Today I’m cooking one of my favourite ways for lamb – Lamb Kofta.  And the heat we’re currently having (34 degrees Celsius) makes cooking quite interesting. Hence my fan has moved into the kitchen, next to me.

Kofta or meatballs are often prepared in various Middle Eastern and other Cuisines, and usually consist of lamb, beef or chicken minced meat, rolled into meatballs and cooked with spicy gravy.  There are of course variations depending on where you have them, in India they could also be made of potato for example.  The origin of the word ‘kofta’ is Persian and means ‘mashed’

Ingredients

For the Kofta

• 200 gr of Lamb Mince
• 1/2 Onion, peeled and finely diced
• 1 Garlic Clove, peeled and finely diced
• a Handful of fresh Parsley Leaves
• a Handful of fresh Mint Leaves
• Seasoning Mix for Kofta or Kebabs – alternatively, you can use cumin for this, roasted and ground
• Freshly ground Pepper & Sea Salt

For the dressing

• 50ml Natural Yoghurt
• some dried Parsley and Mint
• Freshly ground Pepper & Sea Salt
• Chili, to taste

Method

We first start off with the Kofta.  Having peeled and finely dices the garlic, onion and fresh herbs, we take a small frying pan and on a gentle heat, add some butter to fry the garlic and onion till tender.  Then take off the heat, set aside and leave to cool.

Add the lamb mince to a bowl large enough to add on and mix the fresh herbs plus the cooled garlic and onion mix.  Add some pepper and salt and a little bit of olive oil.  Mix well with a fork, or if you prefer, your hands.

Divide the mixture into small balls, like half the size of a tennis ball, and flatten these till about 1 cm thick.  Place on a plate and cover. Then leave in the fridge for about 10 minutes, so the meat balls  can firm up and rest for a minute.

In mean time, take a bowl in which you add the yoghurt, pepper and salt and if you like a touch of spicy, the chilli.  Mix these well together.

Take a frying pan large enough to hold all our meat balls, and put this on a medium high heat.  When the pan is nice and hot, start cooking our meat balls.  After about 5-6 minutes in, turn the meat balls around so the other side is evenly cooked.

Today I’m serving this with a mixed lettuce side salad to which I added my left over bruschetta mix from Friday night.  Dip the meat balls in the dressing and enjoy!

Alternatively, you can also grill the kofta if you prefer or pop them on the barbecue.