Palak Kofta (Spinach kofta)

Palak Kofta
(Spinach kofta)

Palak kofta (spinach kofta) is a delicious vegetarian main course dish. These spinach koftas balls are made with chopped spinach and mixed with besan (gram flour) chopped onion, minced garlic, green chilies and some spices are added to make them delicious, then they are deep fried like pakoras and later simmered in spicy gravy.

Spinach is very nutritious but kids run away from it but they will love palak koftas. When you get tired of eating usual regular food and you want to make something special and give a little variation to dinner menu koftas always come in mind.

There are so many different kinds of koftas and cooking recipes all over India and lot of variations could be made in kofta ingredients so try it and make variation each time.

Ingredients for koftas:

1 10 oz of frozen chopped spinach or
1 pound fresh chopped and boiled spinach
1    Small onion – fine chopped
1    Teaspoon minced garlic
1    Medium green chili – fine chopped
1    Tablespoon fresh grated ginger
½   Teaspoon red chili powder
1    Pinch of asafetida (Hing)
1    Pinch of baking powder
½   Cup of gram flour (besan) or as needed
½   Teaspoon salt or to your taste
Oil for frying kofta's
Water as needed

Thawed frozen chopped spinach

Or, Fresh chopped Spinach

Onion-chopped

Green chili-chopped

Asafetida (Hing)

Oil

Ginger- Grated

Besan (gram flour)

Baking Powder

Water

Garlic-minced

Red chili powder

Salt

Ingredients for gravy:

2    Medium size onions
1    Tablespoon minced garlic
2    Medium size ripe tomato pureed
1    Tablespoon fresh grated ginger
1    Medium green chilies – Chopped
3    Tablespoons plain yogurt
2    Teaspoons coriander powder
½   Teaspoon red chili powder
½   Teaspoon turmeric powder (Haldi)
½   Teaspoon garam masala powder or to your taste
3    Tablespoons vegetable oil
1    Teaspoon salt or to your taste
½   Cup of whole milk
½   Cup of chopped coriander leaves

Cooking measurement conversion
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Onions, Tomatoes, Ginger, Garlic , Green Chili & Coriander leaves

Coriander powder

Garam masala

Coriander leaves

Salt

Red chili powder

Green chili-chopped

Yogurt

Oil

Turmeric powder

Ginger-grated

Milk

Water

Directions for making the Spinach Kofta Balls:

1. Thaw the frozen spinach or chop fresh spinach.

2. In a sauce pan add spinach and add water.

3. Cover the sauce pan and boil the spinach.

In a pan add spinach & water

Cover the pan

4. Once spinach cool down squeeze all the water out from the spinach.

Spinach is boiled

Squeeze the water out from spinach

5 Place the squeezed spinach in a bowl.

Squeezed spinach

Place the spinach a bowl

6. In the spinach add chopped onions, minced garlic, chopped green chilies,
  grated ginger, red chili powder, asafetida, baking powder and Besan (Garam
  flour) salt and some water.

7. Mix everything together to the consistency for rolling the kofta balls.Add
  some more water if needed or add more gram flour if the mix is too soft.

Add all Kofta ingredients in the spinach

Mix the ingredients with spinach

Palak kofta mix

8. Before you start making kofta balls heat 2 cups of oil in a frying pan or a
kadhi on medium heat.

9. While oil is heating up grease your palms and take a little portion of the dough
at a time and roll into small balls. Place the balls on the plate. It makes about
18 small balls.

In a pan add oi and heat

Grease your hands

Take some kofta mix in your hand

Roll kofta mix into a ball

Palak kofta ball

Spinach kofta balls

10. In about 7 to 8 minutes oil will become hot, to test it drop a small piece of
dough in the hot oil if the dough starts sizzling and comes up it means oil is
hot enough, turn the heat down.

11. Now gently drop 7 to 8 balls in the hot oil. Do not touch the kofta balls.

Drop a small piece of dough in oil

Gently drop kofta balls in hot oil

12. With the cooking spoon start flickering the hot oil over koftas.

13. let the kofta’s fry for 1 minute then with the spatula turn them around, and let
the other side fry for 1 minute, then flip. Keep flipping the balls around for
8 to 10 minutes on low heat so that inside of the balls get cooked.

