Lauki Kofta

Serves: 4

Ingredients:
1 small lauki (bottleguard)
1 1/2 medium onion diced
1 1/2 medium tomato diced
1 tsp ginger grated
1 tsp garlic cloves grated
1 bay leaf
1 black cardamom
2 green cardamoms
2 cloves
1 slit green chili
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp ajwain (carom seeds)
Pinch of heeng (asafoetida)
2 tbsp coriander powder
1 tsp red chili powder
1 tsp garam masala powder
1 tbsp Madras curry powder
1 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp kasoori methi (fenugreek leaves)
4 tbsp of besan (chickpea flour)
1/4 cup of coconut milk or fresh cream
1/4 cup of cilantro finely chopped
Oil for frying
Salt to taste

Directions:

Preparing Kofta:
Wash and peel lauki (bottleguard). Grate the lauki, and mix a tsp of salt, leave it for 10 minutes. Now squeeze excess water from the grated lauki. Add 1 tsp of red chili powder, salt, ajwain, and besan to the lauki. Mix it well and make medium sized balls. Heat up oil, and fry the kofta balls until its deep brown in color.

Preparing Curry:
Heat up oil in a pan, add cumin, heeng, bay leaves, black cardamoms, green cardamoms, cloves, and green 1 chili. Let it crackle, then add onions. When onions are translucent, add grated ginger and garlic. Saute for a few seconds, add the spices - turmeric, coriander, red chili powder, garam masala powder, and curry powder. Add about 2 tbsp of water so the spices don't burn. Cook for a few seconds then add the tomatoes. Add salt, then cover and cook until the tomato is fully cooked. Add tomato sauce to make the curry thicker, let it simmer. Add about 3/4 cup of water to the pan and let it boil. Add coconut milk or fresh cream, let it simmer. Add sugar and kasoori methi to the curry, and mix it well. Add kofta to the curry, garnish with cilantro and turn off the heat. Serve with rice, roti, or naan.