Lamb Kofta with Tabbouleh and Yoghurt
Charred kofta resting on bright, lemon-slicked tabbouleh, the cool mint yoghurt streaked beneath, finished with a rust-red dust of sumac and a glossy drizzle of olive oil.
Ingredients
Serves 4- 600 glamb mince (20% fat)
- 1½ tspground cumin
- 1½ tspground coriander
- 1 tspsmoked paprika
- ½ tspground cinnamon
- ½ tspchilli flakes
- 3garlic cloves, finely grated
- 1small onion, finely grated
- 15 gfresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
- 1 tbspolive oil, for brushing
- 150 gbulgur wheat
- 60 gfresh flat-leaf parsley, leaves and fine stems finely chopped
- 20 gfresh mint leaves, finely chopped
- 3ripe tomatoes, finely diced
- 4spring onions, thinly sliced
- 4 tbspextra virgin olive oil
- 2lemons, juiced
- 200 gnatural yoghurt
- 10 gfresh mint leaves, finely chopped
- 1garlic clove, finely grated
- ½lemon, juiced
- Fine salt and black pepper
- 4warm flatbreads (optional)
- 10 gflat-leaf parsley, chopped (optional)
- 1 tspseasoning, for finishing (optional)
- 1 tbspolive oil (optional)
- 1lemon, cut into wedges (optional)
Method
- Tip the bulgur into a heatproof bowl, pour over 250ml boiling water, stir once, cover tightly with a plate and leave for 20 minutes; the steam does the work, and the grain should drink every drop.
- Meanwhile, combine the lamb mince, cumin, ground coriander, paprika, cinnamon and chilli flakes in a large bowl. The spices go in raw here but they'll toast in the fat of the lamb as it sears; toasting in a dry pan first would dry them out before they hit the meat.
- Add the three grated garlic cloves, grated onion and 15g chopped parsley to the lamb. Season with salt and pepper, then mix firmly for a minute until tacky enough to hold its shape.
- Divide into 12 portions and shape each around a skewer or roll into a firm oval roughly 10cm long. Brush lightly with olive oil. Chill for 10 minutes if you have time; cold kofta hold their shape on the grill.
- Get a griddle pan ripping hot over a high flame until it's smoking lightly, or fire a grill to high. Lay the kofta down in a single layer with space between each one; crowd the pan and they steam in their own moisture instead of charring. Work in two batches if your pan is small.
- Cook for 10–12 minutes per batch, turning every 3–4 minutes, until browned outside and steaming hot through the centre with no pink meat remaining.
- While the kofta cook, stir together the yoghurt, chopped mint, grated garlic and the juice of half a lemon. The garlic is going in raw here so keep it to one clove, finely grated; any more and it bullies the mint. Season with salt and set aside.
- Fluff the bulgur with a fork and spread it onto a board for 2 minutes to cool; warm, not steaming, or it wilts the herbs the moment they hit it.
- Tip the bulgur into a large bowl with the chopped parsley, mint, diced tomatoes and spring onions. Pour over the extra virgin olive oil and the lemon juice from both lemons, season well and toss until everything is glossy and evenly dressed. Taste; it should be sharp, herby and properly seasoned.
- Serve the kofta with the tabbouleh and mint yoghurt. Add the optional flatbreads, extra parsley, finishing seasoning, olive oil and lemon wedges if using.
Per serving
- kcal
- 755
- protein
- 39g
- fibre
- 11.1g
- carbs
- 51.7g
- fat
- 46.5g
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