**Vegetarian Kofta Balls in Tomato Sauce**
Are you looking for a delicious and wholesome vegetarian dish? Look no further than these delectable vegetarian kofta balls in tomato sauce. These kofta balls are made with a combination of chickpeas, potatoes, and vegetables, providing a hearty and nutritious meal. They are simmered in a rich and flavorful tomato sauce, making them perfect for serving over rice, pasta, or your favorite roasted vegetables. This recipe also includes instructions for making a delicious tahini sauce to drizzle over the kofta balls, adding an extra layer of flavor and creaminess. Whether you're a vegetarian or simply looking to incorporate more plant-based meals into your diet, these vegetarian kofta balls are sure to satisfy your taste buds. So gather your ingredients and let's get cooking!
VEGETARIAN KOFTA BALLS (TOMATO SAUCE SEP. RECIPE)
Recipe from "The Higher Taste" that I haven't tried yet. It sounds very delicious though. The homemade tomato sauce is also listed as a separate recipe.
Provided by PSU Lioness
Categories Vegetable
Time 30m
Yield 4 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 11
Steps:
- Heat oil in a wok or 2-quart saucepan.
- Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Roll 24 balls, 1" in diameter.
- Place as many balls in the oil as possible, leaving enough room for them to float comfortably; fry over medium heat for 10 minutes, until the kofta is rich golden brown.
- Drain in colander.
- Place the kofta in the tomato sauce (separate recipe posted or use your own) for 5 minutes before serving.
- If after sitting the kofta soaks up most of the sauce, add a little water to produce more liquid.
- Serve with cooked spaghetti.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 25.6, Fat 0.3, Sodium 894.6, Carbohydrate 5.4, Fiber 2.2, Sugar 2.6, Protein 1.7
SWEDISH STYLE, VEGAN KOFTA BALLS
(They look like meat balls, and have a similar texture as well) This recipe is from "The Higher Taste", a Hare Krishna cookbook, with modifications to suit the westerner's palate. These Kofta balls contain seasonings which are reminiscent of Swedish meat balls, instead of the Indian spices found in the original recipe. The great thing about these Kofta balls is that my 3-year-old son eats them, and normally, he won't touch veggies. Everything tastes good when it's fried! Although these kofta balls are fried, they are not greasy at all. To start, You will need about 1 liter canola oil (expeller pressed, or other oil for deep frying).
Provided by Lance Kimber
Categories Cauliflower
Time 25m
Yield 24 Kofta Balls, 4 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 11
Steps:
- Heat enough oil in a pan that's appropriate for deed-frying foods; the oil should be at least 1 inch deep.
- Combine all ingredients in a bowl; mush the mixture through your clean hands until well combined and balls can be formed. Form dough into approximately 24 balls that measure roughly about 1 inch in diameter. Resist the temptation to add liquids to the mix. There is enough liquid in the grated vegetables to make the mixture come together. If you absolutely must, add no more than a teaspoon of liquid.
- Place as many of the balls in the hot, but not smoking, oil as possible, leaving enough room for them to float comfortably; fry over medium to high heat (depending on the type of oil you use and the type of range you have) for 10 minutes. The kofta balls should be a rich golden brown color. They will get darker after they are removed from the oil.
- When the frying process is complete, remove the kofta balls from the hot oil and place them into a colander to drain over a plate-or-onto a plate with paper towels to absorb some of the excess oil.
- Place the kofta balls into the tomato sauce of your choice, or into whichever other sauce you may be using, for approximately 5 minutes prior to serving.
- If, after sitting for 5 minutes, the kofta balls have soaked up a lot of the sauce, adding a little water will help reconstitute your sauce.
- Serve with cooked pasta and tomato sauce, or serve with a white cream-style gravy and herb-rubbed potatoes. Experiment, enjoy, and be amazed!
BAKED KOFTA BALLS IN TOMATO SAUCE
This recipe comes out of the Hare Krishna cookbook, The Higher Taste. I took a short cut and used organic tomato sauce from a jar instead of making my own. Of course home made is best. I also baked the Kofta balls instead of frying them in butter. I am only including the recipe for the Kofta Balls. I have changed some of the ingredients to suit my tastes. I didn't add any binder to this as the mixture was moist enough without it. Traditionally these Kofta balls are put over spaghetti, but I put them over Quinoa for something a little different.
Provided by Chef Joey Z.
Categories Grains
Time 45m
Yield 24 balls, 6 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 12
Steps:
- Preheat your oven to 400'F.
