Koftas are a meatball dish found in Balkan, Middle Eastern, South Asian, and Central Asian cuisine. They’re balls of ground or minced meat (pork, chicken, beef or beef) mixed with onions and spices.

You can find vegetarian varieties of Kofta in India, with recipes made with banana, calabash, potatoes or paneer.

Here’s our favorite recipe!

Ingredients

• 455g lean ground lamb
• 90g fine fresh breadcrumb
• 1 egg
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄2 teaspoon allspice
• 1 teaspoon dried mint
• 1⁄2 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoons parsley
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

Directions

1. Make bread crumbs by breaking up 2 slices of stale but not dried out whole wheat bread into bowl of a food processor.
2. Whizz until finely crumbed.
3. Add ground lamb and egg, and process until blended.
4. Add spices, parsley and garlic.
5. Process meat well to achieve fine texture.
6. Roll mixture into small meatballs or finger shaped patties using dampened hands.
7. Heat oil in a heavy skillet, and fry balls or patties until cooked through and evenly browned.
8. Remove with a slotted spoon to drain.
9. Serve meatballs hot or at room temperature as an appetizer.

This recipe is lovely with a yogurt or tahini sauce, on a bed of rice or in a pita.

Afiyet olsun! Enjoy!