Malai ~ “cream”, Kofta ~ “dumpling”. This same sauce can be used to make a lot of dishes- just add to chicken or boiled vegetables. Or paneer: with a little cream and butter, you get Shahi Paneer. Or use it for Malai Kofta.

For sauce:
250g onions
1.5 tsp ginger garlic paste
200g tomatoes, pureed
1/4 tsp red chili powder
1 1/2 tsp meat masala
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp cinnamon mix (50g cinnamon sticks, 1/4 piece nutmeg, 20g green cardamom, crushed together)
1 1/2 tsp sugar (only for Malai Kofta)
2 serving spoons pumpkin seeds
2 serving spoons poppy seeds
handful of cashews
5 serving spoons oil
1/2 glass milk
For kofta:
4 medium skinned boiled mashed potatoes
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp corn starch
250g paneer
4 tsp coconut powder/dried coconut
1/4 tsp cinnamon mix
1 1/2 tsp sugar
handful raisins/cashews
1 spoon fresh cream

• Make onion paste: chop onions, cook in oil 8-10 minutes until brown. Add 1 cup water, simmer 10 minutes. Cool and blend.

• Make white paste: mix the seeds and cashews, add 1 cup water, soak 1/2 hour, puree.

• Make the sauce:

1. Heat oil. Add onion paste. Cook 2 minutes.

2. Add ginger garlic puree, cook 2 minutes.

3. Add all spices: red chili, meat masala, salt, garam masala, cinnamon mix, sugar. Cook 2 minutes until onil separates.

4. Add white paste. Cook 2 minutes on low until oil separates.

5. Add tomato puree. Cook 4 minutes.

6. Thin with milk (or stock, if adding meat), bring to boil.

• Make the kofta:

1. Mix paneer, coconut, cinnamon mix, sugar, raisins, cashews, cream into cheese balls

2. Mix potatoes, salt, cornstarch into balls

3. Roll a ball in cornflour, make it into a cup shape, stuff cheese inside, close it up, maybe add a bit more cornflour.

4. Deep fry for a short time, maybe 30 seconds to 1 minute.

Pour the sauce over the kofta. Awesome.

Source: Nisha at Taste of India cooking class, McLeod Ganj, India