Cabbage Kofta Curry

I don't think I've ever in my life fried as much as I do now, especially since I gave away my fancy deep fryer.  I used to do real fries in the deep fryer but then realized they taste so much better out of the oven, and there is also much less clean up.  The reason I despised the deep fryer so much was most probably because of the clean up, especially since the fries are not for me.

So why do I keep frying up Indian snacks and dishes? 

Well, for one, it's actually worth it, and for two, when I fry with my wok, I store the filtered oil in a jar and wash the wok right away.. So there is literally no messy sticky clean up, and best of all I don't get yelled at, and I have more space on my countertop for more enjoyable things such as rolling out rotis or pizza dough.

Aah it feels nice to let that out.

So today I prepared some cabbage kofta curry which I will be eating tomorrow since I'm invited to a dinner party tonight.  I'm not complaining, but there is some sort of tragedy in making a delicious vegetarian meal full of flavor and then storing it without indulging... And then eating Raclette instead.

Am I a bad person for feeling this?
I stole this from VegRecipesofIndia

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

Kofta:

3 cups (240g) finely diced savoy or regular cabbage

1/4 tsp turmeric

1/4 tsp chili powder

1/4 tsp garam masala

1 tsp ajwain (carom seeds)

Pinch of hing (asafoetida)

Pinch of baking soda

Pinch of salt

1 tbsp plain yogurt + more if needed

1 cup besan (chickpea flour)

Few tbsp water if needed

Oil for frying

Curry:

2 tbsp oil

1 inch piece of cinnamon

3 cloves

1 black cardamom (I didn't have this..too expensive apparently)

2 green cardamoms

1 bay leaf

1 large chopped onion

1/2 inch piece ginger, grated

3 cloves garlic, grated

3 medium tomatoes, chopped

1/4 tsp turmeric

1/4 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp coriander powder

1-2 cups of water as needed

1/2 tsp kasoori methi (dried fenugreek leaves)

2 tbsp cream or yogurt

Chopped cilantro for garnish

This is a really long list of things, but if you're like me, you magically have everything on hand except maybe the cabbage, but it's in season so go buy one.

Directions
1.  Make the kofta.  In a mixing bowl, mix the cabbage with the spices, salt, and 1 Tbsp yogurt.  Let sit for 30 minutes or more.  This step extracts the moisture from the cabbage.
2.  Add the baking soda and chickpea flour and mix well.  If it needs more moisture, add some more yogurt.  If your individual sized yogurt is finished and it still needs more moisture, add a bit of water.  How to know if it needs more moisture?  Try to make a ball in your hand with the batter.  If it just holds together by itself, it's perfect.  If it completely fall apart when you let go, add a little water until you reach that consistency.
3.  Heat some sunflower oil to medium-high heat.  Drop small balls of batter into the oil and fry until golden all over.  Remove from oil onto paper towels and set aside while you prepare the curry.

4.  Make the curry.  Heat the 2 tbsp oil in a wok and add the cardamom, bay leaf, cinnamon, and cloves.  Fry until fragrant.
5.  Add the onions with a sprinkle of salt and cook until translucent, then add the ginger and garlic.  Cook a few minutes until the raw smell dissipates.
6.  Add the tomatoes and cook until they become mushy, then add the turmeric, chili powder, and coriander powder.
7.  Take this lovely mixture off heat, and pass through a food processor (or magic bullet).  If you taste it at this point you may just faint of pleasure.  It's really a curry I'll be using for other things in the future.  It's just heavenly.
8.  Place the blended mixture back in the wok and add 2 cups of water.  Bring to a boil, then simmer until it reaches the consistency you like.  I seriously didn't time it and I wanted this curry thick.  Mind the fact that it will thicken with time.
9.  Add the methi and a bit of cream.  Taste and adjust the seasoning if you need to.  I didn't need to.
10.  Add in the fried cabbage kofta and heat through.

Serve garnished with cilantro (if you have it) and make it pretty next to other pretty things.

From left to right:

Cabbage Kofta Curry

Roti

Palak Paneer

Tadka Chana-Toor Daal