Preperation of Turkish Meatballs(Kofte)

[leiden]

I am sure everybody has tasted some kind of kofte(or kofta) at this point. The bad thing is they usually come with a sauce which is quite unauthentic. They are not meatbals in reality, they are oval in shape. In Turkey people frown upon using sauces to complement meat dishes. This is due to the fact that when people consume some meat they want to make the taste count. There are thousands of recipes in Turkey and this is my version.Without further adieu I am going to give you a recipe that is basic and scrumptiously good. You can just double the recipe etc. The spices should be according to your taste. I like mine quite hot and lots of cumin. The spices loose their potency when they are cooked. Adjust accordingly.

1lb chuck ground beef(any fatty ground beef would do)
1-2 eggs for binding and quantity depends on your egg size.
3 tsp cumin
4 tsp ground red pepper or crushed red pepper
3 tsp salt
3 tsp black pepper
Half a bunch of parsley (cut it from the stalks)
1 medium-small sized onion
4 garlic cloves (depends on the garlic's potency)

1.Mince the onion super fine.

2.Squeeze the minced onions.

3. Chop parsley finely.

4.Put your eggs in a bowl and whisk the eggs.

5.Add the spices, onions, parsley into whisked eggs. Stir

6. Add the ground beef and start mixing with your hands until mixed well.(it is the best way to do it don't be shy)

7. Portion it according to your desires. Make them into oval shaped meat patties by pressing into your right palm. They should not be to thick or thin.This process firms them up and stops them from falling apart in cooking.

8.Cook it just like a meat patty or hamburger.

PS:A Turkish suggestion,serve it with raw onions, fresh bread and parsley. Also you can replace the eggs with 3tbsp of bread crumbs and do NOT eat it with sauce. You can remove the mixture smell by rubbing your hands on metal surfaces while washing. Cheers.

[cajundave]

Interesting that the Turkish prefer beef. I like it that way too. I make them often and make it similar to your recipe. I have tried it with and without the garlic, cumin and red pepper, always with finely grated onion and parsley.

I like them grilled. Here are some I made.

[leiden]

yours look quite good. they remind me of the inegol kofte which is made with baking soda. you might want to try that variation.cheers.

[cajundave]

Thanks. Glad to have a Turkish person here on Chow. I really like middle eastern food, is Turkey considered middle eastern? Please continue to post recipes.

Have you tried to make Doner kabob at home?

[leiden]

No problem. Doner kebap, you are too ambitious;) people almost always eat doner kebap outside. It's quite hard to make since you have to cut the meat thinly and stack them on a spit. It would take you probably around 4-5 hours to just prepare. My mother and grandma never even attempted it but good luck.
Turkish food is not strictly middle eastern. It has many influences such as in the north they eat southern US style meals with fish and cornbread as staples. In the west and south they prepare dishes with olive oil and different vegetables. In east and middle of the country they prefer hearty meals with dough and meat. You can ask me specific recipes and i would be glad to help with my knowledge.

[roxlet]

In Egypt, saying "Ya kofta" is like an affectionate insult. I laughed when I saw the title of this post. Highly influenced by Lebanese cooking, koftas in Egypt are generally lamb.

[leiden]

its funny. we have a similar affectionate term insult as "koftehor".

[Harters]

Wouldnt lamb be more usual than beef in Turkey (as elsewhere in the eastern Mediterranean)?

[leiden]

no, beef is much more available in Turkey and unlike lamb it is more neutral and available. Although i like lamb, some people do not like the gamey taste and it is quite expensive in US. Lamb is used less for kofte in Turkey. Otherwise if you have the budget for it, go ahead and its a nice taste but you might need to lower the amount of cumin. Cumin in this recipe might be too much for lamb's gameyness, keep that in mind.

[Harters]

Interesting. In the Turkish cookery books I have, lamb far outweighs beef by a factor of around ten. FWIW, I've never found lamb (as opposed to hogget or mutton) to be "gamey". Cumin always works very well with lamb and I use it extensively.

[leiden]

i can pretty much guarentee you that its not the case.im turkish;)

[Harters]

Not quite sure what you're guaranteeing. That's it's not in the cookery books or that the cookery books don't reflect the situation in Turkey? If the latter, then it's interesting that respected cookery writers have got it wrong. And, similarly, that the Turkish restaurants near me focus heavily on lamb, chicken and seafood, with almost no mention of beef on the menu, except, perhaps, a steak. I wonder what accounts for that when, as you say, lamb tends to be more expensive - you'd expect them to use beef not only because it was more customary but, also, for cost saving reasons.

FWIW, the first two books I take off the shelves are:

"Turkey"- Leanne Kitchen. 2 beef recipes, 14 lamb

"Arabesque" - Claudia Roden - 3 lamb, 4 lamb or beef, 0 beef

[buttertart]

I have lots of Turkish friends (from Izmir, Bodrum, and Istanbul, so not just from one part of the country) and they say the same thing, that beef is preferred. It is odd that lamb is so emphasized in (English-language) cookbooks dealing with Turkish food.

[leiden]

I think the choices of authors and restaurants are based on familiarity. The way they go about is to create a fusion between arabian and greek food, which results in a lamb oriented food with seafood influences. For instance it is really hard to find lamb sausages(sucuk) at the moment. Almost every sausage is made from beef or chicken,turkey. It is about orientalism more than anything. Lamb never played that great role as you were implying in the first place. The common households prefer beef over lamb because its less fatty and more neutral. Cumin works really well with lamb; a statement which i agree with but too much of it can kill the meal that you are preparing. To sum it up, yes your cookbooks are not reflecting the Turkish cuisine on this issue but it would be foolish of me to say the dishes chosen do not require lamb because I dont know the names. hope it helps;)

[Spot]

I've got a pal with a Turkish wife whose specialty is kofte made with ground venison. They're really, really good.

[scubadoo97]

Sounds good to me.