Beef Kofta with Pistachio Salsa

Beef kofta is a well spiced beef mince shaped into oval logs or meatballs, flavoured with warm middle Eastern spice and fresh herbs, and then grilled, baked or panfried. I simply served them with a green salad and homemade tzatziki. But you can enjoy them over some hummus, or with rice, couscous or flatbread. Feel free to add some chopped olives, pistachios or feta to the kofta mixture. Parsley stems are packed with strong herbal flavour, so save them for the sauce or stews.

Kofta	Pistachio Salsa
80 g Crustless white bread 500 g Beef mince (or a mix of beef and lamb) 1 tsp Ground cumin 1 tsp Ground allspice 1 tsp Coriander 1 Garlic clove, minced 1 Medium egg 15 g Parsley or mint, leaves finely shredded Sea salt Freshly milled black pepper 1½ tbsp olive oil Tzatziki, to serve Salad greens, to serve	50 g Pistachio kernels, toasted and unsalted 15 g Parsley or mint, leaves picked 75 ml Olive oil Zest and juice of ½ lemon A pinch of sea salt

Soak the bread in a bowl of cold water for 1-2 minutes, then drain and squeeze out the excess water. Crumble into a large bowl and add the beef mince, spices, garlic, egg and herb. Season, then mix well with your hands until combined. Shape the mixture into 15 oval-shaped kofta. Place them on a plate and chill for 30 minutes or up to 24 hours ahead.
For the salsa, place the pistachios in a small food processor with the parsley leaves, olive oil, lemon zest and juice, plus a pinch of salt. Pulse until you have a chunky salsa consistency.
Brush the kofta with the 1½ tablespoons olive oil. Heat a cast iron pan or griddle pan until very hot, then cook the kofta over a medium-high heat for 3-4 minutes on each of the 4 sides, until browned and cooked through. Don’t turn until they are well sealed or the meat may stick to the pan.
Spread the tzatziki or salad greens over a large serving platter, then arrange the kofta on top. Spoon over some of the salsa, then serve with the remaining salsa alongside.

6 comments:

DEZMOND 1/11/26 13:14: Pistachio is still all the craze in the culinary world.
Lola Martínez 1/11/26 13:54: Las koftas me gustan, aunque nunca las he cocinado, siempre las he comido fuera de casa. Pero tu receta es ideal, muy buena para ponerla en práctica.
Tom 1/11/26 14:20: This looks and sounds fabulous!
My name is Erika. 1/11/26 14:34: I'm really curious about the pistachio salsa. That sounds really interesting. Maybe because I like pistachios a lot. Happy NOvember to you!
Anonymous 1/11/26 14:54: Looks yummy!-Christine cmlk79.blogspot.com
Brian's Home Blog 1/11/26 15:52: That sure looks great and it is a very pretty dish!