kafta

Lamb Kofta Open-Faced Pita Sandwiches are a delicious and flavorful lunch or dinner. Ground lamb and beef is mixed with finely minced onion, parsley and mint with a plethora of dried spices. The kofta is baked on skewers and sits atop warm pita with all the fixings.

Lamb Kofta Open-Faced Pita

plain, nonfat Greek yogurt

mayonnaise

(medium) peeled garlic cloves, grated

juice of 1/2 a medium lemon

sugar

white pepper

kosher salt,

white onion,

loosely packed, coarsely chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

mint leaves

garlic,

lamb

beef

salt

coriander

cumin

allspice

turmeric

cardamom

pitas

hummus

cucumber tomato salad

white garlic sauce

mint

parsley

black pepper

In a mixing bowl, combine yogurt, mayo, garlic,...

In a mixing bowl, combine yogurt, mayo, garlic, sugar, white pepper and salt.

Preheat your oven to 400°.

In your food processor, fitted with the blade...

In your food processor, fitted with the blade attachment, combine the onion, parsley, mint and garlic. Pulse until finely minced.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the lamb,...

In a large mixing bowl, combine the lamb, beef and onion/parsley mixture along with salt, coriander, cumin, allspice, white pepper, turmeric and cardamom.

 Take a palmful of the lamb mixture and...

 Take a palmful of the lamb mixture and form oblong patties around metal (or wooden skewers that have soaked in water for at least 30 minutes).

Place the skewers on a lightly sprayed wire...

Place the skewers on a lightly sprayed wire rack that is set into a rimmed baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining mixture.

Bake the lamb kofta for 20 to 25...

Bake the lamb kofta for 20 to 25 minutes or until lightly browned on top and fully cooked through.

﻿Once baked, top warm pita or naan with...

﻿Once baked, top warm pita or naan with hummus, lamb kofta and any other toppings your heart desires. Drizzle with the garlicky white yogurt sauce and extra black pepper. 

Kafta, kofta, kifta, however you spell it, it amounts to the same thing; a ground meat kebab.

Kafta Recipe

lb Ground Beef

Salt

tsp Seven Spices

½ tsp Crushed Red Pepper

Cumin

Cinnamon

Coriander

Parsley (finely chopped)

Preheat oven to 400ºF (200ºC) or grill.

Soak wooden skewers for at least twenty minutes so they don&#039;t catch fire in the oven.

Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl.

Using your hand make fist sized balls.

Shape the kaftas as you put the meat on skewers. 

Place on a tray if going in the oven otherwise put the skewers directly on your grill.

It will take roughly 20 minutes turning once. Maybe a bit quicker on the grill.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6v3DnQs_wRQ

These Lebanese grilled beef kebabs are perfect for entertaining all year round 🥙

RECIPE: https://www.cheftariq.com/recipe/kafta/

SUBSCRIBE: http://bit.ly/ChefTariq

Get my FREE eBook 'The Perfect Mezze': https://www.cheftariq.com/perfect-mezze-ebook/

ABOUT CHEF TARIQ:
I’m a food, travel & lifestyle blogger who is passionate about creating recipes from my Arab American background. I love to travel and share my experiences and top tips along the way!

CONNECT WITH CHEF TARIQ: 
* Like me on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/ChefTariqCooks/
* Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cheftariqcooks/
* Follow me on Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.co.uk/cheftariq/
* Check out my website: https://www.cheftariq.com
* Subscribe to Chef Tariq Newsletters: http://bit.ly/ChefTariqEmail

Kafta (Lebanese Grilled Beef Kebabs)

Arayes is a popular Middle Eastern dish that consists of stuffed and grilled (or baked) pita bread filled with a mixture of minced meat, typically beef or lamb, along with various seasonings and spices. This incredibly easy-to-prepare recipe includes 2 cooking methods to suit your preferences, as well as a dipping sauce.