- Coat the bottom of a 9x13 inch oven proof dish or pan with the 2 tablespoons of olive oil so all of it is well covered. If you want to use more then do, these balls will stick to the bottom.
- Grate the cauliflower and cabbage. I used my food processor and it saved a lot of time.
- Put all the other ingredients except the olive oil in a large bowl and add the grated cauliflower and cabbage. Mix until well combined.
- Let the mixture sit for about 20-30 minutes so the moisture from the veggies is absorbed by the flour, this will ensure that the mixture will stick together and you can roll it into balls.
- Roll into 1 inch balls. I found squeezing them back and forth in my hands worked well.
- Place the Kofta balls in the oiled casserole dish.
- Drizzle a little more olive oil over each Kofta ball.
- Bake in the oven for 20 minutes. The Kofta should be a nice golden colour when you remove them.
- Let them cool for a few minutes. If they stick gently slide a spatula under each ball to remove.
- Put the Kofta balls in another dish.
- Spread 1/2 of the jar of pasta sauce in the bottom of the casserole dish. Place the Kofta balls on the sauce.
- Pour the rest of the sauce on top. I added a little water to the jar to get the rest of the sauce out. Let them sit for about one hour. The Kofta balls will absorb the sauce very well.
- You can reheat the Kofta balls in the microwave or in the oven.
- Bon Apetit!
Nutrition Facts : Calories 175.7, Fat 8.4, SaturatedFat 1.6, Cholesterol 2.7, Sodium 963.1, Carbohydrate 22.3, Fiber 5, Sugar 13.5, Protein 3.5
VEGETARIAN KOFTA CURRY
Kofta curry - a saucy dish of gently spiced meatballs - is often made with meat. But this one, based on my grandfather's, swaps in a mash of beans. Bound with bread crumbs and seasoned with ginger, garlic, green chile and herbs, it's a variation full of flavor and texture. Have it with some flatbread and some sliced cucumber in yogurt, or spooned over a bowl of rice. It's also delicious in a sandwich the next day. Note: To make it with lamb, as in his original version, substitute 1 1/2 pounds ground lamb for the beans. Soak the bread crumbs in 1/2 cup whole milk first, then squeeze out any extra liquid before adding them to the mixing bowl.
Provided by Tejal Rao
Categories dinner, beans, vegetables, main course
Time 1h
Yield 4 servings
Number Of Ingredients 18
Steps:
- Put the garlic, ginger and green chiles in a food processor, and pulse until you have a coarse paste. Put half the paste into a large bowl. Set the rest aside.
- Add the beans, spring onions, fresh herbs, bread crumbs, egg, garam masala, chile powder and salt to the large bowl with the paste. Mix well with a fork, mashing up the beans as you go into small pieces.
- Heat the oven to 400 degrees and line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Shape the mixture into 1-inch balls and arrange on the pan. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons oil, and bake until lightly browned, about 25 minutes. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, heat the remaining oil in a large skillet over medium. Sauté the onion until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the remaining garlic, ginger and chile paste, and sauté until light golden brown, about 10 minutes. If using fresh tomatoes, purée them until smooth in the food processor. Stir the tomato purée or crushed tomatoes, coriander and cumin into the skillet, and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Add the kofta to the skillet, and turn the heat to low. If necessary, add enough water for the liquid to come about two-thirds of the way up the sides of the meatballs, then simmer another 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the kofta are warmed through and the sauce has thickened. Season with salt and pepper, and garnish with a light dust of garam masala and some extra herbs.
MIXED VEGETABLE KOFTA BALLS WITH CASHEWS
This is a rich dish, suitable for parties or special occasions. The fried vegetable balls will loose their crispness, so fry just before serving. When serving, put a few kofta balls on a plate, and then spoon the sauce over the balls.
Provided by Andtototoo
Categories Indian
Time 1h30m
Yield 20-23 balls, 6 serving(s)
Number Of Ingredients 28
Steps:
- First make up the sauce (gravy) for the kofta. Put 1/4 cup of the cashews (or slivered almonds would also work) into a spice grinder and powder. Repeat with the rest of the nuts. Put the powdered nuts into a cereal bowl and set aside.
- In a large nonstick frying pan put 2 Table. oil and 2 Table. of butter ( or ghee-which is clarified butter). Heat over medium heat. When the butter has melted, add the hing and the powdered nuts, and stir to blend.
- If the nuts are not already toasted/roasted, cook them for a couple of minutes until they darken a few shades, otherwise, skip this step.
- Add 2 cups tomato puree (or in a bind you can use tomato sauce). Cook for about 5 minutes. If using fresh pureed tomatoes, you should cook the sauce about 10 minutes.
