İçli Köfte (Turkish Kibbeh) Recipe
This is also known as kibbeh in some countries but we call them as "içli köfte" in Turkish which literally translates to "stuffed meatball".
This is the kibbeh recipe that comes to mind when we think of kibbeh we see and eat in kebab restaurants. As you can imagine, I adjusted the recipe again according to my own taste. Although it was my first attempt, I got a great result, especially in terms of taste. Maybe I couldn't make it as thin as the professionals, but I think the içli köfte is the içli köfte you make yourself :)
With the following ingredients, you end up with a lot of kibbehs. I split them into small portions and and put some in the freezer. Right now I have ready to make kibbeh in my fridge. I'll take it out of the freezer and put it on the bottom of the fridge, the next evening they will ready to be fried.
Ingredients
For the outer crust;
- 2 cups wheat bulgur,
- 250 g ground beef / lamb,
- 2 tablespoons semolina,
- 1 tablespoon flour,
- 2,5 cups water,
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste,
- 1 tablespoon pepper paste,
- 1 egg,
- Salt.
For the filling;
- 500 g ground beef / lamb,
- 2 onions,
- 2/3 cup olive oil,
- 1 cup ground walnuts,
- Salt,
- Black pepper.
Preparation
- Finely mince the onion,
- Heat the olive oil in a pan,
- Sauté the onion until soft,
- Add the ground meat and cook until it turns brown,
- Add the ground walnuts, salt and black pepper, stir and remove from heat,
- In a separate pan, add the bulgur, semolina and water,
- Cook on low heat until all the water is absorbed,
- On a large tray, mix the bulgur mixture with all the other outer crust ingredients and knead well for a few minutes with your hands or until everything is well combined,
- Grease your hands with oil and pull clementine size pieces from the mixture, then form them into smooth balls,
- Form an indent in the centre of each ball ensuring that the crust is as thin as possible,
- Fill the indent with the meat mixture and mold the crust around the filling,
- In adeep frying pan, heat the vegetable oil,
- Drop the koftes in and deep-fry until golden brown on all sides.
Bon appétit...