Malai Kofta (Paneer Kofta Curry)

This Malai Kofta is the ultimate North Indian showstopper! Crispy Indian cheese dumplings known as paneer kofta are served with a rich, luxurious & super delicious malai (creamy) gravy. This Malai Kofta curry is a celebratory dish that brings gourmet Indian flavors to your dinner table. It is an exciting side usually made for special occasions and meals.

Whether you are hosting a North Indian themed dinner or want to whip up a special meal for your loved ones, this restaurant style dish fits the bill perfectly. In this post I share how to make the best Malai Kofta at home. The koftas are crisp on the outside, with a melt-in-the-mouth inside that you can also serve them as an appetizer.

The sauce is equally delicious – slightly spicy, tangy and creamy with a burst of flavors. Serve this classic vegetarian Indian dish with Butter Naan, whole wheat roti, paratha, Tandoori Roti, Plain steamed Basmati or flavored rice like Cumin Rice, Ghee rice or Turmeric rice. For a special or festive meal, extend your menu to some Halwa and raita.

About Malai Kofta

Malai Kofta is a curried vegetarian dish consisting of crisp fried potato paneer balls (koftas) dunked in a creamy, silky smooth and rich sauce/ curry. The Hindi word malai translates to cream and kofta to fried balls, so obviously the dish is made with cream (dairy).

Originally, Kofta belongs to a family of meatballs from the Central Asian, South Asian, Middle Eastern and Balkan Cuisines. They come in different sizes & shapes like balls, patties and cylindrical.

In India, the vegetarian Malai kofta is hugely popular in the restaurants. There are also many other vegetarian variations using lauki (bottle gourd), mixed vegetables and raw bananas. North Indian restaurants typically serve this Malai Kofta in 2 colors – white and orange.

The white Mughlai gravy is made similar to this Methi Malai Matar or Shahi Paneer, without tomatoes, turmeric and red chili powder. But the orange one has a base similar like the Paneer Butter Masala.

My Recipe

These paneer kofta are made with a mix of mashed/grated boiled potatoes, crumbled paneer, corn starch (flour), spices and herbs. This mixture is shaped to small balls and deep fried. For a healthier option you may bake, air fry or use a paniyaram pan to pan fry them.

Every restaurant has a different formula to make their kofta gravy. But in general a paste made with boiled onions, cashews and sometimes poppy seeds are used to make the white gravy. My recipe is much simpler and makes use of tomatoes too as it makes a super perfect and delicious gravy.

Onions and cashews impart natural sweetness while tomatoes lend a tang and spices infuse the best aromas to the gravy. Many people feel making malai kofta at home is a very difficult task. But with proper planning and preparing ahead it is easy to make. It involves several preparation steps so it takes some time but is easy and not difficult.

For convenience, you may split the recipe and make the gravy the previous day or ahead. The day you plan to serve the malai kofta, just prepare the koftas and heat the gravy. Please read the Ingredients & substitutes and Pro Tips sections below.

More Paneer recipes,
Kadai paneer
Paneer lababdar
Paneer tikka masala
Palak paneer
Matar paneer

Photo Guide

How to make Malai Kofta (Stepwise Photos)

Preparation

1. Heat a pan with 1 tablespoon oil. For a oil-free saute, you may start without oil & dry saute. Add

• 2 green cardamoms
• ½ inch cinnamon piece
• 3 cloves
• 1 cup cubed onions (2 medium). Saute until the onions turn transparent, for 3 to 4 mins. (Tip: If you do not have ginger garlic paste to add in step 6, you may add half inch peeled ginger slice and 3 medium garlic cloves here and omit using later. Avoid adding too much ginger, it can make the dish bitter.)

2. Add 1½ cups chopped tomatoes (about 3 medium) and 15 cashew nuts. Saute for 2 to 3 minutes.

3. Pour ½ cup water and cook covered until onions and tomatoes turn soft.

4. Cool completely & transfer to a blender.

5. Blend it to a super smooth puree. If it is not smooth, you may filter or strain the puree to a bowl. Keep this aside.

Make Gravy

6. On a medium flame, heat 2 tablespoons oil or butter in a pan. Add

• 1 bay leaf (optional)
• ½ inch cinnamon piece (optional)
• 2 green cardamoms. (optional)
  When they sizzle, add 1½ teaspoon ginger garlic paste and saute for 30 to 60 seconds. (until the raw smell has gone)

7. Turn down the flame to lowest and quickly stir in

• 1 teaspoon red chili powder
• 1 to 1¼ teaspoon garam masala
• ¾ teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon coriander powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• Then immediately pour the tomato onion puree. Be careful and do not burn the spices. You can also do the other way like I did poured the puree first and then added the ground spices.

