Nadru ke Kofte - Lotus Stem Koftas in Cashew Sauce
Creamy indulgent Koftas made with lotus stem and paneer in white rich cashew-based sauce . So delicious with naan or rotis, or even with some steamed rice.
Servings: 6 servings
Ingredients
Lotus Stem Koftas
- Lotus Root Stem, 8-8.8 oz.
- ½ cup crumbled paneer
- ¼ cup cashew nuts
- 1/2 inch piece ginger
- 1-2 green chilies
- 1/2 tsp garam masala
- ¼ tsp cardamom powder
- Salt to taste
- 2 tbsp cilantro
- 2 tbsp corn starch + extra for rolling
- Oil to fry neutral
Cashew Onion Sauce
- 1 ¼ cup onions chopped
- ½ cup cashews soaked in water
- 1 inch ginger
- 2-3 cloves garlic
- 2 green chilies
- 1 tsp fennel seeds
- 1 tbsp ghee or butter
- 2 cloves
- 1 small stick cinnamon
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1 tsp cardamom powder
- 2 tsp kasuri methi
- 2 tbsp plain yogurt
- ½ tsp saffron crushed and diluted in 2 tbsp of warm liquid
- chopped cilantro, fried lotus stem chips, pomegranate etc. for garnish
Instructions
Lotus Stem Koftas
- Pre heat oil to 350 F or until its hot enough to fry the koftas.
- If you plan on frying lotus stem chips, remove few pieces, and leave them aside.
- With the help of a food processor, pulse roughly chopped lotus stem, paneer, cashews, ginger, green chilies, garam masala, cardamom powder, salt everything together for the kofta until it is crumbled and nicely mashed. Add 2 tbsp. of corn starch and chopped cilantro too. Make sure the kofta mixture holds its shape. They should not have too much moisture.
- Take the mixture out in a plate, divide it up into equal portions. You should be able to get 8-10 koftas, depending on the size. I prefer medium sized. Roll each of them into rounds and then toss them into corn starch. Roll the rounds into cornstarch to coat on all sides.
- Once the oil is medium hot, add one kofta round and fry it. If it does not break and separate in the oil. Then proceed with rest of them and fry until golden brown on the outside. Do not speed up the process by increasing the heat. It needs to crisp up but at the same time cook inside also.
- Remove them on absorbent paper. Leave them aside. Fry the lotus stem chips if you left some for garnish.
Cashew Onion Sauce
- On medium heat in a pan, saute onions until caramelized and browned and add cashews, green chilies, ginger, garlic, fennel seeds and saute for few more minutes. Once cooked, cool it down and blend it into a paste.
- In a deep pan on medium heat, add some ghee along with whole spices like cloves, cinnamon stick, bay leaf and sauté it for few seconds and immediately add the onion/cashew sauce. Add 1- 1 1/2 cup of water, depending on the consistency you want. Once the sauce is simmered down, add whisked yogurt, garam masala, kasuri methi leaves and cardamom powder. Turn off the heat.
- Once ready to serve, place the sauce in a serving platter, place koftas and add some more sauce and add cilantro and lotus stem chips to garnish. If you are adding pomegranate arils, then add those too. You can also add some cashews and sultanas roasted in ghee or butter on top.
- You can also add saffron diluted liquid in the sauce or on top for presentation -to show off the colors. Serve them with naan, rotis or steamed rice.
Notes
- Make sure all the kofta ingredients do not have moisture. I have used less cornstarch in binding, if you need to use more cornstarch if koftas are not holding their shape, add 1 tbsp at a time.
- While frying the koftas, add one to see it does not break down and hold its shape. Otherwise, all of them will start splitting and spoil the oil.
- Add Koftas just before serving. That way they have some texture to them.
- I like to store leftover koftas and sauce separately.