milk and coconut cream.
• Cook until gravy thickens – Add more salt if necessary
• Once the gravy has thickened add the koftas and let it simmer on low for a further 10 minutes.
• Add chopped coriander.
• The number of koftas should be used in proportion to your gravy. So use more or less if needed.
• Serve with sliced lemons and onion rings and a salad. Squeeze lemon juice over curry before eating.
• Serve with basmati, lemon rice or plain white rice
*If gravy thickens too much you may add water reduce the consistency.