Shola and Kofta in Korma Sauce

Hello again! I have really been neglecting my blog lately and I apologize. School has been taking up a lot all of my time lately. However, today's post should make up for it!

Last year I had three beautiful roommates all of whom also enjoyed cooking. Lucky for me, one of them was Susan.

Susan's parents are from Afghanistan so she introduced me to the delicious world of Afghan food. This recipe was my favorite. I convinced Susan to come over with her adorable dog Gus and show me how to make Shola and Kofta in Korma Sauce! Susan also has her own blog, www.avoidingaverage.com, which I recommend you check out! I spent an entire morning last week reading every single one of her posts. It's that good!

Now, unfortunately I was too excited to start cooking to make an ingredients photo, so to make up for it, here's a photo of my current roommate, Amy with Susan's dog Gus!

For Sholah you will need: 3 tbsp olive oil, 1 small yellow onion (cut into thin strips), 2 tbsp tomato paste, 1.5 cups medium grain rice, 1.5 cups mung beans (if you're using whole mung beans, soak them overnight), 4 1/2 cups water, 2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp black, pepper, 1 tsp ground coriander, and 1/4 tsp dill weed.

For Kofta you will need: 1/2 cup cilantro, 1 medium yellow onion, 1 lb ground beef, 1/2 tsp coriander, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp pepper.

For Korma Sauce you will need: 3 tbsp olive oil, 1 small onion (cut into thin strips), 4 tbsp tomato paste (or whatever is left in the can), and 2 cups water.

First, let's get the Kofta (or meatballs) ready. Grab an onion and cut it into chunks.

Toss it in the food processor.

Along with the onion, throw in the 1/2 cup of cilantro.

Give it a whir! Don't throw the food processor in the sink yet. We'll use it again soon.

Toss the onion mixture into a medium bowl.

Throw in the ground beef...

1/2 tsp of coriander...

And 1/2 tsp each of salt and pepper.

Thoroughly mix everything together with your hands. This is my favorite part.

Form 1.5" balls by rolling the meat mixture between your hands. Place them on a plate and set aside.

Now let's start the Shola and Korma!

Heat 3 Tbsp of olive oil in each of 2 large pots.

Cut two small onions into thin strips and divide the strips evenly between the two pots.

Give them a stir and allow them to brown.

For the Korma, take the onions out of the pot and blend them in the food processor. (I told you we would use it again!)

Return the onions to the Korma pot.

In the Shola pot, add 2 Tbsp of tomato paste and stir it around.

Add 4 Tbsp (or what's left from a small can) of tomato paste to the Korma pot.

Stir it around.

Add 2 cups of water to the Korma pot and give it a stir.

Add in 1 tsp of coriander...

1 tsp salt...

and 1/2 tsp of black pepper. Stir it up!

Now, place the Kofta in the Korma sauce in a single layer...

Like dees! If the sauce doesn't quite cover the meatballs, add in some more water.

Throw a lid on it and allow to simmer until the meatballs are cooked through, about 15-20 minutes.

Meanwhile in the Shola pot, add in 4 1/2 cups of water and 1.5 cups of uncooked medium grain rice.

Throw in 1.5 cups of mung beans as well.

Add in 2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper, and 1 tsp ground coriander.

Give it a big stir and reduce the heat to a simmer.

Throw the lid on the pot and allow to cook for 20 minutes, or until the rice and beans are cooked through.

The Shola will look like this when it has finished cooking. Add in the 1/4 tsp of dill weed and give it a stir.

To plate it up, add in a big scoop of shola and top with kofta, making sure to get plenty of korma sauce! Top it with some plain yogurt, lime juice, and fresh cilantro and you're in Afghan food heaven!

This recipe is already pretty easy, but if you put one person in charge of one pot and one person in charge of another (which is what we did) it becomes extra easy!

Susan also sent me the nutrition facts for this recipe:

Nutrition Facts

Serving Size 508 g

Amount Per Serving

Calories  640 Calories from Fat  178

% Daily Value*

Total Fat  19.7g 30%

Saturated Fat  4.1g 20%

Cholesterol  68mg 23%

Sodium  1053mg 44%

Total Carbohydrates  76.5g 25%

Dietary Fiber  10.7g 43%

Sugars  7.1g

Protein  39.8g

Vitamin A 8% • Vitamin C 18% Calcium 10% • Iron 113%

Nutrition Grade A-

* Based on a 2000 calorie diet

I hope you enjoy Susan's family recipe as much as I do!

Shola and Kofta in Korma Sauce

Serves: 6

Ingredients:

Shola:

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion, cut into thin strips
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1.5 cups medium grain rice
• 1.5 cups mung beans
• 4 1/2 cups water
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1/4 tsp dill weed

Kofta

• 1/2 cup cilantro
• 1 medium yellow onion
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/2 tsp coriander
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper

Korma:

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 small onion, cut into thin strips
• 4 tbsp tomato paste (or whatever is left in the can)
• 2 cups water
• 1 tsp coriander
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper

Instructions:

1.  If using whole mung beans, soak overnight
2. Start with kofta by cutting medium onion into quarters and placing in food processor with cilantro. Let it chop up for about a minute or until there are no more big chunks.
3. Put onion/cilantro mixture into a medium mixing bowl with ground beef. Add coriander, salt, and pepper. Mix together with hands.
4. Form 1.5" balls with your hands making sure they're nice and compact. Place on a plate and set aside.
5. Heat 3 tbsp of oil each in two pots over medium-high heat. Cut onions for korma and shola into long thin strips. Put onions into both pots and cook until slightly browned. 
6. For shola, add 2 tbsp tomato paste and mix with onions. Add about 4 1/2 cups of water and stir until well combined. Add salt, pepper, and coriander, and bring up to a low boil.
7. For the korma pot, remove the cooked onions and blend until onions are mashed. Place back into pot. Add remaining tomato paste from can and mix together. Add 2 cups of water, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp coriander, and 1/2 tsp black pepper and stir. Carefully add kofta into the pot. Reduce heat to medium low, cover, and let it cook for about 15-20 minutes.
8. Once the water in the shola pot comes to a boil, add rice and mung beans. Stir, reduce heat to medium-low, and cover. Cook for about 20 minutes, stirring frequently. Add more water if it gets too dry. 
9. When shola is cooked (should be soft with an oatmeal-like consistency), turn off heat and add dill weed. Mix well. 
10. Serve shola with kofta & korma. Additionally, you can add ~1tbsp plain yogurt and 1 tsp lime juice to give it an extra kick of flavor.

