Vegan malai kofta: chickpea balls with tomato sauce

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Main Dish

3 servings

Very Easy

35 min

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Today we bring you a vegan version of one of the most popular dishes in India: Malai Kofta (balls in sauce). Since we sometimes struggle to eat legumes, at Petitchef we try to cook them in every possible way. These chickpea and spinach balls served with a creamy and spiced tomato sauce are as tasty as they are nutritious. If you want to enjoy this healthy recipe, free from lactose, eggs, and animal protein, just keep reading, we explain everything right here!

Ingredients

Kofta (balls):

• 9 oz cooked chickpeas, drained
• 1 Tbsp salt
• 1 tsp paprika or chili powder
• 1 Tbsp turmeric
• 2.5 Tbsp flour
• 4.4 oz fresh spinach

Tomato and coconut sauce:

• 1 onion
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 Tbsp cumin
• 1 Tbsp cilantro powder
• 15 oz tomato sauce
• 1 tsp sugar (or 1/2 tsp baking soda)
• 1/2 cup coconut cream
• lemon juice (some drops)

Decoration:

• Cilantro
• Peanuts
• Coconut cream

Materials

• pan, chopper, oven, bowl, colander

Preparation

• In a pan with oil, sauté the spinach. When they have reduced in size, remove from heat. Drain the spinach and remove excess moisture. Set aside.
• Drain the cooked chickpeas. In the chopper bowl, add the chickpeas, flour, salt, paprika, turmeric, and drained spinach. Blend, leaving some chunks.
  
• Form balls the size of a ping pong ball. If the mixture is too wet (depending on the moisture left in the spinach), feel free to add a bit more flour and mix to make it easier to handle.
• Preheat the oven to 390°F (200°C) and bake for 20 minutes or until the balls are firm.
  
• For the tomato sauce:
  In a pan with a little oil, cook the spices (cumin and cilantro) for 5 minutes over low heat. Stir occasionally to prevent burning. Chop the garlic and onion into small pieces and add them to the pan. Cook over medium heat.
  
  When the onion is translucent, add the tomato sauce and 1 teaspoon of sugar (this will help counteract the acidity of the tomato). Cook for 5 minutes.
  
  Add the coconut cream. Lower the heat and cook for 15 minutes. Add a few drops of lemon juice (the acidity will help enhance the creamy flavor).
  
  Add the chickpea balls to the sauce and cook for a couple more minutes.
• Serve and sprinkle some chopped peanuts and fresh cilantro on top.
  
  And that's it! You can serve it with rice or noodles.
  

Cookware

PetitChef_Official

Questions

Photos of members who cooked this recipe