The word kofta comes from Persian and means ground. This name designates several typical dishes of Arab and oriental origin that are shaped like meatballs or hamburgers. Other words used are meatball, kefta o kufteh. In this article, we will explain how to prepare the typical Egyptian kofta and we will tell you about other preparations from different countries.

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The typical food of Egypt: kofta

Egyptian kofta

En Egypt, the typical way to prepare kofta is in kebab, that is, rolled up on a wooden stick. This type is also known as mashwi kabab. Generally, it is made up of beef and lamb. It is a typical dish of Egypt which can be found in restaurants in cities like Cairo.



Ingredients

The ingredients needed to prepare this traditional Egyptian dish are the following:

  • 500 g of minced beef
  • 250 g of minced lamb meat
  • Half a yellow onion
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • 1 slice of bread toasted and moistened until soft
  • One and a half teaspoons of ground pepper
  • Half a teaspoon of cayenne pepper
  • XNUMX/XNUMX teaspoon ground green cardamom
  • Half a teaspoon of ground sumac (type of spice)
  • Half a teaspoon of nutmeg
  • Half a teaspoon of paprika
  • Pita bread
  • Parsley
  • Salt and pepper
  • 10 wooden skewers

In addition to these foods, we must have a barbecue or gas grill, and a mixer or Thermomix. This way, food preparation will be easier.

Recipe

An hour before starting to cook, leave the wooden skewers in water. After this time, they are taken out of the water. Also, the grill has to be preheated with a little oil for 20 minutes.

First, the onion, garlic and parsley are minced. Then, put the beef and lamb meat, the bread without water, and the spices in the blender or Thermomix. Everything is beaten until there is one doughy dough.

This mixture is placed in a large container. Take a handful and mold it around a wooden skewer. The best thing is that the meat is between 2 and 3 cm thick. It is made with all the meat until all the skewers are completed.

They put these kebabs on a tray covered with a parchment paper and placed on the grill. Heat over medium-high heat for four minutes each side.



After this, it is ready to serve. It is usually accompanied with pita bread, sauce Tahini (made with sesame seeds), tomato, onion and parsley.

Other types

In addition to kofta typical of Egypt, in other Arab and Asian countries we find different recipes. Most of them are quite spicy, although the ingredients used differ in each country.

In the case of Morocco, we find the kofta tagine. The tajine It is a way of preparing food: in a special clay container that has a conical shape and is divided into two parts.

In India we find the malai kofta. In this case, the balls or dumplings are bread, a typical cheese of the area. Also in this country we can test the kofta lamb with curry.

Another alternative is the kofta pulao, which has its origin in Persia and Arabia, and today it is prepared in several countries. It's a totally VeganSince it is made with rice, no meat is used.

Finally, the way in which we can test the kofta in Turkey it is in the form of a sandwich inside a pita bread and accompanied by other ingredients such as onion.

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