My Versatile Vegetarian Filling to make Cutlets, Stuffed Paratha and Malai Koftas

I could have written three different posts for these three recipes but since the base is the same so I thought why not just include it all in one post.  I hope it is not too crowded and difficult to follow and I apologize in advance if it is.
I made this veggies based mix that I used to make Veggie cutlets, Stuffed paratha and Malai koftas.

First I will give you the recipe for the filling and cutlets and then for Parathas and Koftas.  Pictures are in same sequential order too.
From this filling I made 10 cutlets, filling for 16 parathas and 10 koftas.

Ingredients for veggie based mix:

• 2 cups of Edamame beans or green peas
• 1 long carrots
• 2 potatoes
• 8-10 mushrooms
• 1/2 head of small cabbage
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 1 yellow onion
• 1/2 slab of Paneer (about 8 oz)
• 1-2 Jalapeno peppers
• 1 small bunch of cilantro

• 2 cups of Panko or Bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup of water
• 3 tbl  spoons of oil
• 2 teaspoon of cumin seeds
• 1/4 teaspoon of asefetida (optional)
• Salt to taste
• Cayenne pepper to taste (1 teaspoon)
• Ground black pepper to taste (1/2 teaspoon)
• 1 teaspoon of cumin powder
• 1/2 teaspoon of garam masala (optional)
• 2 tbl spoons of mango powder

Method:

• Peel potatoes and carrots and chop them to small pieces.
• Cook carrots, potatoes pieces and edamame beans in water in microwave  for 25-30 min until tender or can cook them over stove or in pressure cooker.
• Once tender, drain all the water and let them cool.

• While these are cooking you can saute onions, garlic, mushroom, peppers and cabbage in following manner.

• Chop cabbage and mushroom it to small pieces.
• Crush garlic and slice jalapeno pepper.
• Chop onion in to small pieces.

• Heat oil in a pan, when oil is hot, add cumin seed, followed by asefoetia.
• Saute onion for few min, then add mushrooms, garlic and jalapeno pepper.
• Saute for few min.
• Add chopped cabbage and salt.
• Saute until cabbage if light brown and translucent.
• Turn the heat off.
• Add Panko or bread crumbs and let it cool.

• Add cooked cabbage, onion, mushroom, garlic, Panko and jalapeno mix to food processor and pulse grind until paste, 
• Empty the mix in a separate bowl.

• In same food processor bowl  grind cooked potatoes carrots and edamame to a coarse paste.
• Add little water and  chopped cilantro and mix well pulsing one or few more times in food processor.
• Empty this mix in the same  bowl as that of panko cabbage and mushroom mix.

• In the same food processor grind Paneer until  crumbled.

• Mix crumbled paneer with other ingredients in the bowl.
• Add salt and spices.
• Mix well until everything is well incorporated.  
• Now the filling is ready you can make cutlets from this or make stuffing for paratha and or make koftas.
• You can shape them in desired shape ahead of time and make the desired items next day.

• I  made the cutlets first and saved rest of the filling in the fridge to made the paratha next day  and Kofta following day.
• It saved time and we had different dishes every day.

Method to make Cutlets:

• These are not deep fried cutlets.
• You will need a flat pan or griddle and cooking oil spray for this. 
• Make round shaped patties and flatten them.
• Heat the griddle on stove on medium low heat.
• Spray lightly with cooking oil spray.
• Place the patties on the heated griddle and cook both side of cutlets until golden brown.
• Serve hot with chili garlic sauce or ketch up or any desired sauce.

Enjoy !!

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Stuffed Paratha

 A paratha (Hindi: पराठा) is an Indian flat-bread that originated in the Indian subcontinent, specifically in the Punjab. It is one of the most popular unleavened flat-breads in Indian cuisine, Pakistani cuisine and Bengali cuisine and is made by pan frying whole-wheat flour on a tava (griddle).

Parathas are usually stuffed with vegetables such as boiled potatoes, leaf vegetables, radishes or cauliflower and/or paneer (South Asian cheese). A paratha (especially a stuffed one) can be eaten simply with a blob of butter spread on top or chutney, a spicy sauce made from yogurt and fresh herbs, but it is best served with pickles and yogurt, or thick spicy curries of meat and vegetables. Some people prefer to roll up the paratha into a tube and eat it with tea, often dipping the paratha into the tea.

The paratha can be round, heptagonal, square or triangular. In the former, the stuffing is mixed with the kneaded flour and the paratha is prepared as roti is, but in the latter two, the peda (ball of kneaded flour) is flattened into a circle, the stuffing is kept in the middle and the flatbread is closed around the stuffing like an envelope.

