Masale Ke Kofte: meatballs in a fennel and ginger curry

Meatballs with fennel

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons fennel seeds
• 600g lean minced lamb
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely grated
• Salt, to taste
• 2 tablespoons sunflower oil
• 2 medium onions, finely chopped
• 2.5cm piece fresh root ginger, skin scraped
• 1 fresh green chilli
• 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
• 1 teaspoon garam masala
• 3 tablespoons natural, low-fat yoghurt

Method

• Place the fennel seeds in a small frying pan and dry-roast them over a low heat until they start to darken. Tip them into a mortar and grind to a powder.
• Combine the minced lamb, garlic, salt and half the roasted fennel powder in a mixing bowl and form into cherry-sized meatballs.
• To make the curry sauce, heat the oil in a heavy-based saucepan and fry the onions over a high heat until soft. Finely chop the ginger and chillies and add to the pan. Continue cooking for 1 minute, and then transfer the mixture to a blender and blitz to a fine purée with about 4–5 tablespoons water. Add the turmeric, garam masala and the rest of the dry-roasted fennel powder.
• Meanwhile, heat a non-stick frying pan with a lid over a medium heat and arrange the meatballs inside. Add the mixture from the blender, thinning it if necessary with enough water to make it pouring consistency. Season with salt.
• Bring to the boil, turning the meatballs carefully to make sure they are sealed on all sides. Reduce the heat, cover with a lid and simmer for about 15 minutes, or until the meatballs are cooked through. Take off the heat and stir in the yoghurt.

Preparation time 10 minutes Cooking time 30 minutes

Extracted from: Healthy Indian In Minutes Monisha Bharadwaj (Kyle Cathie, £14.99) with photography by Georgia Glynn-Smith.