The royal dish from Punjab

I know Cmdr. Aulukh of the Indian Navy since my school days and our friendship had only grown with time. He married a Tamilian and is now settled in Chennai. This time, the visit to Aulukhs’ farm on ECR to rediscover Punjabi food from the bygone era was very exciting for my friend Devi and I. 

Aulukh had been a naval officer decorated for his bravery, and now his passion and interest are raising cattle and growing vegetables and fruits. He invested his time in rediscovering the history of Punjabi food and how it had come to stay as part of Chennai’s popular cuisine. After making us comfortable under a shady old tree, Aulukh served cold tender coconut water. A well laid out table was visible and he went on to explain why and how the star dish of the day, malai kofta came into being. His wife, Geeta, assisted him in cooking as all the main preparations were done by Aulukh himself.

He started narrating the story by describing the place where his ancestors used to live — a quiet village near the Attari border where pieces of Amritsar and Lahore sit side by side fenced with army bunkers now, and a sturdy jamun tree — half of which belongs to India and the other half to Pakistan. Pul Kanjiri is a heritage site where Maharaja Ranjit Singh stopped to rest while travelling with his troops. The aroma of spices and marigold flowers always pervaded the air there. Chef Gurpreet Singh, his grandfather, would lay out a lavish lunch for all visitors at the historic Sarovar, a little over a kilometer away from now the Pakistani land. It was built during the Maharaja’s rule.

The menu was a surprising reflection of cross-border influence, especially malai kofta dish brought back the soul into regional Indian cuisine. Turning to Mahabharata, King Yudhisthira is said to have fed 10,000 scholars with curries and gravies with nuts and milk and with balls made of ground herbs and meat — the equivalent to modern kofta. 

Sushrutha Samhita mentions meatballs made of ground meat and was termed pishtha. In Indian cuisine, koftas are normally cooked in a spiced gravy or curry and sometimes simmered with hard-boiled eggs. 

There are many variations of the kofta dish, but the most favourite is the mughlai malai kofta, introduced during Akbar’s reign. Scholars, warriors and minstrels carried the recipe all over India and to the coastal regions in the south, which adopted the dish with changes, including the local spices and vegetables.

Malai kofta travelled from Punjab to the south to become a hot favourite and be termed as one of the top dishes of Punjabi cuisine. Thus on a Sunday afternoon, with seas in the background and a picnic under a huge tree on a well laid out farm, we ate the best malai kofta, with hot tandoori rotis and baingan bharta. Lassi and kulfi followed the sumptuous lunch. 

Aulukh belongs to the new tribe of men, who take pride in not only cooking but managing the kitchen perfectly. You can also cook this delicious rich Mughlai Punjabi dish at home. 

Gravy: Fresh cream: 50 gms | khoya: 25 gms | Paneer: 30 gms | Milk: big cup | Cashew nuts: 50 gms | White pepper powder: 3 tsp | Sugar: 21/2 tsp

Grated ginger: 2 tsp | Garlic: 1 tsp | Onions: 1/2 cup ground into paste | Tomato puree: 1/2 cup | Chilli powder: 1 tsp | Turmeric: 1/2 tsp| Badi jeera: 1/4 tsp | Nutmeg powder: 1/4 tsp | Turmeric powder: 1/2 tsp| Garlic crushed: 1 tsp | Cinnamon: 1 | Cloves: 6 | Green cardamoms: 6 | Star anise: 1 | Salt to taste  | Pure cows ghee: 1/2 cup

Kofta: Khoya: 50 gms | Paneer: 50gms | Potatoes: 5  | Cashew nuts: 25 gms | Raisins: 25 gms | Green chillies chopped fine: 5 | Ginger grated: 1/2 tsp | Coriander chopped: 1/4 cup  | Cumin seeds: 1 tsp |Badi jeera: 1/4 tsp | Salt to taste

Garnish:  Fresh cream: 1 tbsp | Grated paneer: 1 tbsp | Chopped coriander: 1 tbsp

Method

Koftas:

 Boil the potatoes, peel and smash them.

 Powder the cumin, coriander seeds and badi jeera. 

 Mix together all the ingredients except raisins and cashews. 

 Take a ping-pong ball sized dough in hand. 

 Flatten it, place 2-3 cashews and raisins in the centre and shape into a ball. 

 Repeat the same for the remaining dough. Keep aside. 

Gravy: 

 Roast the cinnamon, star anise, cardamom, badi jeera, nutmeg and cloves together. 

 Dry grind and keep aside.

 Grind the ginger and garlic. 

 Mix onion paste, ginger and garlic. 

 Wet grind all the other ingredients, except ghee and cream to a paste. 

 Heat ghee in a skillet, fry the onion, ginger and garlic till brown.

 Add powdered spices and fry for 2-3 seconds. 

 Add chilly and turmeric powder. 

 Add the other ground paste and stir for 5 mins.

 Add tomato puree and simmer on low for 15 minutes.

 Add 1 cup of water and simmer for 5 min. Keep stirring. 

 Add the fresh cream after beating it a little and stir for 3 mins.  

 In a separate saucepan heat ghee and fry the koftas.

 Keep it on low fire and add the koftas one by one.

 Simmer for a few minutes. 

 Switch off and garnish with grated paneer cream and coriander.

 Serve hot with rotis, parathas or naan.

1Keep coriander leaves in a muslin (cheese) cloth bag in the refrigerator. They will remain fresh for a longer time. 

2Remove the stems of green chillies while storing them. This will help them to stay fresh for longer. 

3After peeling onions, cut them into half and soak in water for about 10 minutes before cutting to avoid tears.