Koofteh Tabrizi is one of the most famous and delicious foods in tabriz, the most populated city in northwestern Iran. Nowadays koofteh (Persian Meatballs) is cooked in almost all Iranian cities and you can see different recipes for the preparation of koofteh tabrizi. Koofteh Tabrizi is probably one of traditional persian foods that every visitor should try at least once when coming to this beautiful city. The perfect lunch or dinner to serve in weekends and it’s one of those dishes I just know you will love!
Ingredients
- 500gr ground beef(choose low fat meat)
- 1 cup yellow split peas
- ½ cup short grain rice
- 1 medium yellow onion
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 small potato, boiled and peeled
- 5 tablespoon koofteh herbs(scallion, summer savory, tarragon, mint, parsley, coriander)
- Salt, turmeric, black pepper
- hard-boiled eggs(optional)
- yellow prunes
- dried barberry
- walnut
- 3 table spoon tomato paste
- 4 cups of hot water
Instructions
Step 1
Soak split peas overnight. Place peas in a pot and cover them with water about 2 inches above the peas. Soaking peas overnight in water shortens their cooking time.
Step 2
Drain yellow split peas water. Add a cup of water to yellow split peas and cook it with a small potato for 30 minutes on low heat. Then drain water and set aside.
Step 3
Place the rice with two glasses of water, no salt, and with an open lid on the heat the water is all soaked up.
Step 4
Transfer cooked potato, rice and yellow split peas to a large bowl. Mix them all together using a food processor until uniform.
Step 5
Grate one small onion and squeeze out the onion juice, this will avoid koofteh tabrizi falling apart while cooking.
Step 6
In a large bowl Mix the ground beef and grated onion thoroughly.
Step 7
Add rice and yellow split peas, egg, herbs, salt, turmeric and pepper.
Step 8
Knead ingredients for about 10 minutes. Kneading is very important and adds strength to the final mixture. If you feel that the mixture is a little bit soft you can place them in the fridge for a few hours before cooking them.
Step 9
Sauté the barberries for a few minutes and set them aside.
Step 10
Chop another Onion and put it and Sauté in a large pot. After 5 minutes add turmeric and Sauté until golden brown over medium heat.
Step 11
Add tomato paste, salt and pepper to onion and then add 4 or 5 cups of hot water and bring it to boil.
Step 12
Once it starts bubbling, cover the pot and bring down the heat to a simmer and let the sauce get thick.
Step 13
Flatten ½ cup of the filling in your palm, place dried fruits and one half walnut in to the center and form it into a ball. To prevent the mixture from sticking to your hands you can wet your hands with cold water.
Step 14
Place the meatballs into the pot. Don’t cover the pot for 30 minutes and cook them gently over medium heat.
Step 15
After 30 minutes, reduces heat to low, cover the lid and let it cook for about 1 hour and 30 minutes.
Step 16
Sprinkle the top with fried onion and barberry mixture.
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