Lebanese kofta is a Middle Eastern dish made with ground lamb or beef, parsley, onion, and spices, shaped into tubes or patties and grilled. It is often served with flatbread, rice, salad, and a yogurt or tahini sauce.
Kofta is a Middle Eastern and Asian dish that is similar in composition and texture to North American meatloaf. Made with ground beef and a combination of spices, it can come in a variety of flavors and presentations. Lebanese kofta is based on those traditional Lebabnon meats, spices and cooking methods, although it is widely available in North America, often as a slightly reinterpreted dish.
Lebanese kofta is traditionally made with lamb or beef. The meat has a lean cut, often taken from the shoulder. After mincing, cooks combine the meat with parsley, onion and spices including cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg. They form the mixture into tubes and wrap them lengthwise around wooden skewers before grilling.
When making Lebanese kofta, the meat mixture should be soft and smooth but still able to hold its shape and integrity during cooking. To obtain a smooth mixture, the meat, onions and spices can be combined and blended in a food processor. Sometimes, cooks add an egg to make the mixture firmer and better able to hold its shape. Ideally, cooks prepare the mixture a few hours or even up to the day before cooking as this allows the spices to infuse into the meat and intensify the flavors.
The traditional way of cooking Lebanese kofta is to grill the skewers over hot coals. As this may not always be practical, cooks can cook the kofta in a standard oven. In both methods it is important to make sure that the skewers, if made of wood, are well soaked before use; otherwise, they can burn.
Kofta is also shaped into patties and balls. These can also be cooked on the broiler or under the broiler. The meatballs are often cooked together with vegetables such as peppers, which are placed alternately on the skewers. Another popular way of cooking Lebanese kofta is kofta bi sanieh, where the meatballs are baked in a dish along with tomatoes and potatoes.
Koftas, or kebabs as they are commonly called in North America, are eaten as the main meal. The cooks serve them with Lebanese flatbread, pita or hummus. Rice, salad and tabbouleh are also popular accompaniments. The meat is also usually served with a sauce, often yogurt mixed with mint or tahini. There are a number of adaptations on the protein used in Lebanese kofta, where cooks replace the beef or lamb with chicken, seafood or even goat, although the toppings tend to stay the same.
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