Ingredients For Dough


* 2 cups Chapati/ Duram Wheat Flour (available at local Indian Grocer)

* 4 tablespoon vegetable oil

* 1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)

* 1/2 cup plain yogurt

* You will also need some extra flour + rice flour to flour the rolling surface.
* Water to make dough

Method to make the dough:
* Mix all of the above ingredients and make dough to roll-able consistency
* Kneed the dough for 2-3 min.
* Grease it with some oil.
* Set aside covered with wet cloth.

* Make golf ball or ping pong size of balls of filling and set aside.

Method to make Paratha:

* Divide the dough in slightly bigger size balls than that of filling.

* Take some flour and rice flour (one cup each) and mix well this is to flour the surface and the balls so they can be rolled easily.

* Roll each ball in to 5" circle and place the filling in the center.

* Fold the rolled circle on to filling, seal it and roll the stuffed ball in flour again.

* Roll it very gently to desired shape (I keep it simple and just roll them in round shape) and size. (Be careful while rolling so the filling does not come out)

* In the mean time heat tava (griddle) on med high heat
* When the tava/griddle is nicely heated, place the stuffed, rolled paratha on to the griddle, cook one side for about 1-2 min,
* You will need about 1/2  cup melted butter or vegetable shortening or oil in a cup to drizzle onto each parathas while cooking them on the tava/griddle.

* Flip it over and spread 1/2 teaspoon of vegetable shortening or butter on up side.

* Turn it with spatula cook for 1 min and again pour the vegetable shortening on the other side.

* Cook on a low heat until both sides are golden brown or to desired crispiness.

Repeat the process until all the dough and filling balls are done.

• Serve the paratha hot with Plain Yogurt or Boondi or Cucumber Raita (recipes on this blog) or and your favorite chutney or pickle.
• I served it with the red chili pickle that I had made earlier and also with plain yogurt drizzled with Sirracha seasoning mix.

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Malai Kofta

Ingredients for Kofta:

Rolled above filling in to oval shaped balls.
Vegetable Oil for deep frying

Heat the oil for deep frying in a fryer at 400 F

When oil is hot deep fry the oval shaped veggie filling balls.

When golden brown, take them out of fryer and drain them on paper towel.

Set aside while you make the gravy.

Ingredients for gravy:

• 1 large onion groud to fine paste
• 2-4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
• 3 table spoon of oil or butter
• 2 tsp of cumin seeds
• 1/8 teaspoon of asefoetida
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 dry red chili pods
• One 2" stick of cinnamon
• 2 pods of cardamom
• Curry leaves 1-2 sprig

• 2 cups of plain yogurt (can use sourcream)
• 1/2  cup unsalted roasted or unroasted cashew finely ground
• 1 1/2 cup of crucshed tomatoes or  tomato puree from 1 small can
• 3 tables spoon of coriander powder
• 1 teaspoon of cumin powder
• 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper or to taste
• 1 teaspoon of turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon of garam masala
• 1/2 teaspoon of ground black pepper

• 2 cups of water
• Salt to taste
• 3/4 teaspoon of sugar
• Chopped cilantro
• Heavy whipping cream if desired

Method:

• Heat oil in a pan.
• When oil is hot, add cumin seeds, when these crackle add bay leaves, chili pods, cinnamon sticks,  and cardamom pods.
• Stir for few seconds and add asefoetida and curry leaves.
• Add onion and saute until golden brown.

• Add garlic, saute for few min.
• Add crushed tomatoes or puree and cook for 2-3 min, 
• Add cashew powder.
• Cook for few min stirring in between.

• In the mean time add all the dry spice in yogurt and mix well until smooth.
• Add this to the onion tomato gravy on the stove and add water
• Cook the gravy for 3-5 min on low heat.
• Add salt to taste and sugar.
• You may drizzle the gravy with cream of desired

• Gravy is ready.
• Just before serving place the fried  koftas in a serving bowl and pour hot gravy on it.
• Or you may add the Kofta to the gravy but once you place kofta in to gravy do not stir too much, otherwise the kofta will break off and crumble.
• Garnish with chopped cilantra and may drizzle some cream if desired.
• Serve hot with Nan or Rice.

Enjoy !!

Recipes and Photographs by Surekha.
Paratha description source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paratha
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Text_of_Creative_Commons_Attribution-ShareAlike_3.0_Unported_License

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