Inspired by an Emma Knowles recipe in a recent edition of Australian Gourmet Traveller.
I’m always a little nervous about yoghurt splitting in cooked dishes but in this case the results were just so tasty! And I loved the tangy flavour and chunky texture of the curry sauce.
My Irishman even said it was the tastiest thing he’d eaten in ages. And he doesn’t say such things lightly…
Yoghurt & Kofta Curry
Ingredients
- 2 onions peeled and sliced
- 450 g ground (minced) lamb (1lb ) or beef
- 3 teaspoons garam masala
- 250 g Greek yoghurt (9oz)
- 1 bunch coriander (cilantro) cilantro
- cauliflower ‘rice’ or steamed rice, to serve
Instructions
- Place onion and a little oil in a medium saucepan. Cover and cook on a medium heat until the onion is soft. Stir every now and then to make sure it doesn’t brown too much.
- While the onion is cooking, season the meat well and roll into little bite sized balls.
- When the onion is soft, add the garam masala and cook for a minute or so. Add yoghurt. Stir then add the meatballs.
- Pick a few of the coriander leaves to serve and reserve them. Chop the remaining coriander leaves and stems and add to the pot.
- Bring the meatballs to a simmer and cook for 10-15 minutes, or until just cooked through.
- Taste sauce and season with salt and pepper. Serve meatballs and sauce on a bed of cauli ‘rice’ or steamed rice with the reserved coriander leaves on top.
Variations
pantry-friendly – yoghurt = coconut milk. Cauliflower ‘rice’ = frozen greens or cauli. Skip herbs or replace with chopped nuts.
extra flavour – drizzle over a curry oil to serve (to make the oil warm 2 teaspoons curry powder and 1 chopped green chilli in 1/4 cup olive oil in a small saucepan until hot to touch).
curry leaves – if you have access to fresh curry leaves, add a handful to simmer in the sauce.
paleo (grain, legume & dairy-free) – replace yoghurt with coconut yoghurt or cashew yoghurt and serve with the cauli ‘rice’ (raw grated cauliflower).
vegetarian / vegan – replace meat with canned or home cooked chickpeas or lentils. You’ll need about 450g (1lb) cooked chickpeas. OR try these lentil balls. Tofu would also be good here.
different meat – feel free to use chicken, turkey or even pork mince.
different herbs / spices – you could use mint instead of coriander (cilantro) and your favourite curry powder if you don’t have any garam masala. Hot heads might like to add some chilli.
more substantial (carb lovers) – serve with steamed rice or cooked rice noodles.
more substantial (low carb) – serve with some cashews on top.
more veg – add frozen peas or snowpeas at the end.
Waste Avoidance Strategy
onion – will keep in the pantry for months. Best if in a dark corner in a brown paper bag.
lamb mince (ground lamb) or beef – freeze it.
garam masala / rice – keep them in the pantry.
yoghurt – usually has a shelf life of a month or so. Otherwise, have it for another meal like breakfast! Don’t freeze.
coriander (cilantro) – best to use for another meal. Can be frozen but will wilt when defrosted.
cauliflower (whole) – will keep in a plastic bag in the fridge for weeks. To keep for longer, chop into florettes and pop in the freezer. If you have time, grating the cauli before freezing will make life easier so you can just defrost and serve.
Prepare Ahead
Yes! Just cook as per the recipe but keep the rice and coriander separately. Will keep in the fridge for 2 weeks or can be frozen. To serve, bring back almost to a simmer so the sauce doesn’t split.
Add to my Old Favourite Recipes
Made this tonight and had the same experience and reaction as Jule. I was also concerned about trying to stir in the meatballs, when they were uncooked. The solution I’ve come up with is to bake the meatballs and add them after the yogurt is just warm. That way the meatballs will maintain their integrity, there will be much less fat in the finished dish, and it will look more appetizing.
It’s my first week in the meal plan and I made this last night. Yes, when I added the yogurt it went sort of…. ? well I guess it “split” like you mentioned. It tasted OK but looked a bit unappetizing. Any suggestions, or is this just what happens…?
It’s what happens when you simmer yoghurt the protein coagualtes (forms little curds).
If you really don’t want that to happen, you can cook the meatballs in the pan with a little water and then stir the yoghurt in just before serving (warm enough so it’s warm but don’t boil).
Or you can ‘stabilize’ yoghurt by mixing it with cornflour – I did this once years ago and it worked but was a but fiddly and so these days I’m happy to have the curdy texture.
If you wanted to try it, just whisk 2 teaspoons corn flour (corn starch) into the cold yoghurt then use as per the recipe – let me know if you try it.
Jx
Made this tonight! Big thumbs up. I didn’t have garam masala so I added a little cinnamon, cloves and cardamom to a different Indian spice blend (rogan gosh). Will make again.
Yum yum Ellie!