Spicy chital meatballs, with a Bengali-style sauce

Ingredients

• 500 g of chital (spotted deer) belly meat, cooked and deboned
• 2 tablespoons of chickpea flour (besan)
• 1 tablespoon of ginger paste
• 1 teaspoon of garlic paste
• 2 tablespoons of onion paste
• 1 teaspoon of ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon of ground cilantro
• 1/2 teaspoon of red chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon of turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon of garam masala
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 dried red chili pepper
• 1 teaspoon of sugar
• salt, to taste
• 5 tablespoons of mustard oil
• 1 chopped tomato

Cook the chital belly, remove any bones, and then thoroughly mash the meat in a bowl.

Add the besan (gram flour), ginger and garlic paste, a pinch of salt and chili pepper, and mix until you have a slightly sticky dough that is firm enough to form meatballs.

Form small balls with your hands, then lightly fry them in a little oil. Set aside.

In a frying pan with oil, brown the bay leaves and the dried chili pepper, then add the onion paste and cook until golden brown.

Add the chopped tomatoes and cook them with the onion until they soften.

Add the cumin, cilantro, chili pepper, turmeric, salt, and sugar. When the oil is hot, add a little water to create a sauce.

Once the sauce comes to a boil, gently add the French fry balls to the sauce and cover.

Let it simmer for 10 to 12 minutes over low heat, allowing the meatballs to absorb the flavor of the sauce.

Finish with garam masala and serve with hot rice.