Arayes (Authentic Middle Eastern Meat Stuffed Pitas)

Medium white onion (- Roughly chopped)

½ lbs Extra lean ground beef (- You can use ground lamb or chicken too)

tbsp Baharat (7-Spice)

tsp Garlic powder (- Use more if you like garlic)

tsp Sumac

Salt and Black pepper

pita breads

Olive oil

tbsp Tahini

Lemon juice

water

Salt and pepper

Process: In a small food processor, pulse the chopped onion and parsley until fine.

Mix: In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground beef, onion and parsley mixture, sumac, 7-spice, garlic powder, salt and black pepper. Mix really well. I encourage you fry up a small tablespoon of the mixture and taste for seasoning. Adjust if necessary.

Prepare Pita: Cut your pita breads in half and very carefully open them up. You can use your fingers to open them up or a butter knife. Make sure the pocket remains intact.

Scoop: Using an ice cream scoop, scoop about 2 portions of the ground beef mixture into each pita pocket.

Spread: Using a butter knife, spread the meat filling evenly and all the way around.

Grill: Lightly oil the stuffed pita halves and grill them on both sides in a grill pan or cast iron skillet set on medium-high heat until the meat is cooked through and you have nice grill marks on the bread, about 4-5 minutes on each side.

Cooking Method 1: Grill Pan

Bake: Preheat your oven to 375F/190C.  Lightly oil the stuffed pita halves and place them on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Bake until cooked through, about 12-15 minutes.

Cooking Method 2: Oven or air Fryer

In a small bowl, combine the tahini and lemon juice and whisk. This will form a paste. Add cold water 1 tablespoon at a time until you reach the desired dipping sauce consistency. Don&#39;t make it too runny. Season with salt and pepper.

Make the Tahini Sauce (Optional)

Made this with homemade pitas. Did half in the air fryer and half in panini press. They turned out great and are so delicious! Loved how quick this was to make and was able to clean up while they baked. This is definitely going into our meal rotation.

Made with spiced beef sausage kabobs and vegetables, Kefta Salad with Tzatziki Dressing is a tasty and unique main course salad. Just add pita.

Kefta Salad with Tzatziki Dressing

cucumber (use the rest in the salad)

plain Greek yogurt

lemon juice

Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Tablespoon finely chopped parsley

garlic

salt (pepper

onion

tomato (quartered)

parsley leaves

paprika

bread

lettuce

cherry tomatoes

mini peppers

remaining half of the cucumber

If grilling the kabobs, soak eight skewers in water.  This isn't needed if you are oven baking them.

Make the dressing.  Seed half a cucumber, chop, salt and let sit in a strainer briefly to drain..  Discard juices and mix the cucumber with the rest of the dressing ingredients.  Store in the refrigerator while you make the rest of the dish.

Using a food processor, pulse the seasoning mix ingredients until finely chopped.  They will look surprisingly like meat.  Remove from food processor and in a separate bowl, mix with the meat.

Form seasoned meat mixture around eight skewers.  Bake in a 375 F oven until temperature is 165F, about 15 minutes.  Alternatively you can grill the kabobs,

While kabobs are cooking assemble salads. Slice the cucumber and mini peppers into rounds.  Divide lettuce between four bowls, and top with tomatoes, sliced cucumber and sliced mini peppers.

Serve salads with kefta kabobs and dressing.

Make it with meat or without it's amazing!

I love that these can be grilled or baked! Using the kefta to top the salad with, gave the salad the texture and flavor I didn't know it was missing! The spiced beef was just enough spice for me, but not over the top. A great summer meal!

Top 4 kafta recipes from across the web

The most viewed kafta recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine

Top Tags

Lamb Kofta Open-Faced Pita

Kafta Recipe

Arayes (Authentic Middle Eastern Me...

Kefta Salad with Tzatziki Dressing

Top 4 kafta recipes from across the web

The most viewed kafta recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engineic_arrow_forward_48px

Top Tags

Lamb Kofta Open-Faced Pita

Kafta Recipe

Arayes (Authentic Middle Eastern Me...

Kefta Salad with Tzatziki Dressing

The most viewed kafta recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine