Moroccan Kefta
Updated July 1, 2024
- Total Time
- 15 minutes, plus 1 hour's chilling
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:4 servings
- 1pound ground beef or lamb (15- to 20-percent fat)
- 1small yellow onion, grated with its juices reserved (about 120 grams)
- ½packed cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
- ½packed cup cilantro, finely chopped
- ½packed cup mint leaves, finely chopped
- 2heaped teaspoons sweet paprika
- 1teaspoon ground cumin
- ½heaped teaspoon kosher salt, plus more as needed
- ½teaspoon black pepper
- Pinch of ground cayenne
- Neutral oil, such as canola, for greasing
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
333 calories; 25 grams fat; 9 grams saturated fat; 1 gram trans fat; 12 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 5 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 1 gram sugars; 21 grams protein; 322 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
Powered byPreparation
- Step 1
If using wood skewers, soak them in cold water for 30 minutes. In a large bowl using your hands or a large spoon, very thoroughly combine the beef, onion and the juices, parsley, cilantro, mint, sweet paprika, cumin, salt, black pepper and cayenne until uniform.
- Step 2
Take about ½ teaspoon of the kefta mixture, cook it (in a pan or in the microwave) and taste it to check the seasoning. Add more salt to the kefta mixture if necessary.
- Step 3
Take about 2½ tablespoons of the kefta mixture and mold it onto a skewer to form a log that is about 1-inch thick and 2½-inches long, pressing the meat firmly to adhere. (If using long skewers, you can form one long log on each.) Repeat until you've used all the kefta mixture. Place the skewers on a plate, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour or up to 24 hours.
- Step 4
When ready to cook, heat the grill or grill pan to medium-high, lightly oil the grates with a brush, place the kebabs on the grill and cook for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until cooked through and the meat releases from the grill. Serve immediately with bread and a side of vegetables or a salad.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
EB
This is called köfte in Turkish and a very common dish without massive amounts of herbs, but definitely with crushed garlic. The version on sticks would be kebab. Usually, they are shaped as small patties and cooked either under the broiler or on stove top. There is also a fried version. Sumac, cayenne, curry powder, can be also be added. Very versatile dish.
dana
I threw everything but the meat into a food processor and pulverised it, then added to ground beef. Avoids mess of grating onion etc. Then bakes at 400 for ten mins. Excellent.
Ashraf
In Egypt, my mother would make kuftah by mixing ground meat with broken rice then fry it. Some like it dry but usually it's cooked again in tomato sauce and served with rice.
Karekin
It's interesting to see how the word 'kefta' is used across the Middle East. For many, grilled meats are often called 'kebab'. Armenians make 'keufteh': ground meatballs mixed with finely ground bulghur, and filled with an onion/spice/herb blend, that are boiled in broth and served with plain yogurt. They also make a delicious and unusual vegan version, called 'baki keufteh', stuffed with a tahini (or even peanut butter), onion, parsley and spice mixture, that are also boiled and served cold.
Howard Herzog
Try making this with Beyond Meat or Impossible Burger - amazing results! Serve with chopped salad and Lafa or Pita bread.
Michael
Why not just eat falafel?
Lynn
I've made this (and variations of this as doner, kofte, etc) with Impossible meat and it's spot on. I love falafel, but prefer to prepare this at home because no deep frying is needed.
Ioannis
Of course that’s a traditional food with many variations through the Arab world, Middle East and Balkans. soon we cook in Greece has usually mint, oregano, S&P and some sweet paprika. In the 50’s post-war times, meat was scarce so people used to add bread in the mixture, or maybe to use the leftover/stale bread (which sounds very similar to what Ashraf’s mom did with the rice) :)
LC
Lebanese kafta adds sumac and seven spice mix which brings out a lovely flavor. Serve with a yogurt and cucumber salad with fresh mint for garnish.
RA
I made this with Impossible burger, and it was delicious. To save time in a double recipe I grated the onion and chopped the herbs in a food processor.
Neil
Loved this recipe. Easy to do and tasted great. I added minced garlic. The meat didn't stay on the skewers so I would probably do this as small patties next time instead.
Grace
Was surprised these didn’t have a lot of flavor. The spice and herbs didn’t come through. Maybe garlic would help.
pga955md
Made this last night, delish. Used ground lamb and added tumeric (old habit when I cook with lamb to slighly mute its gamey flavor) and instead of grated onion used finely diced shallot plus some grated garlic cloves. It really helped to refrigerate the meat shaped on skewers for 6 hours then took them out an hour before cooking and in 15 min, they were perfect. Enjoyed with homemade flatbread, tomato salad and freshly made tzatziki.
Annabella
Very tasty!! Herbal proportions were perfect. I confess that I combined this recipe with David Tanis' Middleeastern Meatballs by slugging in a tablespoon or so of breadcrumbs soaked in milk. I like a slightly softer meatball. I also gave them a shake of cinnamon. I made these into small patties, slightly football shaped as I used to eat them in the Middle East. Then I baked them at 375 for 25 minutes on parchment paper. Delicious! And no greasy residue from broiling or frying.
JPK
These weren’t very flavorful. I’ve made other lamb balls, such as the Cumin Lamb Meatballs, which are much tastier. I’ll stick to those in the future.
Christian
Added three cloves of garlic, and used 3/4 of a medium-sized Vidalia onion. The mixture was a little loose, so I refrigerated for a while before forming onto the skewers. Next time I'll use less onion or oven bake, as the kebabs were very fragile on the grill. Delicious though.
Brigitte_Mtl
Delicious. The grated onion is a game changer and makes the texture smoother / less crumbly than chopped onions. I like to add garlic (I use granules but fresh grated also works) and pine nuts, and I serve with homemade tahini sauce.
Desert Gal
It's only Moroccan kefta if onion, cilantro, and flat Italian parsely are ground up with the meat as in this recipe.
Dave
good flavors, but felt like it needed some kind of sauce to go with it.
Gayle H.
I love Kafka Kabobs…I use allspice instead of cumin and only parsley as the herb. Also, seems like a lot of paprika. Charcoal grilling is the best way to cook it.
Nancy Miller
My Armenian grandmother used to make these kuftas for me as a child. I tried them myself a couple of years ago -- lots of prep but so worth it. The Turks have a version, Syrians have a version, and Greeks do, too, each a bit different but a great dish. Can be served as a main dish or appetizer.
Josh
Soak the skewers!
Jill Evans-Kavaldjian
Wonderful as written! We grilled these kefta, piled ours in warm pita pockets with lettuce, tomato red onion, feta and yogurt sauce (Greek yogurt, garlic, lemon juice and zest, fresh dill, thinned with water). It was absolutely the bomb. 10/10.
ACL
I add freshly toasted and ground Garam masala to the lamb, as well as a ton of garlic. Amazing!
Impossible Meat
Made with impossible meat, doubled meat to spices ratio (2# meat). Served with jasmine rice, pita, sliced tomatoes, and tzatziki... HUGE hit with the fam.
Lacey
We doubled the herbs and the spices. Used paprika, cumin, and also garam masala. This was fantastic and went really well with biryani, tat Zulu and some cucumber salad!
Harris
Definitely needs an egg to bind the meat.
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