Kefta, which is seasoned ground beef divided into meatball-like servings, is another popular Middle Eastern dish. It's a more laid-back kind of dish that takes longer to cook than to actually prepare. The beautifully seasoned meat gets coated in delicious tomato sauce, accompanied by delicious vegetables like potatoes, onions, bell peppers and tomatoes. I like to bake this dish in the oven with all the meat and vegetables nice and snug in a glass dish. Pair it with rice and Middle Eastern salad for a complete dish!
Add a Middle Eastern salad to your dish with these simple ingredients: tomatoes, cucumber, parsley, mint, salt, pepper, olive oil, and lemon juice!
Plain yogurt also brings a cooling effect to the meal and it's so tasty with the ground beef!
Kefta for my family is known as the "meal when you have no other ideas on what to cook". I was never the biggest fan of it, no matter how it was prepared. I thought it was simply boring and it was never something I requested from my mom to cook.
After almost 7 months of being married, I decided to finally give this dish a go... and it wasn't bad! I played around with some flavors a bit and got a pretty flavorful recipe! The potatoes were a nice touch of texture and subtle flavor to the kefta as well. You can choose to make this dish with a tahini base as well, which is also very popular. However, I'm more of a tomato sauce fan, so I went with that and it came out just right!
Prep Time: 20 minutes Serves: 4 People
Cook Time: 1 hr. and 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hr. and 50 minutes
INGREDIENTS
1 lb. Lean Ground Beef
1 Yellow Onion, very finely chopped
1/2 cup Parsley, very finely chopped
2 Tbsp. Fresh Mint Leaves, very finely chopped
2 Cloves Garlic, minced
1/2 Tbsp. Cumin
1/2 Tbsp. Paprika
1/2 Tbsp Onion Powder
1/2 Tbsp. Oregano
1 1/2 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Black Pepper
1 Yellow Onion, sliced in circles
1 Green Bell Pepper, sliced in squares
1 Beef Tomato, sliced thinly
1 Russet Potato, sliced thinly
1 1/2 cups Water
8 oz. Can Tomato Sauce
INSTRUCTIONS:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a medium bowl, combine the ground beef, onion, parsley, mint, garlic, cumin, paprika, onion powder, oregano, salt, and black pepper.
Work the spices and ingredients into the ground beef just enough to evenly combine. Do not overwork the meat or it can become tough when cooked.
Begin rolling the seasoned ground beef into mini patties, a little smaller than your palm. You don't want to make them smaller because they shrink after cooking.
In a glass baking dish, begin stacking the sliced vegetables and patties in a pattern (meat, onion, pepper, tomato, potato, repeat).
Gently pour the water over the meat and potatoes. Add the tomato sauce on top of the meat and potatoes and gently stir into the water using a spoon.
Cover the dish with aluminum foil and cook for 1hour and 30 minutes, until at least half the liquid is gone.
Broil uncovered on low for another 5-10 minutes.
Serve with rice, salad, and plain yogurt.
Enjoy!
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