Lauki ke Kofte

Sharing the best lauki kofta recipe you’ll ever find, with important tips n tricks on making soft melt in the mouth koftas!
It’s another fantastic recipe from Mom which will give you fool-proof results every single time. A little involved and time consuming…but I assure you, worth every bit of time you will spend making it! 🙂

For the kofta mix…
Wash and peel 2 medium size laukis.

Grate laukis using a medium size grater.

Squeeze out excess water using a wire strainer.

Add salt and leave aside for a few minutes…then squeeze out even more water. Reserve this water, do not throw away, it’s full of nutrients.

Now to the squeezed grated lauki (about 3 cups) add red chilli pwdr, amchoor, garam masala, minced green chillies, grated ginger, 1 heaped tbsp cream or thick dahi and about 3 tbsp besan. Taste and adjust salt as needed.

Mix together..all ingredients. The mix will become slightly wet, but resist the temptation to add too much besan or your koftas will become hard and dry on frying!

Carefully scoop mix into fingers and start to form into small balls.

Frying the Koftas with important tips…
While frying, make sure the oil is hot when you drop the koftas in..or they might fall apart and disintegrate. Once your oil becomes hot, drop one kofta, in…to see if it holds together. If in-spite of the hot oil, it starts to disintegrate. Scoop out of oil and discard. Add a tbsp more besan to the rest of your mix and then make your koftas.
Once you drop the koftas in the oil, fry in medium hot oil, using a fork to stir and turn koftas gently.

For the tomato khuskhus gravy (no onion-garlic)
Heat oil add jeera and allow to splutter.
Follow with 1 tsp ground khus khus and cook for 30 seconds.

Add 2 tsp grated ginger, sauté for a few seconds. Add 3-4 medium tomatoes (depending on how sour they are) puréed, haldi, salt, red chilli pwdr, garam masala and sauté.
Add 1 heaped tbsp cream/malai and sauté till masala leaves oil.

Then add enough water (I use reserved lauki water as well) to create a very thin gravy and simmer for 3-4 minutes.

As the koftas soak up a lot of gravy, it’s important that the gravy be very thin at this stage.

When ready to serve…. Heat gravy, add koftas and simmer for 2-3 minutes…just enough to heat through.
Do not overcook or you might break the delicate koftas!
Serve garnished with freshly chopped dhania.

For quick gravy using onion and tomato masala
Take 1 cup basic onion tomato masala..

and grind smooth using a blender.

Heat oil add jeera, 1 tsp ground khus khus (optional) and cook for 30 seconds

Add the ground onion tomato masala along with haldi, salt, red chilli pwdr, garam masala and cook for 2-3 minutes.

Then add water (I use reserved lauki water as well) to create a thin gravy.

When ready to serve…. Heat gravy

And add koftas and simmer for 2-3 minutes. Do not overcook or you might break the delicate koftas!

Serve along with soft rotis or jeera rice.