Shepherd's Pie

Shepherd's pie is one of my favorite comfort foods.

I hate winter weather, but winter food is the best. Soups, casseroles, stews, ... I love them all.

I made this for a bunch of my friends from grad school one night and everyone ate it up, so the amount of food in the pictures is double the amount in my recipe. Sorry for the confusion.

You will need: 1.5 lbs of ground beef, 1 large onion, 1 clove of garlic, 1 large carrot, 1 cup of frozen peas, 1 Tbsp of corn starch, 1-2 cups beef broth, 1/2 cup of red wine, 1 Tbsp fresh rosemary, 1 Tbsp fresh thyme, 2 Tbsp fresh Italian parsley, 3/4 cup grated Parmesan,  2.5 lbs of red potatoes, 2 Tbsp butter, 1/2-1 cup of half and half, 1 bay leaf and salt and pepper, to taste.

Dice the large onion.

Mince up the garlic.

Start browning the ground beef in a large saucepan.

Add the onions and garlic.

Stir everything around and mash it up until the beef is browned and crumbled.

In the meantime, wash and dice the potatoes and throw them into a large pot...

Cover the potatoes in water...

And bring them to a boil. I like to add the salt at this point. I'm not sure why.

Dice up a carrot...

And throw it in with the beef. I swear my carrots are normal. I just haven't gotten the hang of making them appear that way in photos.

Now pour in 1/2 cup of red wine. Let the liquid reduce.

Mince 1 Tbsp fresh rosemary...

Pull 1 Tbsp of leaves off the stem of the thyme and give them a rough chop...

And chop 2 Tbsp of fresh parsley.

Add them to the beef mixture...

Along with the bay leaf.

Now pour in 1 cup of beef stock and let the mixture simmer. If it gets too dry, pour in more stock.

While the meat mixture is simmering, your potatoes should be fork tender so drain them...

And pour them back into the pot.

Add 2 Tbsp of butter...

And 1/2 a cup of half and half.

Mash!! If the mixture is too thick to mash, add more half and half. But be careful. You want the potatoes to be really thick.

Now grate 3/4 cup of parmesan...

And stir it into the potatoes. Check the potatoes for seasoning. Then eat 3 spoonfuls because potatoes are delicious.

Look how thick! That's exactly how you want them.

Now back to the meat! Mix together 1 Tbsp of corn starch and 2 Tbsp of beef broth until there are no lumps of corn starch. Then slowly pour the mixture into the meat while stirring constantly. This makes for a nice thick sauce. Unfortunately, I needed 2 hands for the corn starch part so I didn't have a hand to take a photo. Then throw in 1 cup of frozen peas.

Look at the pretty colors! Now is a good time to play Marco-Polo with the bay leaf and take it out.

Now if you want to go for individual servings, scoop some of the meat mixture into a ramekin...

And throw on some mashed potatoes.

Now use a spoon to make lots of peaks and valleys in the potatoes.

Now throw the ramekins in the oven under the broiler for a few minutes until the peaks brown like this!

If you don't want to go the individual route, do the same thing in a large oven safe dish, which is what I did when my friends came over. I had about 10 people over and I only own 4 ramekins.

Am I good at math or what?

Yum! This is one of my favorite kinds of meals to make because it's all in one. You don't have to worry about side dishes.

A perfect winter meal to share with my fellow classmates.

Shepherd's Pie

Serves: 5

Ingredients:

• 1.5 lbs of ground beef
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1 clove of garlic, minced
• 1 large carrot, diced
• 1 cup of frozen peas
• 1 Tbsp of corn starch
• 1-2 cups beef broth
• 1/2 cup of red wine
• 1 Tbsp fresh rosemary, minced
• 1 Tbsp fresh thyme, minced
• 2 Tbsp fresh Italian parsley, minced
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan
• 2.5 lbs of red potatoes, diced
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 1/2-1 cup of half and half
• 1 bay leaf
• salt and pepper, to taste.

Instructions:

1.  In a large saucepan over medium heat, crumble and brown the beef with the garlic and onion.
2.  Put the potatoes in a large pot, cover with water, and bring to a boil.
3. Add the carrot, wine, and herbs to the ground beef. Allow to reduce by 1/2 then pour in 1 cup of beef stock and allow the mixture to simmer. If it gets too dry, add in more broth.
4.  When the potatoes are fork tender, drain them then throw them back into the warm pot. Add butter, 1/2 cup of half and half, and Parmesan.  Mash the potatoes. If they're too thick to mash, add some more half and half but keep the potatoes nice and thick. Set aside.
5. Mix together the corn starch and 2 Tbsp of beef broth until there are no lumps. Then slowly pour the mixture into the beef while stirring constantly. Add in the peas.
6. Grab a large oven safe dish or several ramekins and evenly distribute the meat mixture and then top with the potatoes. make some nice spikes with the potatoes then throw it under the broiler until the potatoes have browned. Enjoy!