Today's aggravation and Tomorrow's recipe ~ Kofta Kari

Dinner was a little aggravating today.  I had to tweak the recipe twice.  It takes way longer to bake at 375.  I bumped the temperature up to 400 and had better results.  When I added the vegies halfway, I lost a good bit of the liquid which aggravated me.  Good thing it was a holiday with no practice or work.  I'd have been even more aggravated!

The rice was good and lemony!  Baked rice has a kind of creamy texture and paired with the pork chop it is awesome!  Which got me to thinking how tame in flavor and texture it really is.  My how our tastes have evolved!  You could totally substitute chicken breast in this dish. It would be equally yummy!

Here is the recipe for next Monday.

Kofta Kari

1 lb. ground beef

2 large onions, peeled and chopped

4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

2 t. ground turmeric

2 t. chili powder

2 t. ground coriander

1½ t.  ground cumin

1 t. ground ginger

2 t. salt

1 egg, beaten

Vegetable oil for deep frying*

½ c. ghee

1 c. water

Mint or coriander leaves to garnish

          Put the beef into a bowl and add half the onions, garlic, spices and salt.  Stir well, and then bind the mixture together with the egg.

          Form the mixture into 12 small balls.  Heat the oil in a pan until very hot.  Add the meatballs a few at a time and deep-fry for 5 minutes.  Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon, drain on paper towels and set aside.

          Melt the ghee in a heavy pan, add the remaining onions and garlic and fry gently until soft.  Add the remaining spices and salt and fry for a further 3 minutes, stirring constantly.  Add the meatballs and turn gently to coat with the spices, then add the water and bring to a boil.  Lower the heat and simmer gently for 30 minutes.  Serve hot, garnished with mint or coriander leaves with rice.  Serves 4.

         

          *I do not deep fry these.  I just pan fry them.  We also don’t garnish anything with fresh coriander; I’ve been blessed with the “soapy” gene that will make the dish taste like soap to me.  My younger daughter has that as well.

From "The Encyclopedia of Asian Cooking," Octopus Books Limited, 59 Grosvenor St., London, UK, 1980.