A platter of spicy beef kofta. PHOTO/KADUMUKASA KIRONDE
SERVES 6
INGREDIENTS:
500g twice minced beef
2 medium onions, grated
2 tsp finely minced garlic
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp Cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper to taste
A bunch of fresh parsley, finely chopped
A small bunch of fresh cilantro, finely chopped
FOR THE CHICKPEA PUREE
225g/1 ½ cups dried chickpeas, soaked overnight, drained and cooked
50 ml olive oil
Juice of 1 medium size lemon
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tsp cumin seeds
2 tbsp tahini paste
4 tbsp preferably plain Greek yogurt (strained)
3 tbsp butter, melted
Salt and black pepper to taste
Salad and bread to serve
METHOD:
Mix the minced beef with the onion, garlic, cumin, ground coriander, paprika, Cayenne, salt and pepper, chopped parsley, and the fresh cilantro.
Knead the mixture well and then pound it in mortar and pestle or a food processor until smooth. Place in a dish, cover and leave to stand in a cool place or in the fridge for a good hour.
In the meantime, make the chickpea puree. Preheat the oven to 200dC/400dF/Gas mark 6.
In a blender or food processor and add the drained chickpeas with the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, cumin seeds, tahini and the yogurt until well mixed.
Taste and add more seasoning as needed. Scoop the puree into an ovenproof dish and cover with foil and heat in the oven for about 20 minutes.
Divide the meat mixture into six portions and mould each on go a metal skewer so that the meat resembles a fat sausage.
Preheat the grill (broiler) on the hottest setting and cook the kebabs for four to five minutes on each side.
Melt the butter and pour it over the hot chickpea puree and taste and correct seasoning before serving with a simple salad and bread.
Titbits
There are dozens types of kebabs, some eaten regionally and some widely known internationally. Perhaps the best-known of the latter is shish kebab, although this term is unrevealing, in as much as it means simply skewered meat (from the Turkish şiş kebap).
If you chance to be in the Middle East, you are bound to encounter these tasty kebabs as street food, on barbecues, at beach bars and at family gatherings. Here in Uganda, kebabs were introduced by the Asians and over the years have become very indigenous and part of our diet.
The task of pounding the meat----traditionally performed by hand using a mortar and pestle--- is much easier using a food processor. Not to mention the fact that today one can buy readymade mincemeat from any butcher or supermarket.
It takes just a few minutes to mould the mixture around the skewers and best of all they do not take long to cook.
Chickpea puree is the traditional accompaniment. Kebab is a dish of Middle Eastern or Central Asian origin that typically combines small pieces of meat such as lamb or beef, with vegetables on a skewer and is then grilled.
The word Kebab is derived from a Persian term for the dish that passed into both Arabic (as kabab) and Turkish (as kebap).
Kebabs are thought to have originated among the Transhumant peoples in Central Asia whose meat-heavy diet was transformed somewhat in an urban context, where vegetables were more readily available.
Kebab meat is typically cut away from the bone into bite-size cubes, although kafta (ground meat and nuts with spices, formed into meatballs) is also popular.
he meat is usually marinated in olive oil and lemon juice, with various spices added, ranging from relatively mild ones such as garlic, ginger to hot peppers and smoked paprika.
Typical vegetables (eggplant), tomatoes, potato, and onions are also great additions. Meat and vegetables are alternated along the length of a skewer and then placed atop a charcoal brazier and grilled.
The use of charcoal is an economical adaptation due to the crippling shortage of fuel wood in the Middle East, where rarely are kebabs cooked directly on wood. There are dozens types of kebabs, some eaten regionally and some widely known internationally.
Perhaps the best-known of the latter is shish kebab, although this term is unrevealing, in asmuch as it means simply skewered meat (from the Turkish şiş kebap). It has a close cousin in shashlik, eaten in the Caucasus region and Russia. Beef or lamb is the preferred meat in the Middle East, although chicken is also used.
Döner kebab, which takes its name from the Turkish words meaning rotating meat, is similar to Shawarama and gyros. The the meat is sliced, stacked and roasted on a vertical spit and then carved off the spit and served in pita or some other flat bread.
The Greek souvlaki is a version of shish kebab that uses only meat, quite similar to the Turkish çöp şiş, “skewered garbage,” a tongue in cheek nomenclature that refers to the fact that meat is often scrap leftover after other choice cuts have been removed.
Kebabs are often eaten with yogurt sauce and served with rice. There is likely no town of any size in the Arabic- and Persian-speaking parts of the world that is without a kebab restaurant or street vendor. Kebabs are popular far outside their native region and are standard features on restaurant menus and at food stalls.
In Germany and Scandinavia, with their large Turkish immigrant populations, döner kebab has been a popular fast food for decades.
Meanwhile, Maritime Canadians eat a version called “Halifax donair,” whose sauce contains condensed milk and sugar along with more traditional ingredients such as garlic, ginger and paprika. Kebabs without meat can also be vegetarian or vegan.
