Middle Eastern Kofta
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Ready to take your taste buds on an adventure? This flavorful Middle Eastern kofta, packed with minced vegetables, nuts, herbs, and spices, is a must for summer cookouts!
Kofta is a Middle Eastern dish made from ground lamb or beef mixed with onions, garlic, and spices. The meat mixture is shaped into balls, patties, or logs, then grilled and served with pita, salad, hummus, and tahini sauce. There are endless variations of kofta throughout the Middle East—I have a fantastic recipe for Persian kofta in my first cookbook—but I learned this version from a kebab maker in the Old City of Jerusalem. His secret was adding minced vegetables, toasted nuts, herbs, and spices to the meat, giving the kofta a deep, complex flavor.
Think beyond grilled chicken and burgers; this is what you should be serving at your cookouts this summer!
“This was outstanding! I made this last night in a grill pan and already passed the recipe along to a bunch of friends and family. This is definitely company-worthy.”
What You’ll Need To Make Middle Eastern Kofta
- Pine nuts, almonds, and walnuts: These nuts add a rich, nutty flavor that enhances the texture and complexity of the kofta.
- Yellow onion and garlic: These aromatics provide a savory flavor base and add moisture to the kofta.
- Red bell pepper and jalapeño pepper: The red bell pepper adds a touch of sweetness, while the jalapeño pepper brings a mild heat.
- Cilantro: This fresh herb adds a bright, aromatic element, giving the kofta a fresh and vibrant taste.
- Ground lamb (or Ground Beef): Lamb offers a rich, distinctive flavor that is slightly gamey, which pairs wonderfully with Middle Eastern spices. Its higher fat content makes the kofta juicy and succulent. Beef provides a milder flavor compared to lamb, making it a great option for those who prefer a less intense taste.
- Cumin, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves: These spices add warmth, depth, and an authentic Middle Eastern flavor to the kofta.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
To begin, place the nuts in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade.
Pulse until finely chopped but not pasty.
Transfer the nuts to a small dry skillet over medium heat; cook, stirring frequently, until the nuts are lightly browned and fragrant, 5 to 6 minutes. Set aside to cool. (But don’t leave the nuts in the pan, as the residual heat may cause them to burn.)
Place the onion, garlic, bell pepper, jalapeño pepper, and cilantro in the bowl of the food processor (no need to clean it first).
Pulse until the vegetables are finely minced but not puréed.
Set a fine sieve over a bowl. Transfer the minced vegetables to the sieve and use a rubber spatula to press out as much liquid as possible.
In a large bowl, combine the minced veggies, nuts, lamb, cumin, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, salt, and white pepper.
Using your hands, mash the mixture together until evenly combined.
Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Form the mixture into patties about 2 inches in diameter and 1/2 inch thick (they will puff up on the grill to look like meatballs). Place on the baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to cook.
Preheat the grill to medium-high heat and oil the grates. Place the kofta on the grill and cook, covered, until browned, about 4 minutes per side or until cooked through.
Serve the kofta with warm pita and accompaniments and enjoy!
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Middle Eastern Kofta
Ingredients
- ¼ cup each pine nuts almonds, and walnuts (total ¾ cup/90 g)
- 1 small yellow onion, roughly chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 1 small red bell pepper, roughly chopped
- 1 small jalapeño pepper, seeds and ribs removed, roughly chopped (see note)
- ½ cup fresh cilantro, gently packed (okay to substitute parsley)
- 2 lb ground lamb (or 80% lean ground beef)
- ¾ teaspoon ground cumin
- Heaping ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Heaping ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
- Heaping ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1½ teaspoons salt
- ¼ teaspoon white pepper
- Tzatziki and hummus, for serving
Instructions
- Place the nuts in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Pulse until finely chopped but not pasty. Transfer the nuts to a small dry skillet over medium heat; cook, stirring frequently, until the nuts are lightly browned and fragrant, 5 to 6 minutes. Pour the nuts into mixing bowl large enough to hold all of the ingredients, and set aside to cool. (Don't leave the nuts in the pan, as the residual heat may cause them to burn.)
- Place the onion, garlic, bell pepper, jalapeño pepper, and cilantro in the bowl of the food processor (no need to clean it first). Pulse until the vegetables are finely minced but not puréed. Set a fine sieve over a medium bowl. Transfer the minced vegetables to the sieve and use a rubber spatula to press out as much liquid as possible. Add the strained vegetable mixture to the bowl with the nuts.
- To the veggies and nuts, add the lamb (or beef), cumin, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, salt, and white pepper. Using your hands, mash the mixture together until evenly combined.
- Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Form the mixture into patties about 2 inches in diameter and ½-in (13-mm) thick (they will puff up on the grill to look like meatballs). Place on the baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap, then refrigerate until ready to cook.
Notes
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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Wonderful recipe. Didn’t have any ground cloves but they were delightful without.
These were a great hit at a party last night. I cooked the kofta and then reheated them in the microwave.
Very tasty and everyone loved them. I added a little ginger to the mix.
Fantastic. We put them on skewers but other than that, followed recipe exactly. Had your tzatziki and a grilled eggplant, pepper, and onion salad with it. We will make it often.Thank you!
Hi Jenn – if frozen precooked, do I need to defrost before grilling or broiling in the oven?
Yes, I would defrost them first. Enjoy!
Excellent flavor – I felt like I was in Turkey as I smelled the grill. But I subbed beef for lamb which was much drier so I will add olive oil in the future so the meatballs stick together better.
So worth the effort. Unreal flavor
Tonight I made the Lamb kofta. It was delicious! I was nervous sending the patties out to the grill with my husband, thinking they would pull apart. I told him 4 minutes on each side. They arrived 8 minutes later absolutely perfectly cooked. Juicy and tender. So delicious. Wow !
I will share one thing I did that everyone commented on and it was a garlic sauce I made using the lovely juice extracted from the onion, garlic, pepper and jalapeño (vegetables from the kofta) use Greek yogurt, a little mayo, and a little sour cream. Add the drippings and extra garlic, some salt and lemon juice. I also added a full teaspoon of dried dill and let it sit in the fridge for a while.
So the lamb was served with naan ( made from my husbands sourdough ), hummus, and the Garlic dipping sauce
Five star meal.
Thanks Chef 💛
This is by far the best lamb kofta I’ve made. Served it with your tzadiki and hummus and red dal and pizza bread to dip. What a fabulous dinner-
Oh My Gosh !!! These are fabulous!!! I make them as often as I can and am now substituting ground chicken for heart health 🙂 I have frozen and used later, chopped up a couple, add some tabbouleh and voila, fabulous wraps! It lasts for a few days with only myself and my husband eating at home.
These were delicious!!! I figured out the tomato, cucumber, red onion salad from the picture before I saw the ingredients in the comments. That was so delicious too with fresh summer tomatoes. I plan to make them again next weekend, will add a little more jalapeño – I like them spicy! Fabulous and super easy to make!
Made tonight for the third time! We love this recipe!!
These look amazing. I will be surely giving this recipe a whirl soon. Could you share the details of the delicious tomato & cucumber salad in the main photo?
Hi Ambra, That’s not an actual recipe of mine — it’s just a combo of tomatoes, cucumbers, and red onion mixed with olive oil, lemon, cilantro, salt, pepper, and za’atar. You could give that a try. This would also be good with my Israeli salad.