Meena's Taste Mantra

Kaddu Kofta Curry - an aromatic and delicious Indian Curry with Red Pumpkin Koftas

I love Red Pumpkin | Kaddu. As a child when Amma used to cut this veggie, I used to eat a piece of the raw veg itself. When perfectly ripe, this taste so delicious. Apart from the host of health benefits they impart, they are very versatile as they can be used to whip up any kind of course be it a starter to curries to sabzis to baked goodies to desserts!

Today Amma was in a mood to make Kaddu Kofta Curry. This dish is an all time favourite as it has a perfect balance of all the taste profiles and is simply delectable. The best part of this dish is, it is very easy to make and will surely be loved by all.

INGREDIENTS

For Kofta

500 gms Kaddu | Red Pumpkin, peeled and grated

1 cup Besan | Chick Pea Flour

1 tsp Dhania | Coriander Powder

1/4 tsp Red Chilli Powder

1/2 tsp Adrak | Ginger Paste

1 Green Chilli, finely chopped

1 tblsp Fresh Dhania | Coriander, finely chopped
1/2 tsp Salt | To taste

Oil, for frying

For Tomato Paste
4 Tomatoes
2 Green Chilli, adjust as per your preference for spice
1 " Adrak | Ginger
For Curry

1/2 cup Fresh Dahi | Curd, whisked
2 tsp Oil
1 tsp Jeera | Cumin Seeds
2 tblsp Besan | Chick Pea Flour

1 tsp Dhania | Coriander Powder

1/2 tsp Red Chilli Powder
1 tsp Haldi | Turmeric Powder
A pinch Hing | Asafoetida Powder
2 cups Water | As per required consistency of curry
1/4 tsp Garam Masala Powder
3/4 tsp Salt | To taste

2 tblsp Fresh Dhania | Coriander, finely chopped

METHOD

For Kofta

Gently squeeze the grated kaddu and retain the squeezed water aside.
In a mixing bowl, add squeezed kaddu, besan, salt, red chilli powder, dhania powder and fresh dhania.
With a spoon, gently combine all the ingredients. The consistency should be dropping consistency. If required adjust the consistency with the retained kaddu water. Kaddu is water laden and hence we do not need to add water separately.
In a wide bottomed pan, heat oil for deep frying. When the oil starts to bubble a bit, reduce the flame a bit.
Add a teaspoon full of kaddu batter gently into the oil. Depending upon the size of your pan, you can make 5 to 6 koftas at one go. Fry the koftas till they become golden brown from all sides. You need to gently flip the koftas in this process. Remove the koftas onto a tissue paper.
You need to fry the koftas in multiple batches. For this quantity we got 20 koftas, fried in 3 batches.

For Curry

For Tomato Paste

Grind tomatoes, adrak and green chilli to a very fine paste and keep aside.

Heat oil in a non stick kadhai and add jeera.
When jeera splutters, add hing.
Add besan and saute for 2 minutes.
Add Tomato Paste along with haldi, dhania powder and red chilli powder. Mix well.
Cover cook for 3 minutes on low flame. Stir occasionally. The oil will tend to separate.
After 3 minutes, add the whisked curd and mix continuously for 3 minutes till the curd blends in.
Add water, salt, garam masala and half of the chopped dhania. Mix well.
Add the Koftas gently. Mix well.
On a very low flame, cover cook for 3 minutes. The curry will thicken a bit and the koftas will absorb all the flavours from the curry.
Switch off the gas.
Transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with remaining dhania leaves.
Serve hot with any Roti | Paratha | Methi Thepla | Rice | Jowar Roti.

We relished this aromatic and delicious Kaddu Kofta Curry with Jeera Rice.

We have used:
1. Sundrop Heart Oil
2. LG Hing Powder
3. Tata Salt Lite
4. Everest Tikhalal Red Chilli Powder
5. Everest Royal Garam Masala Powder

About C R Meena

(c) 2014 - 2016, Meena's Taste Mantra is the result of my ardent desire to share my recipes, with all who appreciate and celebrate food. These recipes are as a result of 60 years of cooking experience, influenced by tradition and exposure to various concepts, new recipes/ingredients and a passion for cooking - adapting to healthier alternatives.