Mark’s Mega Spicy Beef Kofta

Koftas are one of the most prevalent types of street food in the Middle East. Everywhere from Turkey to Iran has their own style and flavour but what I wanted to go with here was a very accessible version that is full of spice and can be made up in no time at all.

It’s actually kind of an insult to call this a recipe. It’s an assembly job. But the end result is something that you would swear was flown straight in from the streets of Tehran.

If you are going with beef use the best quality you can afford with the lowest fat content, this will help them stay together. Lamb or pork mince work equally well with this recipe.

Instructions

Step 1

Ingredients

Step 2

Finely dice the garlic and grate the ginger on a microplane. Add the spices, garlic and ginger to the beef mince and mix together well with a pinch of salt and pepper.

Step 3

Shape the seasoned mince onto wooden skewers. You want them to be no wider than 2 cm in diameter.

Step 4

These are incredible over a BBQ but they work equally well cooked on a searing hot griddle pan or under a grill turned up full.

Step 5

You want them to be dark and almost burnt on the outside while keeping a good bit of juice in the centre, so hot and fast is the way to go.

Step 6

Enjoy!

Loading a flatbread up with these, greek yoghurt spiked with lemon and some pomegranate is one of my ideas of heaven.