Spinach meatball curry

Spinach meatball curry ❤️ – recipe taken from ‘30 minute Mowgli’.

Anyone who knows me knows that I love the chain Mowgli. Everything about the chain, recipes, ethos & brand values fascinates me. I love recreating their dishes and recipes all written up by Nisha Katona who dream of opening this restaurant became a reality now with an amazing brand.

This dish is based around a beautiful, wholesome thick gravy which created an outstanding dish of flavours which was just what the doctor ordered after this hellish week. The lamb meatballs are a different take on the popular lamb kofta dish.
The kitchen is my sanctuary, it felt good creating the aromas, mixing, chopping, simmering…..and I was away with it all.
The recipe, method and ingredients were simple, but wow it packed flavour, just the escapism that was needed, during this small moment, nothing else mattered to me.

Sadly the week started with the passing of my auntie (my mums sister) early Monday morning. The general welfare now of my mum is a concern and worry (again this goes a lot deeper due to recent events)
Issues with work and not happy with recent events (not saying too much but everything is logged)
Another appointment at the doctors, more blood tests Monday to try and understand what’s happening inside.
Getting frustrated with back issues.

Great trying to recreate this dish on a Friday night to chill and relax.

Ingredients-

100ml of vegetable oil

2 onions roughly chopped

2 heaped tsp of ginger paste

2 heaped tsp of garlic paste

3 tbsp of garam masala

1 tsp of turmeric

1/4 tsp of chilli powder

1 tsp of salt

1 tsp of sugar

1 tin of chopped tomatoes (400g)

400ml of boiling water

100g (supermarket small bag) of spinach

Handful of chopped coriander

For the meatballs –

500g of minced lamb

1 tbsp of ground cumin

1 tbsp of ground coriander

1 tsp of salt

Method

Add the meatball ingredients into a mixing bowl.

Kneed the ingredients together with your hands ensuring everything is mixed well.

Once you’re happy that everything is mixed well, set aside to start building your sauce.

Add the vegetable oil to a heavy based pan. Once hot add your chopped onions. Gently fry them for 5 / 6 minutes until they are nice and translucent.

Once happy with the onions, add in the garlic & ginger pastes. Give the pan a good stir mixing well. Heat the pastes through for another couple of minutes.

Now it’s time to start building the flavours. Adding the garam masala, turmeric and chilli powder.

Mix the pan well ensuring the onion mix is coated well.

Add the salt and sugar, again mixing well.

Now add the chopped tomatoes……

Followed by the boiling water……

Mix the sauce well and bring to a rolling simmer. Whilst the sauce is coming to a simmer it’s time to start building your army of meatballs.

Take heaped teaspoon size pieces of the spiced meat mixture and roll these in your hands to form small balls. Do not make the balls too big as this will slow down the cooking process.

Once the sauce has come to a simmer whilst making the meatballs I have it an additional 4 minutes of simmering time just thicken the sauce.

Add the meatballs to the sauce and simmer for 10 minutes. This will obviously cook the meatballs but the lamb will start to release flavours back into the sauce.

After 10 minutes, add in the spinach. Spinach makes me laugh, it thinks it’s so hard and could fight anyone the way it tries to resist the heat…..but it eventually gives in. Simmer the sauce for another 5 minutes.