Flicker oil over kofta's

Turn the kofta's to other side

Keep flipping kofta balls

Kofta balls are fried

14. Once the balls become golden brown or the desired cooler take them off the
oil and place them in a plate over the paper towel so that extra oil could be
absorbed.

15. Turn the heat down because the oil is hot and you do not want the other batch
of balls fried quickly.

16. Drop another batch of koftas balls then raise the heat a little and let them fry.
Repeat the process until all the balls are fried.

Take the kofta's out of oil

Place the kofta's over paper towel

Fried Spinach kofta's

Directions for making the gravy:

1. Use a food chopper or blender to mince the onions and garlic. Mixture should
be Coarse.

In a chopper add onion & garlic

Mince onion and garlic

2. On high heat add the oil in a wide nonstick frying pan, add minced onions and
     garlic and sauté them while periodically stirring.

3. Onions will have a lot of water so for the first 8 to 10 minutes keep the heat
  high so that all the onion water evaporates quickly.

4. Once the onion water evaporated turn the heat down to medium and let the
     onions fry for 8 to 9 minutes, frequently stir the onions.

In a pan add minced onion & Garlic

Mix minced onion, garlic with oil fry

5. While onion mixture cooks add the tomato to the same food chopper or blender and puree.

In a chopper add tomatoes

Puree tomatoes

6. Once the onions become light brown add coriander powder, red chili powder,
turmeric powder and mix with the fried onion and fry for few seconds.

Onion become light brown

Add Coriander powder, Red chili powder & Turmeric powder

7 Add Tomato puree and Yogurt and mix and keep string the Onion masala
frequently.

Mix spices with fried onion & spices & fry

Add tomato puree

Mix tomato puree with fried onions & spices

Add yogurt

8. With the tomato puree and yogurt onion masala become watery turn the heat
high for 2 to 3 minutes, so that water evaporates quickly, and then turn the
heat down. Keep stirring the onion masala frequently.

9. In about 5 to 6 minutes tomato puree and onion will blend together.

10. Once all the water evaporated and you see the oil in the pan that means onion
masala is done

Mix Yogurt well with all the ingredients

Onion masala is ready

11. Add 3 cups of water and salt and mix with onion masala.

Add water in onion masala & mix

Add salt and mix

12. Cover the pan and cook for 10 minutes.

Mix gravy

Cover the pan and cook gravy

13. Once gravy is cooked add grated ginger, chopped green chilies and garam
masala in the gravy and mix and let it cook for few minutes.

Gravy is cooked

Add ginger and green chilies & mix

14. Add ½ cup of milk and mix it well with the gravy and stir constantly for 1
minute so that milk blend in well with the gravy. Let the gravy cook for 8 to
10 minutes, while frequently stirring the gravy. Milk binds the gravy with
onion masala.

Add garam masala and mix

Add Milk

Mix Milk with gravy

Gravy is ready

15. Once onion masala and milk blend in together and gravy taste right add
½ cup of water and bring to boil, because koftas will soak in lot of water.

16. Add fried Spinach kofta’s in the gravy and mix.

Add water in the gravy & bring it to boil

Add fried Kofta's in gravy

17. With the cooking spoon pour gravy over kofta’s. Coat all the koftas with
gravy and simmer for 2 minutes.

Pour gravy over Kofta’s

Simmer Kofta’s

18. Once koftas are soaked and gravy become thicker, add more water to the
desired consistency, give a boil and turn the stove off.

19. Pour gravy over Kofta's.

20. When ready to serve sprinkle chopped coriander leaves and mix. Gently
transfer koftas into a serving bowl .

Palak koftas curry is ready

Sprinkle coriander leaves

Pour gravy over Kofta's

Palak kofta curry

Tips:

1.  Boiled mashed potatoes or crumbled paneer could be added to the spinach
     koftas balls.

2.   If you are vegan or if you wish not to use yogurt or milk then you may take
      it out from recipe, the dish will still taste delicious.

Please take the time to let me know what you think about my recipe. Your comments would be helpful to me to improve the recipe.

Thank you

Geeta Seth

Other recipes:

Cabbage kofta                                                          Paneer kofta

Lauki kofta (Bottle gourd, ghiya)                           Masoor dal kofta

Spinach with mushrooms                                       Palak paneer
                                                                                 (Paneer with spinach)
Aloo palak                                                              Palak ka raita
(Potatoes with spicanch)                                         (Yogurt with spinach)