Kola Urundai | Mutton Kola Urundai | Mutton Keema Balls
This Mutton Kola Urundai / Mutton keema balls recipe is my version of the favorite appetizer in Tamil Nadu. Made with cooked minced mutton and minimal spices and ingredients, these mutton balls are just perfect. It is crisp on the outside and just right inside with rich texture.
Equipment
- Blender
- Saucepan
- Deep Fryer
Ingredients
To cook the meat:
- 750 g Mutton Keema , fat removed and minced* and washed
- 1 tsp Sea Salt
- 1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder
- Water , to boil
For the kola urundai:
- 1 tbsp Sesame Oil
- 130 g Pearl Onions / shallots , approximately a handful
- 5 medium Green Chillies , stalks removed
- 40 g Garlic , 8-10 garlic pods, peeled
- 15 g Ginger , peeled, approx. 2 inch piece
- 1 tsp Pepper Powder
- 1.5 tsp Fennel Seed Powder/ Sombu Thool
- 1.25 tsp Cumin Seed Powder/ Seeraga Thool
- 2 Cloves
- 2 inch Cinnamon Stick
- 2 Cardamom Pods
- 60 g Coconut bits , or grated, approx 4 tbsp of grated coconut
- 30 g Roasted Peanuts , skin removed
- 1 medium Egg , free range
- Coconut Oil or Any Vegetable Oil , for deep frying
Instructions
- In a large saucepan, add the mince meat, turmeric and sea salt. Pour in water, enough to cover the meat. Boil it for 15 minutes. After the time is up, drain the meat by pouring it through a colander. Gently press it to push out water. (Use the water to make curry or discard it.)
- While the meat cooks, place a sauté pan on heat. Add the sesame oil and let it heat up. Once hot, add the pearl onions, green chillies, garlic and ginger. Sauté until the pearl onions are translucent and begin to brown.
- Now, transfer these from sauté pan to a blender or mixer grinder and add the peanuts in. Blend until you get a nice smooth paste, then add the coconuts and grind it until the coconut is broken down to coarse texture. Remove this paste to a mixing bowl. Set it aside.
- To the same blender, add the cooked minced meat and grind it until it is coarsely broken down. DO NOT blend until it becomes a paste. Pulsing it a few times will do the job.
- Transfer the ground meat to the mixing bowl which has the masala paste. Top it off with the egg and mix it all together thoroughly. Make tiny balls out of it, approximately 2-inch diameter.
- Heat the oil in frying pan. (Test with a tiny bit of meat mixture; it should immediately come up.) Once it's hot, add the balls to the oil one by one. Do not over crowd it; there should be enough room for them to float around.
- Fry them in MEDIUM heat for 4-5 minutes or until they are nicely deep golden brown in colour. Drain it and serve them immediately!
Notes
- If you can't find minced meat, use fat removed (lean meat) boneless mutton.
- Instead of the whole spices - cloves, cinnamon and cardamom, you can use 1 tsp of garam masala.
- For a spicier version, add two more green chillies.
- The texture of the meatballs should be coarse, that how you'll get a crispy outside.
- You can also replace ginger and garlic with 1 teaspoon of ginger garlic paste.