Kofta Kebab Recipe – Amira’s Pantry

A simple and easy kofta kebab recipe with just few ingredients and tons of Middle Eastern flavors. Here is my family’s recipe with all the tips and tricks for the best kofta (kafta) recipe.

Grilled meat mixture spiced up and flavored to get more exotic and interesting than your same old meatballs. Grilled, pan-fried or baked in the oven this kofta turns out great anyway you cook it. A crowd-pleaser and kid friendly all year long.

Try My Kofta Kebab Recipe Tonight

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I’ve had and made kofta more times than I can count. It is a staple in my home, and I make it at least twice a month, year-round.

One of the common problems people face when making kofta is that they break apart on the grill. They still taste great, but the look is not what they hoped for. I will give you many tips and ideas to make a killer kofta that will hold its shape throughout the cooking process.

Authentic Middle Eastern kofta kebabs are a melt-in-your-mouth kind of kebab. Great kofta must be juicy, tender, and not too springy. This cannot be achieved with lean ground beef; better yet (and more authentic), add ground lamb to the meat mixture.

Ingredients

Ingredient Notes

• Groud beef, ground lamb: As mentioned before kofta needs some fat to be juicy. This is achieved usually by adding ground lamb or fat to the meat mixture. You can go all beef but do not use lean ground beef, I recommend at least 20 percent fat.
• Onions, and we usually use lots of onions but they need to be strained. More on that in the tips section. Some people also like using garlic cloves with onions.
• Seasonings: we are going to keep it simple here. Salt and pepper are the most important then comes some kofta baharat which you can buy or DIY, more about that below.
• A bun, any bread will do. Fresh, stale, whole wheat, whatever. We are going to use it to make a panade. You can use toast.

Kofta Recipe

This highly requested family recipe delivers the ultimate Middle Eastern kofta. Made with a flavorful blend of beef and lamb, these kebabs are guaranteed to be juicy, tender, and melt-in-your-mouth delicious.

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Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 35 Kofta

Instructions

• Place the grated onion in a fine-mesh sieve over a bowl and press firmly with the back of a spoon to extract most of the juice. Reserve the onion pulp.

• Tear the hot dog bun into small pieces and place them in a small bowl. Pour the collected onion juice (or water) over the bread. Let it soak for 3–4 minutes until completely soft.

• In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, ground lamb, squeezed onion pulp, salt, black pepper, baharat, parsley, and flour (if using).

• Squeeze the excess liquid out of the soaked bread and add the softened bread to the meat mixture.

• Mix everything together with your hands until well incorporated and the mixture becomes slightly paste-like.

• If making meatballs, roll into 2-tablespoon portions. Otherwise, mold the meat mixture into long finger shapes around wooden or metal skewers. (Tip: Wet your hands with any leftover onion juice while shaping for extra flavor!)

Bake:

• Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C.

• Place the kofta kebabs on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or foil. Cover with another piece of foil and bake for 10–15 minutes.

Grill finish:

• While the kofta is baking, preheat your grill to high and grease the grates well. Transfer the par-baked kofta straight from the oven to the hot grill. Grill for 5 minutes or less, just until you get nice grill marks and a deep brown color.

• Garnish with fresh herbs and enjoy hot with side dishes and dips like toomeya, taktouka, or tahini sauce.

Notes

• In order to get delicious kofta that is tender and juicy we will need fat. In Egypt kebab shops usually use lamb tail fat or what we call “Liyye”. It is not easy to get it here in the US so instead we use ground lamb meat. If you would like to make it with beef only use ground beef that is no less than 20% fat.
• Use any type of onions you have yellow, white or red onion.
• The onion juice can be used in many ways, first you can soak your bread in it for more flavor. When you squeeze the bread though, you will be left with some so do not discard. Wet your hands with this water while shaping the kofta, this gives an even more delicious flavor. Some people like to brush the kofta with the onion juice.
• The Flour Trick: Although optional, adding 1 tablespoon of flour is highly recommended. It acts as a binder, absorbing extra liquids and ensuring your kofta holds its shape perfectly without falling apart.
• Add a teaspoon (less or more) of cayenne pepper for a little extra heat.
• My Secret for Juicy Kofta: I love baking my kofta for 10–15 minutes before finishing them on the grill for 5 minutes. Covering the baking pan with foil locks in the moisture so the meat stays tender. It also partially cooks the kebabs, so they won’t stick to the grill racks when you go to get those beautiful grill marks.
• Oven-Only Method: If you don’t have a grill or the weather isn’t cooperating, you can easily bake these entirely in the oven. Preheat your oven to 350°F/180°C. Place the kofta on the middle rack for 15 minutes, then move them to the top rack for another 10 minutes to brown (no need to turn on the broiler). Since all ovens vary, use a meat thermometer to ensure the internal temperature reaches 160°F.
• Make-Ahead & Freezing Tip: Shape the kofta and arrange them in a single layer on a baking sheet. Freeze until firm, then transfer them to a freezer bag. When you’re ready to eat, you can bake them directly from frozen—no need to thaw! Just add a few extra minutes to the total baking time.

