Did you know “kofta” comes from the Persian word for rissoles/meatballs? Or so I was told, by an ebullient Malaysian Indian chef in a restaurant overlooking the Mekong River/Tonle Sap in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.

Kofta is truly a global dish, and today it’s right at home here in my little flat in St Kilda.

This is the Aldi version of chicken kofta – which I recommend grilled to drain the fat – and I forgot the yoghurt, so a dollop of egg mayo fills in as understudy. Oh well, got to “make do” in Covid times.

Not bad at all, for a supermarket substitute (nothing goes close to freshly made, of course, especially in a mutton curry in Cambodia) and sorry my little terriers Ruby and Ebony, but it’s not canine cuisine …