Welcome!


This is a membership forum. Guests can view 5 pages for free. To participate, please join.

[ Pitmaster Club Information | Join Now | Login | Contact Us ]

Only 4 free page views remaining.

Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

A Mediterranean Kabob or Meatball by an other name….

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

    A Mediterranean Kabob or Meatball by an other name….

    Koobidehs

    Kofta/Kefta/Kafta

    Keftedes/Keftethes


    Troutman post about his dinner last night got me to thinking….. What Troutman made is what I know as Kefta. I did not know there were several spellings. I looked it up and Troutman’s dish was more Persian than anything.

    Then I looked up keftedes in my Greek books and found two things: "enter name here"keftedes are fritters (think fried squash blossoms). And in another book keftedes/keftethes are meatballs (beef, lamb or combo) that are pan fried.

    I never knew there were so many variations. I guess just like sausages in different regions. Or the way butchery is different stateside versus Europe.

    Food for thought…. Pun intended!

    #2
    The Lebanese call it Kifta, yessir. I saw sum of em make it a few times. My favorite food on the planet.

    Comment


      #3
      I do know that Koobideh is indeed a Persian word which loosely translates as "pounded" or "slammed" which refers to the method of preparing the minced meat.

      I’ve also done Kofta and Keema although they had different preparations and flavor profiles. I’m far from an expert in middle eastern cooking but I believe these are different lamb preparations and not different names for the same thing. But what do I know? 🤔

      Comment


        #4
        At my old job, we did (what we called kefta). Ground beef-lamb mix and coated with Z’atar spice blend. Which I understand is about as complex and unique as mole. Each family has their own take on it.

        Comment


          #5
          HouseHomey has a wonderful recipe for keftedes.

          https://pitmaster.amazingribs.com/fo...des#post524896

          Kathryn

          Comment


          • tbob4
            tbob4 commented
            Editing a comment
            How you remember and find these is not only amazing but a tremendous asset to us all. Thanks, as always.

          • HouseHomey
            HouseHomey commented
            Editing a comment
            Yum it’s been a minute for me on that meatball.

          #6
          A lot of cultures make these - I ate kufta in Armenia when I was there with the Peace Corps. It's basically a tender meatball made with lamb and beef, but finely ground. Distinct from a kebab in the spices and cooking method (kebabs are typically grilled using a fat "shish" or skewar). Kibbeh is a variation that includes cracked wheat mixed into the meat and mixture. Then again, many of the Armenian recipes for "kufta" also include bulgur or barley in the mixture so the definitions can be a little loose. Regardless, very good with rice pilaf and some flat bread (lavash).
          Last edited by Beefchop; April 18, 2022, 08:58 AM.

          Comment


          • SheilaAnn
            SheilaAnn commented
            Editing a comment
            Nothing like a great pilaf!!!

          #7
          My kofta kebabs are nowhere near authentic, but they are darn tasty and they've been well received by everyone I've served them to.

          Comment


          • Troutman
            Troutman commented
            Editing a comment
            My last kabobs may have been a bit wet resulting in some slippage from the skewers. What’s your trick in keeping the meat in place while grilling?

          • gboss
            gboss commented
            Editing a comment
            Troutman I haven't done testing, but here's my best guess as to what makes a difference: 1) really squeezing out all the onion liquid. 2) adding bread for panade, using some of the onion liquid but squeezing out excess before adding to the mix. 3) "well worked" meat which is really the opposite of how you want to handle burgers 4) not threading the skewers until right before they go on the grill. pack good but try not to disturb it too much once you've set the shape.

          #8
          One of my cooks is a Lebanese woman. Needless to say we don’t go hungry. Had Kifta the other day… so so good. Her hummus though…. Wow!!

          Comment


          • tbob4
            tbob4 commented
            Editing a comment
            Hello Homey! Steal some of her secrets and share. Hahahahahaha. How’s life?

          • HouseHomey
            HouseHomey commented
            Editing a comment
            tbob4 Life is great my friend. My hummus game is strong these days. She don’t give up her secrets easily though.

        Announcement

        Collapse
        No announcement yet.
        Working...
        X
        false
        0
        Guest
        Guest
        500
        ["pitmaster-my-membership","login","join-pitmaster","lostpw","reset-password","special-offers","help","nojs","meat-ups","gifts","authaau-alpha","ebooklogin-start","alpha","start"]
        false
        false
        {"count":0,"link":"/forum/announcements/","debug":""}
        Yes
        ["\/forum\/free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-downloads","\/forum\/free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-downloads\/1157845-paid-members-download-your-6-deep-dive-guide-ebooks-for-free-here","\/forum\/the-pitcast","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/bbq-news-magazine-2019-issues","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/bbq-news-magazine-2020-issues","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/bbq-news-magazine-2021-issues","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/bbq-news-magazine-2022-issues","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/current-2023-issues","\/forum\/national-barbecue-news-magazine\/national-barbecue-news-magazine-aa\/current-2024-issues","\/forum\/free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-downloads\/1165909-trial-members-download-your-free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-here"]
        /forum/free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-downloads/1165909-trial-members-download-your-free-deep-dive-guide-ebook-here