Creamy Coconut Curry Meatballs

Puréeing onions allows you to harness all of that punchy allium flavor with none of the chopping and tears. Here, they’re blended up with yogurt and aromatics to create a mixture inspired by onion-and-yogurt pastes used in Mughal-style cooking. This purée is added to both the base of the curry and the meatball mixture; it thickens and seasons the sauce while keeping the meatballs tender and sweet. Take care to cook out the paste for the curry until drops of fat bead on the surface, which ensures that the final product will taste rich and rounded.

This coconut curry sauce is incredibly versatile. Try cooking canned chickpeas, cubes of seared tofu, or browned 1" pieces of skinless, boneless chicken thighs in it instead of the meatballs. Just make sure to cook the full amount of purée in the pan before adding the coconut milk and water; it will take a minute or two longer.