Beef Kofta

Beef kofta is all about perfectly seasoned ground beef with spices and herbs, grilled to perfection! These flavorful and juicy kofta kebabs will quickly become your favorite way to eat beef this summer! Easy, quick, and so good.

Fork tender beef koftas can be grilled or baked. Serve them with some tahini, tzatziki or inside the pita bread. Also really good with rice, hummus, grilled veggies, and fresh salad, just fantastic stuff!

What is Kofta

Beef Kofta is a popular Middle Eastern kebab, with variations of Kofta existing in the Middle East, Mediterranean, Southeast Asia, and even in North African cuisines. 

The kofta is simply ground beef mixed with grated onion, minced garlic, parsley, cumin, coriander, salt, and pepper; and then shaped in a cylinder and cooked in a grill or grill pan.

Ingredients

• Ground beef
• Garlic: I used fresh minced garlic, but you can also use garlic powder.
• Onion:The perfect onion for beef koftas is a small yellow or white onion, grated so that it's perfectly incorporated into the beef mixture, including the onion liquid.
• Parsley: Finely chopped.
• Spices: Cumin, oregano, turmeric and cinnamon.
• Canola or vegetable oil

Tzatziki Yogurt Sauce Ingredients

• Greek yogurt
• Lemon
• Dill
• Honey
• Paprika
• Salt & Pepper

How to make easy Tzatziki sauce

Simply mix all the ingredients together with a whisk or a fork!

How to make beef kofta

• Begin by chopping your parsley, garlic and onion until very fine, this should take a few minutes.
• In a mixing bowl add all the ingredients for the beef. Mix with a wooden spoon or your hands until just combined.
• Knead and combine for 5 minutes or until everything is well mixed, cover and set in fridge for minimum of 1 hour.

How to shape beef koftas

Divide beef into 6 equal portions and roll into a meat log, carefully poke the skewer through and squish the meat around to thin it out, covering the tip of the skewer just barely. Each meat log should be about 4 inches long.

Tips for shaping koftas

• Wet your hands with water: This helps prevent the meat mixture from sticking to your hands while you're shaping it.
• Ensure the mixture is well-kneaded and firm: This helps the kofta hold its shape and prevents it from falling apart during cooking.
• Chill the kofta before cooking: Refrigerating the shaped kofta for at least 30 minutes (or even overnight) can help it firm up and prevent it from breaking during the cooking process.

How to grill kofta kebabs

Preheat your grill to medium-high heat. You are aiming for the internal temperature to be about 375- 400 F. 

Once the grill is heated, oil the grates with oil and place the skewers down. Grill on medium high heat around 4 minutes per 'side', about 9-10 minutes in total. 

You can also cook these in a cast iron skillet or a grill pan as well. Heat your skillet or pan over medium high heat. Add about 1 tablespoon of oil and cook, flipping every few minutes. If your skillet won't allow for the length of your skewers, you can trim them down or simple form the kofta into log shapes without the skewer. Cook, flipping every 2-3 minutes until the internal temperature reaches 160 F. 

How to bake beef koftas

The best way to mimic the grill flavor in the oven is to use high heat. I like to preheat my oven to 400°F (200°C) and then bake beef koftas for 15-20 minutes, flipping halfway through for even browning.

What is it about Beef Kofta's shape?

Kofta shape depends on how you plan to cook and serve the kofta. For example, cylindrical shape is ideal for grilling on skewers, while round is used when baking or frying the koftas. The shape can also change depending on the country/region it's being served in. If it's an Egyptian recipe, beef koftas are elongated log like shape but in the middle east the yare

Beef Kofta Variations

You can also add any or all of these to make your beef koftas even tastier! 1.5 tablespoon of each:

• Garam masala and paprika: use 1.5 tablespoon each per 2 lb of beef.
• Chilli powder: 1 tablespoon per 2 lb. of beef
• Panko: Use ⅓ cup

Serving suggestions with Beef Kofta

• Tzatziki is grated cucumber, dill, lemon juice, minced garlic, salt, pepper, and Greek yogurt. Mix together and refrigerate for 30 minutes while making the other parts.
• The salad is cooked orzo mixed with diced tomatoes, cucumber, feta, sliced shallot, dill, parsley, and arugula. Topped with a lemon vinaigrette

What to serve beef kofta with

Serve them with lettuce, garlic naan, lambs lettuce, red onion, yogurt mint, hot honey.

What type of skewers do I need

You can use either wood or metal skewers for assembling the kofta kebabs.

Tips for recipe success 

• Use fattier ground beef: I suggest using an 85/15 ground beef because the fat gives these more flavor. If you want to you can use a lean ground beef though and still have yummy results. 
• Soak wooden skewers in water: If using wooden skewers, make sure to soak them in water for 30 minutes up to 2 hours before assembling or they can catch fire or burn during grilling. 
• Another traditional ingredient in Kofta is mint. If you want to you can add a tablespoon of chopped mint leaves into your meat. 
• Cooking to temperature vs. time is a great way to get consistent desirable results for beef kofta.
• Experiment: Try using charcoal baskets / vortex / slow n sear for different heat outputs.
• Get some wood chunks - experiment with hickory, oak, and mesquite to punch up a little extra flavor for kofta kebabs.

Beef Kofta FAQ

• What kind of ground beef should I use? Lean ground beef
• Do you have to fry beef kofta? You can also just lightly fry the outsides and finish by baking if you don't want to fry them completely.
• Can I make these with chicken? I make these all the time with ground chicken, which is also nice if you want something lighter.
• Lamb? Either rounded or tubular, on skewers or not, this is the Egyptian Kofta. You are right lamb is the key, unfortunately my family cannot tolerate lamb and this takes a lot out of my kofta making it a bit dry but still edible :). Thanks for posting your recipe.

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