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Koofteh Tabrizi – Persian stuffed Meatballs for Mehregan

Koofteh Tabrizi – Persian stuffed Meatballs for Mehregan

Families often personalize their Koofteh with different spices, nuts, herbs, and dried fruits.

Course Main Dish, Meatballs, minced meat
Cuisine persian cuisine, Persian Food, Shomali
Keyword Koofteh Tabrizi – Persian stuffed Meatballs for Mehregan
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Servings 8 Stuffed Meatballs
Author Labsalliebe

Ingredients

INGREDIENTS FOR PERSIAN STUFFED MEATBALLS

INGREDIENTS FOR THE MEATBALLS

  • 80 g yellow split peas Lapeh
  • 150 g rice
  • 300 g spring onions
  • 5 tbsp fresh tarragon or 2 tbsp dried
  • ½ tsp saffron
  • 500 g ground beef
  • 1 egg for meatballs
  • Salt & pepper

INGREDIENTS FOR THE FILLING

  • 2 eggs hard-boiled
  • 2 tbsp barberries
  • 12 dried Mirabelles Aloo Bukhara
  • 8 walnuts

INGREDIENTS FOR THE BROTH

  • 2 onions
  • 1 tsp turmeric
  • 1 tbsp butter optional
  • 2 tbsp tomato paste optional
  • Saffron essence optional
  • Salt pepper

INGREDIENTS FOR THE TOPPING (optional)

  • 2-3 tbsp sumac
  • 1 tbsp barberries
  • 8 walnuts

Instructions

HOW TO MAKE PERSIAN STUFFED MEATBALLS

PREPARE THE MEATBALLS

  1. Soak split peas and rice overnight.

  2. Cook the split peas for 30 minutes until tender, and par-cook the rice until just soft.

  3. Chop spring onions and tarragon finely.

  4. Grind saffron with a little sugar.

  5. Mix spring onions, tarragon, split peas, and beef, then add rice, saffron, egg, salt, and pepper. Knead well.

  6. For the saffron essence, pour some hot water into the empty saffron bowl with the leftover ground saffron and set it aside.
  7. Prepare another bowl with lukewarm water to wet your hands.

PREPARE THE FILLING

  1. Hard-boil eggs.

  2. Soak barberries to remove debris.

  3. Shape meat mixture into tennis-ball-sized balls, make a hole in the center, and fill with either eggs or a mix of Aloo, barberries, and walnuts.

  4. Seal and shape the balls.

MAKE THE BROTH

  1. Finely dice the onion.

  2. Heat oil in a pan and sauté the onions until golden brown.

  3. Add butter, then season with turmeric, tomato paste (optional), saffron essence (optional), salt, and pepper.

  4. Pour in 1 liter of hot water and bring to a gentle simmer.

  5. Carefully place the koofteh (meat and rice balls) into the broth.

  6. Cover and cook on low heat for about 1 hour, allowing the broth to reduce by half.

SERVE

  1. Place a meatball in a deep plate, pour over some broth, and sprinkle with sumac, barberries and top with a walnut.

Recipe Notes

The dish pairs perfectly with Mast-o-Khiar (Persian yogurt with cucumber), Mast-o-Musir (wild garlic yogurt), and Nan-e Barbari (Persian flatbread).