Kofta Meatballs
I am always shocked at how fast these disappear when served to friends. It’s always a little painful to watch people politely argue over who gets the last one. This recipe feeds a crowd. They are also delicious reheated as leftovers. You almost can’t make too many of these.
Notes:
Mixing the ingredients:
Do not overmix the meat with the other ingredients! You want a heterogenous mixture, where everything is evenly distributed, but if you mix the meat too much, you end up with a pink mush that will result in a dense, unpalatable meat ball. See the video below which demostrates how to fold the ingredients together without making meatball mush.
Kofta Meatball
A delicious mixture of ground beef, lamb, and Mediterranean spices
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 lb ground lamb
- 1 medium red onion
- 4-5 green onions, chopped (about one cup)
- 1/4 cup fresh dill, chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- 4-5 cloves peeled garlic, minced
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp allspice
- 2 tsp tsp salt
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup olive oil for frying
Instructions
To make meatballs
- Preheat the oven to 250 degrees fahrenheit. Place a large oven proof platter in the oven.
- Add all ingredients to large mixing bowl. Mix until combined, but do not over mix! I gently fold the ingredients over each other multiple times until the onions, egg, and spices are evenly distributed.
- Pour 2-3 tablespoons oil in skillet and heat over medium high heat. Gently shape meat mixture into 2 inch patties and place in sizzling oil.
- Fry until deeply browned then flip over and fry the other side.
- Once both side are well browned, add to the platter in the preheated oven to finish cooking and keep warm while you fry the remaining meatballs.
- Serve with tzatziki or alone. My kids will only eat them with ketchup, but I'm hopeful that it's only a temporary phase. In fact, they want to eat everything with ketchup now that I think about it….