Lamb Kofta Meatballs With Garlicky Yogurt Dip

Perfect for parties

Course Appetizer

Keyword Cayenne Pepper

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 20

Total Time 50

Servings servings

Calories 462kcal

Ingredients

For the koftas

3 red cayenne peppers very finely diced, seeds and all
18 ounces lamb sausages stripped out of their skins
8 ounces ground beef with about 10% fat content
1 yellow onion medium-sized, peeled, and finely grated
1 ounce fresh parsley very finely chopped, stalks and all
1 ounce fresh mint leaves finely chopped
1 heaped teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 heaped teaspoon ground paprika
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 heaped teaspoons ground sea salt
2 heaped teaspoons ground black pepper
3 level tablespoons olive oil for fast-frying the koftas

For the garlicky yogurt dip

18 ounces full cream, triple thick plain yogurt go high-end here – it’s worth it
6 cloves garlic peeled and crushed to a fine paste
1/3 medium-sized English cucumber peeled and seeds scraped out, diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt to taste

For the flat breads

4 pita breads lightly warmed and cut into eighths

Instructions

The yogurt dip

The yogurt dip gets a fab flavor boost if it’s allowed to sit for a while in the refrigerator before serving. So, let’s start with that.
In a mixing bowl, add all the ingredients and stir well. Test for saltiness, and if need be, add more to your taste. It should have a good ‘burn’ from all that garlic. Grand. That’s exactly how it should be. Put it in the refrigerator. And that’s it, dip done. Time to make the koftas.

The kofta meatballs

First, a quick word about the grated onions. Make sure they are thoroughly drained. Use a fine sieve to press out as much of their juice as you can.
In a good-sized mixing bowl combine all the koftas’ ingredients except the ground beef (add it after the first mixing) and mix together really well. Best way to do this is with your fingers. Why not add the beef just yet? Well, it takes a fair bit of mixing to get all the other ingredients combined. And if the beef goes in from the start, you’ll lose too much of its texture as you mix everything together. So, only mix in the beef at the end - and then so that it’s just barely combined with the rest of the kofta mix.
Set the bowl to chill in the freezer for 10 minutes. Yep, the freezer – it’s faster than the fridge. This chilling matters because it firms-up the fat, and that makes it a whole lot easier to make your little koftas.
Time to get rolling and cooking. Use your hands to form the mixture - as fast as you can - into rounds about two-thirds the size of a golf ball. Don’t compress them too much, but rather focus on getting them just nicely rounded.
Now for an important flavor test. Make one burger-like patty from the kofta mix – about two inches across and 3/4 inch thick. Heat the olive oil in a good-sized skillet on a high heat. As it just starts smoking, drop the heat to medium-high and fry the ‘test’ patty for about 90 seconds each side. You’re looking to get a deep-ish golden char on both sides. As soon as that happens, turn off the heat, remove the patty with a slotted spoon, and set it on some kitchen towel to remove any excess oil.
Let it cool a little, and then taste it. You might find it needs a little more chili, or salt, or perhaps even a little more of that flavor-sparking lime juice. If so, add accordingly to the kofta mix and gently work it in with your fingers.
Now get the skillet back onto a sizzling high heat and quickly roll in half of the little koftas one at a time. If you tilt the skillet a little, you can roll each kofta in the hot oil as they hit it. Now it’s a roll and hot-fry process for about three or four minutes until you get that nice golden char all over the koftas. Remove them from the skillet and roll them on some kitchen towel. Repeat the whole process for the other half of the koftas. Done.

The flatbreads

Heat the pitas for 20 seconds on high in the microwave. Then cut them into eighths. You’re ready.

How to serve

Spoon the chilled yogurt dip into four little bowls on four dinner plates, with a teaspoon alongside each bowl.
Divide the koftas across four similar bowls and set one bowl on each plate. Add some slices of pitta around the bowls and serve with napkins.

Notes

Drinks? Vodka Martinis. Gin-and-tonics. Margheritas. Or a good, well-chilled, crisply dry, sparkling white wine.

Note: If you’re serving the koftas as pre-meal appetizers – as opposed to complementing a few happy rounds of cocktail-hour drinks - then you might want to leave out the pitas.

Nutrition