8. Mix everything well and saute for 3 to 4 mins. You don’t need to saute long here. The raw smell of onions and tomatoes is reduced since they are boiled first.

9. Pour ¾ cup water and mix well. If the gravy looks too thick then pour another ¼ cup.

10. Cover and cook for about 10 to 14 minutes or until the gravy turns thick.

11. When the gravy is ready, it will be thicker and you will see little traces of oil on top.

12. Take 1 teaspoon kasuri methi to your palm and crush it in between both your palms. Add this and give a good mix. Taste test the gravy and add more salt if needed.

13. Lower the flame. Pour 3 to 4 tablespoons of cream and mix well. You can use whipping cream, heavy cream or cooking cream here. Malai gravy is ready. Set this aside to cool down slightly.

Make Kofta

14. Boil 4 medium (or 2 large) potatoes until fork tender but not mushy or soggy. I usually boil them in a steamer or pressure cooker for 2 whistles with little water. Cool them completely, peel the skin. Crumble or grate them. Ensure you don’t use mushy potatoes here.

15. To a mixing bowl add

• 1 heaped cup crumbled potatoes (or grated)
• 1 heaped cup crumbled paneer (or grated)
• 2½ tablespoons cornstarch (cornflour, do not add more)
• 1 teaspoon ginger paste or grated ginger
• ½ to ¾ teaspoon garam masala
• 1 to 2 green chili (chopped, skip for kids)
• 2 tablespoons coriander leaves (chopped)
• ½ teaspoon salt (adjust to taste)

16. Add 1 tablespoon chopped cashews and 1 tablespoon raisins. Taste test and add more salt if required.

17. Mix the ingredients and divide the mixture to 8 parts. Make them to smooth balls. The mixture should not be sticky here.

Fry Kofta

18. Heat oil in a deep fry pan. Check if the oil is hot enough by dropping a small portion of the mixture in hot oil. The ball has to rise to the surface without browning a lot. If the oil is not hot enough, the balls will sink in the oil, may disperse and stick up to the kadai.

19. Once the oil is hot, regulate the flame to medium heat. Slide in 1 ball to check the temperature and binding. If all goes well then slide the rest of the kofta balls and fry till golden and crisp. Do not fry them in extremely hot oil.

20. Remove the paneer koftas to a steel colander. Cool them.

Assemble Malai Kofta

1. Transfer the cooled malai gravy to a deep dish.
2. Just before serving, place the koftas in the gravy else they won’t remain crispy. Ensure the koftas and the gravy both are cool and not hot. Else the koftas will become soft in no time.
3. Garnish with 1 tablespoon cream and coriander leaves. Serve with butter naan, roti or jeera rice.

Ingredients & Substitutes

• Boiled Potatoes: Cook potatoes just until fork tender yet fully cooked. We don’t want mushy and water-logged potatoes because that makes the koftas too soft and they can break & fall apart while frying.
• Paneer: You may use homemade or store bought paneer. Both work well equally. Your homemade paneer (if using) should be completely drained and not contain any whey. Too much moisture in the paneer can again make the paneer koftas too soft. You may substitute paneer with pressed extra firm tofu.
• Corn flour: Also known as corn-starch is used to bind the ingredients and give the koftas a crisp and firm texture. It can be substituted with arrow root powder, sattu (powdered roasted gram/ chutney dal) or roasted gram flour/ roasted besan.
• Cashews add a creamy texture to the malai gravy. They can be substituted with almond flour or nut butter. But the flavors will be slightly different. If you can’t eat nuts, simply use more heavy cream and cut down the amount of water.
• Heavy Cream or whipping cream adds another layer of richness to the curry. You can omit it by using little more cashews or adding 2 to 3 paneer cubes while blending the onions and tomatoes.

Expert Tips

• If your homemade paneer is too wet with whey, grate it, spread on a tray and leave it uncovered in the refrigerator overnight. Excess moisture will be dried out.
• You can make stuffed kofta with chopped raisins and cashews. In restaurants, fine chopped cashews, raisins and mawa is mixed and stuffed inside the koftas. I prefer to add the nuts and raisins to the kofta mixture instead, for ease of making.
• If you don’t like to saute your onions in oil, simply dry saute for 3 to 4 mins and then continue with the recipe. Though the flavor is different while you saute, the end result is delicious and tastes the same.
• You can substitute ginger garlic paste with chopped/sliced ginger and garlic. Add it when you saute the onions.

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