Indian Kofta Meatball Curry

Indian Kofta Meatball Curry

Recipe from Buck, Buck, Moose: Recipes and Techniques for Cooking Deer, Elk, Antelope, Moose and Other Antlered Things

If you don’t have time to make the curry sauce from scratch, use store-bought Kashmiri curry in a jar.

Serves 4 to 6

Meatballs

1 ½ pounds finely ground venison

1 small onion, grated on a box grater

A 2-inch piece of ginger, minced and mashed into a rough puree

¼ cup chopped cilantro

1 tablespoon garam masala

2 teaspoons ground fennel seed

1 egg

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup chickpea flour (optional)

1 cup vegetable oil (optional)

Curry (or 2 jars of store-bought Kashmiri curry sauce in a jar)

A 3-inch piece of ginger, minced

1 onion, minced

2 small, hot chilies, such as cayenne, chopped

5 garlic cloves, minced

¼ cup clarified butter (ghee), mustard oil, or vegetable oil

One 6-ounce can of tomato paste

2 teaspoons garam masala

2 teaspoons curry powder or turmeric

½ teaspoon fenugreek (optional)

½ teaspoon cornstarch

½ cup plain, full-fat yogurt

If you’re using store-bought curry, get it simmering gently in a pot large enough to hold all the meatballs.

If you’re making your own curry, whisk the cornstarch with the yogurt, and set aside at room temperature.

Now you need to turn the ginger, onions, chiles, and garlic into a paste. You can do this in several ways. Most traditional would be to pound it into submission with a mortar and pestle, which is what I do. This melds flavors and really breaks down the fibers of all the ingredients. Your other option is to put everything in a blender with just enough water to get the blades to run normally. A food processor won’t do, as it won’t turn the vegetables into a paste. The blender method sounds easier, but it’s not, because if you put too much water into the mix, you’ll wreck the next step, which is cooking the paste in butter.

When you have the vegetables mashed into a paste, fry them in the ghee over medium-low heat for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Don’t let it brown. Mix in the tomato paste and turn the heat to medium. Fill the tomato paste can with water and stir that in. Stir in the garam masala, curry powder, and fenugreek, if using. Add enough water to make the curry into a fairly thin gravy, and bring it to a gentle simmer.

To make the meatballs, mix all the ingredients together, and form into balls the size of a walnut. You can either cook them entirely in the curry, or coat them in the chickpea flour and fry them in the oil. I prefer the latter. If you do fry them, roll the meatballs in the chickpea flour, and brown in the hot oil. Set them into the curry pot as you go.

When the last meatball goes into the curry, simmer everything for 10 minutes or so to make sure everything’s cooked through. Turn off the heat and when the curry stops bubbling, add the yogurt by folding it in; don’t stir to vigorously, otherwise it can break. If that happens, the dish will still be edible, but it won’t look nice. Serve with long-grain rice.