An amazingly easy to make Indian Meatballs dipped in fragrant fennel seeds flavoured sauce. Ready in 30 minutes with limited ingredients this meatballs curry goes great with plain boiled rice or bread!
There is something delicious and satisfying to eat firm and soft spicy meatballs in a creamy sauce.
The Indian word for meatballs or anything that resembles a ball shape and go into a curry is called ‘ Kofta’ derived from the Persian word.
This recipe is an Indian kofta curry recipe made with minced meat inspired by Kashmiri flavours.
For making this spicy Indian meatballs recipe you can use any type of mince meat.
I have used a mix of pork and beef, but you can make chicken meatballs, lamb meatballs or even use a vegetarian meatball option.
I am a fuss-free cook, which means convenience and taste take precedence over laborious and time consuming.
One of my must-have convenient and quick proteins other than fish and egg is mincemeat.
Besides mince meat is also good on your pocket and a brilliant non-veg treat when on a budget.
I love how quickly you can make a variety of meals with mince meat in minutes.
You have the option of making a homemade burger, meat loaf, meatballs, kebabs, curry, chilli, fillings for tacos, enchiladas and many more.
Meatballs cook easily and quickly.
Adding other ingredients such as herbs and spices to minced meat gives it added flavour and texture.
If you have not been using mincemeat then I strongly advise you to start keeping some in your freezer for stirring up tasty family-friendly meals to enjoy!
This is a question I asked myself once I discovered the convenience of cooking with mincemeat.
Below are tips to ensure you are buying good quality mince meat.
If you stick to modest portions and lean meat, you can enjoy the all the benefits.
There are many different recipes of meatball cooked in sauce.
The most popular of course is meatballs in tomato sauce.
However you can also make different sauce base like creamy white sauce, yogurt based sauce, pesto sauce and many more.
My common sense tell me that if there is a sauce that you can add chunky pieces of meat in then I see no reason why the meat pieces cant be replaced by meatballs!
Cooking meatballs in sauce allows the mince to absorb all the flavours from the sauce making it tender, succulent and fast to cook.
The ingredients list may look a bit extensive but it uses simple everyday ingredients which you may already have.
The only ingredient you may find difficult to buy are the fennel seeds. The easy solution is to substitute it with fennel bulb.
The main ingredients used are:
Spices needed to make spicy meatballs curry
If you are unable to find fennel seeds you can substitute it with fresh fennel bulb.
All you need to do is finely chop the bulb just like onions and add it after you fry the ginger, garlic and onions, before you add tomato puree.
This will allow the fresh fennel taste to become adsorbed into the sauce.
More fennel seeds substitutes and their benefits can be found here.
STEP 1 – Make curried meatballs
Add half of the fresh coriander leaves, cumin powder, salt and breadcrumbs to the mince meat and mix it well together. Roll them into balls and set aside for frying
STEP 2 – Frying the Meatballs
Heat oil in a pan and add lemon shaped portions of meatballs to warm oil. Cook till it changes in colour turning it from time to time. Set aside to use later in the sauce
STEP 3 – Make fennel and cumin seed powder
In a mortal pestle grind fennel seeds and cumin seeds to a coarse powder and set aside. If you wish you can lightly dry roast the spice before hand in a pan.
STEP 4 – Make the spicy fennel sauce
2.Add the onion ginger garlic paste to the pan. Saute until it becomes caramel in colour and the raw smell of the aromates go away and oil starts to separate out of the onion mixture.
3. Now add the tomatoes to the onion and continue to saute till much of the moisture evaporates. Add tomato sauce, chilli powder and garam masala powder to the pan and saute for a minute further.
4. Once you see the moisture from the tomatoes have evaporated and oil starts to separate out, add water and bring to boil. Add the pre fried meatballs to the sauce, cumin and fennel powder and cover and simmer on low for 10 – 15 mins. Add cream at the end and remove from heat.
5. Sprinkle fresh coriander leaves and serve Indian meatballs curry in fennel sauce with plain boiled rice or Indian flat bread.
Avail the convenience to get a range of spices, special ingredients and regular grocery delivered straight to your door without any hassle.
UK and Rest of Europe Residents – British Corner Shop, the official partners of Waitrose UK with economic worldwide delivery
US Residents – Thrive Market ( Get 20% off with your first 3 orders )
Mince Meat (any kind or mixed)- 250 gms |
Onions - 1, chopped |
Ginger - 1/2 inch, minced |
Garlic - 4 pods, minced |
Tomato puree - 1/2 cup |
Tomato sauce - 2 tbsp |
Cream - 3 tbsp |
Coriander leaves - a large handful |
Breadcrumbs - 3 tbsp |
Oil - 1/4 cup (most for pan frying the meat balls and rest for making sauce) |
Salt to taste |
SPICES USED |
Cumin powder - 1 tsp |
Cumin seeds - 1 tbsp |
Fennel seeds - 2 tbsp |
Chilli powder - 1 tsp |
Green Cardamom - 2 |
Black Cardamom- 2 |
Bayleaves - 1 |
Garam Masala powder - 1 tsp |
LEAVE A REPLY HERE
Your email address will not be published.