Nutrition

Calories: 140kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 37mg | Sodium: 175mg | Potassium: 161mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 0.4g | Vitamin A: 147IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 15mg | Iron: 1mg

How to Make Kofta

1. In a deep bowl soak a bun in a liquid to make the panade. You can soak in milk, water or onion juice. I like to finely process the onion then squeeze it through a fine mesh or a cheese cloth. You’ll get enough juice to soak your bun. Feel free to add more water if the juices are not enough.
2. let it sit for a few minutes then squeeze the juices out as much as you can.
3. You will be left with something like a paste in your hands and that’s what we are going to add to the meat mixture.

1. Add all the ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.
2. Mix them well together by hand for at least 10 minutes, back in the old days people used to use a mortar and pestle to do this. If this is going to be hard for you then you can use a food processor as well. The point is to mix until the ground meat mixture is smooth.
3. Shape the meat mixture on skewers or the rounded handle of a wooden spoon. Place kebabs on a baking sheet or any oven safe dish. You can also shape kofta into a meatball rounded shape. Grill on an or oven bake your kofta as described below.

Tips

Here are some tips and tricks Middle Eastern moms use for the perfect kofta kebabs each time. So pay close attention here as these tips are going to make your kofta stand out

• In order for your kofta to be tender and juicy we will need fat. In Egypt kebab shops usually use lamb tail fat or what we call “Liyye”. It is not easy to get it here in the US so instead we use ground lamb meat. If you would like to make it with beef only use ground beef that is no less than 20% fat.
• You will need to finely grate/process or chop the onions then squeeze the juices out of the grated onion as much as you can. Just throw the onions in your food processor then squeeze through a cheese cloth or a fine mesh much like what I did here in the chops recipe.
• This juice can be used in many ways, first you can soak your bread in it for extra flavour. When you squeeze the bread though, you will be left with some so do not discard. Wet your hand in this water while shaping the kofta, gives even more delicious flavor. Some even brush the kofta with the onion juice.
• Adding a bit of flour, although optional but highly recommended. It helps in shaping the kofta and maintaining its shape. This little amount of flour also absorbs unnecessary liquids that might cause the kofta to break apart.
• Bake in the oven before grilling: I like cooking kofta in the oven for 10-15 minutes before grilling them for another 5. Covering the pan with foil brushed with some olive oil and letting them cook in the oven helps kofta stays tender and juicy and not to dry so fast also it prevents sticking to the grill racks. Then you just put them on the grill to get those grilling marks and to brown a little more. Kofta kebab can be finished off on a gas grill, charcoal grill or a grill pan to get those grilling marks.
• Or bake them entirely in the oven: If you do not have a grill or your weather does not permit grilling then bake kofta in your oven. Preheat oven to 350, place the kofta on the middle rack for 15 minutes, then move up to the upper rack for 10 minutes but do not turn the broiler on. Of course, every oven is different so just use your cooking senses or meat should reach 160 degrees F on an instant meat thermometer.

FAQs

Variations

• It is very common to add a small bunch of finely chopped parsley to the meat mixture.
• Also many use garlic in their kofta but I was brought up to a kofta without garlic so this is something to consider.
• One of the readers asked about a tarb recipe. Tarb is basically kofta wrapped in lamb tail fat and then grilled. You can use this kofta recipe to make Tarb as well.
• Ratio of ground beef to lamb beef is a personal preference. From my experience with making kofta I’ve found that 1:1 is the best ration for many people so feel free to play with it.

Serve With

Homemade Kofta Baharat Mix

If you cannot find Baharat mix in your store, you can make your own kofta baharat for every two pounds of ground meat use:
2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon sweet paprika
⅔ teaspoon ground cloves
⅔ teaspoon ground cardamom
⅔ teaspoon ground thyme

More Ground Beef Recipes

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