- Stir in the sugar, salt, turmeric, garam masala and cayenne powder. Reduce heat to low and cook 3 more minutes.
- Remove the pan from the heat and quickly stir in the 1 cup cream. Put the sauce back on the heat and cook another minute or two to just heat the sauce, but do not let it boil. Check for salt. Garnish with fresh minced cilantro.
- This sauce can be made earlier in the day or even the day before if it is refrigerated. The sauce will thicken, so will need to be thinned out when reheating.
- Make the kofta. To begin, put 4 cups mashed potatoes into a large mixing bowl. The potatoes need to be somewhat dry. You can also use instant mashed potatoes that you have made up on the dry side.
- Stir 1 Table. butter or ghee into the potatoes.
- Meanwhile, steam the small cauliflower florets and the 1/2 grated carrot until the cauliflower is soft. Drain and roughly mash up the cauliflower until it is in little pieces. Add to the potatoes. Add 1/4 cup frozen peas, 1/4 cup cooked corn kernals (optional, but tastes good), 1 teaspoon baking powder, 2 teaspoons ground cumin, 1 teaspoon ginger paste, 1/2 teaspoon cayenne powder, 1/2 teaspoon turmeric and salt to taste. Stir gently, but until everything is well mixed.
- Take 12 cashews and roughly break them into pieces with your hands and add to the vegetable mixture. Add fresh minced cilantro and 3-4 Table. chickpea flour or all-purpose flour to bind. Mix. Check for salt. If the mixture isn't dry enough, add more flour.
- Form the potato mixture into golf-size balls. Set aside for a while, if desired, covered with plastic, or make up right away.
- When ready to fry the vegetable balls, in a medium-size saucepan put oil for deep frying and heat the oil over medium-high heat for about 10-12 minutes. When the oil is hot, carefully add 4-5 of the balls and quickly brown them. The inside of the balls are already cooked, so you are just browning the outside. Cook quickly. Don't add too many balls, or the temperature of the oil will reduce too much and the balls might start dissolving. Drain on paper towel. Repeat with the rest of the balls.
- To serve: put a few of the balls on the plate and spoon the sauce (gravy) over the top.
- Many people like to eat vegetarian kofta balls with just potatoes and grated paneer cheese. I like the texture when using the vegetables. If you want to add some paneer cheese to the mixture, reduce the amount of potatoes by one cup, and replace it with one cup of grated paneer cheese. The word kofta usually means ball shaped, and can be either vegetables, meat or even ball shaped sweet desserts.
- If the kofta balls start breaking apart while frying, you can try several tricks: 1. Increase the heat of the oil; 2. Add more chickpea flour to the balls to make them more dry; 3. Dip the balls in a batter of chickpea flour, water, salt, a dash of cayenne and a dash of ground cumin (optional) and then fry; 4. Put the kofta under the broiler to lightly brown instead of frying.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 462.8, Fat 29.5, SaturatedFat 13.5, Cholesterol 62.3, Sodium 1049.6, Carbohydrate 45, Fiber 6, Sugar 9.4, Protein 8.9
Tips:
- Choose the right lentils: For the best texture, use a combination of red lentils and green lentils. Red lentils cook quickly and break down easily, while green lentils hold their shape better.
- Soak the lentils: Soaking the lentils for at least 30 minutes before cooking helps to soften them and reduce the cooking time.
- Drain the lentils well: After soaking the lentils, be sure to drain them well before adding them to the food processor. This will help to prevent the kofta balls from becoming too mushy.
- Use fresh herbs and spices: Fresh herbs and spices add a lot of flavor to the kofta balls. Be sure to use the freshest ingredients you can find.
- Don't overmix the kofta mixture: Overmixing the kofta mixture can make the kofta balls tough. Mix just until the ingredients are well combined.
- Form the kofta balls gently: Be gentle when forming the kofta balls. If you handle them too roughly, they may fall apart.
- Cook the kofta balls over medium heat: Cooking the kofta balls over medium heat helps to prevent them from burning.
- Serve the kofta balls with a flavorful sauce: Serve the kofta balls with a flavorful sauce, such as the tomato sauce in this recipe. You could also serve them with a yogurt sauce or a tahini sauce.
Conclusion:
These vegetarian kofta balls are a delicious and healthy meal that can be enjoyed by people of all ages. They are easy to make and can be served with a variety of sauces. So next time you are looking for a vegetarian meal that is both tasty and nutritious, give these kofta balls a try.
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