I am in NO way a recipe creator… but I’m a darn good recipe follower. This share is an attempt to share an awesome recipe we love, direct from the one found in Cottage Life Magazine‘s June/July 2021 edition. There are a few more goodies in there too for scrumptious outdoor cooking! The cover picture is the magazine’s version, we forgot to take our own pic as we dove in so quick… the delicious smell was just too much! The picture below is my Kofta salad version we had the next day at the cottage (for those eating a little less gluten or grains).
KOFTA (Grilled Ground Beef)
Traditionally cooked over hot coals, this dish is an interesting and delicious departure from plain old hamburgers—comfort foot made better with Middle Eastern spices. Cook on sticks or without, whichever you prefer. Serve with pita, slices tomatoes, cucumbers, shredded lettuce, pickles and Tahini.
1 medium onion
1 hamburger bun, hot dog bun, or 2 slices of white bread
900 g regular ground beef (2 lb), ground lamb (1/2 lb)
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
½ bunch parsley, leaves picked and finely chopped
1 tbsp dried mint
2 tbsp ground coriander
1 ½ tsp each ground cinnamon, ground nutmeg, ground allspice
– Salt and pepper, olive oil for brushing
- Grate the onion into a small bowl and squeeze it to remove as much liquid as possible. Reserve the liquid in one bowl and transfer the grated onion to a large mixing bowl.
- Soak the dried bread in the reserved onion juice.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the beef and lamb, squeezed onion garlic, parsley and dried spices. Squeeze out as much moisture as possible from the soaked bread, crumble, and add to the meat mixture. Season generously with salt and pepper. Mix well to combine.
- Form the mixture into 10-12 even balls and then roll the balls into cylinders about 1 ½ inches thick.
- When fire is ready, brush kofta with a very small amount of oil. Start kofta on hot side of the grill, turning regularly, for a minute or so. Move them to medium side of the grill and cook, truing until done (when pierced, juices run clear or temperature reads 165°F/74°C), about 8-10 minutes.
TIP: Don’t like lamb? Skip It! And add up the amount of ground beef to (2 1/2 lbs)
TAHINI
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 cup freshly squeezed lime juice, plus more if needed
2 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
1 cup tahini
½ cup hot water, plus more if needed
- In a bowl, combine garlic, lime juice, and a good pinch of salt. Let stand for 15 minutes.
This will mellow the sharpness of the garlic - Add the tahini paste and the water to the lime mixture. Whisk util smooth, adding more hot water if needed until it has the consistency of a think dressing. Add the rest of the salt, in increments to taste, and add more lime juice to your liking. Stir again before using.
Dr. Pip’s side note: Our whole family loved this! We did about half the tahini and, used tzatziki for those who didn’t like the tahini. We also chose to make it on the BBQ instead of the fire. It was DELISH the next day too!