Kofta Kebabs with yogurt sauce

Even if I have been living in Dubai for almost one year now, this is the very first time I prepare  a Middle Eastern dish at home. What a shame! But I can always make up for lost time, considering in particular how much I love this flavorful and spicy cuisine.
Kofta (or kofte) kebabs are long meatballs, made with ground lamb or beef (or a mix of them or even other kinds of meat, like mutton), flavored with herbs and spices and grilled on skewers. The name kofta comes from the Persian word kufthe which means mashed (when meat grinders were not available, meat was first cut into small pieces then mashed in a sort of mortar). Koftas are very popular in Turkey where it is possible to find many local versions, but they are a traditional food in almost all Middle Eastern countries; variations occur also in North Africa, the Mediterranean area, Balkans and India. Koftas can be grilled (then they are named kofta kebabs) or cooked in several other ways: steamed, fried, or cooked in a gravy. There are also vegetarian versions (especially in India) where meat is substituted for lentils, potatoes or other vegetables. It is also possible to find kofta made with fish.

I had seen a recipe for kofta kebabs last summer, during my holidays in Italy, while leafing through an Italian cooking magazine (funny, isn't it?) and decided I had to try when back in Dubai, where finding ingredients (spices in particular) is much easier (and of course, cheaper). I did not follow exactly the recipe I had found in the magazine, but added some ingredients (garlic and cayenne pepper in particular) and increased the quantity of the spices. I know that there are several versions of kofta kebabs (as for all traditional dishes), and I cannot say if the one I made may be considered somehow "orthodox"; I only know it is delicious and easy to make.
I used a mix of lamb and beef ground meat, but it is possible to use all lamb or all beef or even other combinations: what I recommend is not to use low fat meat, in order to have tender and moist kofta.
Also I baked the kofta kebabs in the oven but - and probably this is the more traditional cooking technique - they can also be grilled or chargrilled. A yogurt sauce flavored with mint and parsley is a perfect, refreshing complement (also tzatziki works well); and don't forget some Arabic bread.

Stir-fried sirloin beef with cherry tomatoes, green olives and capers

I spend a lot time in the kitchen, and I like it. I can stay a whole afternoon tempering chocolate, lining pans, whisking eggs and flour, spreading batters, whipping cream, just to make a layered cake or mono-portion triple chocolate mousse; also I may enjoy shaping dozens mini-croissant. Or even, considering that both me and my husband eat huge quantities of veggies, I do not mind washing and cutting as many vegetables as a restaurant kitchen (I am not exaggerating) for the dinner side dish.
But when it comes to prepare meat, I don't know the exact reason, I prefer not to spend much time. Probably it is because I like rare meat (as I have already said in the post for Asian-style strip steak), or maybe because most of the times I cook meat only for two people - my two years old child has chosen a vegetarian diet, with pasta as favorite dish (I hope he will change, sooner or later) - and a slowly roasted piece of meat for dinner is not worth the effort and time.
The good thing of this habit is that I have an interesting repertoire of fast recipes, really helpful for busy-day dinners as well as in case of unexpected guests. One of these is the recipe for stir-fried sirloin beef  with cherry tomatoes, green olives and capers which is really tasty and easy to make. Since the meat is cooked just few minutes, without many additional ingredients and spices, it is important to choose quality meat to have a really good result.

Asian style strip steak (with peppers, onion and ginger-soy sauce)

I don't eat (and don't cook either) a lot of meat. There is no ethic or ideological or merely dietetic motivation behind this; and not even the fact that I don't like meat, in fact I love it (of course only if it is quality meat, but this is true for any kind of food). The reason is simply that I rarely long for having some meat and probably I could live without it (while I cannot stay one day without eating some kind of vegetable). And the weird thing is that when I crave for meat I want something raw or very close to: and so if I prepare meat at home, most of the times it is something not requiring slow cooking or roasting. When I lived in Turin (where local beef breed - Fassone - has a high quality, tender and flavorful meat) I used to prepare a mix of tartares with different seasonings or a simple tagliata. Now that I live in Dubai I like to experiment "fusion" recipes where Italian flavors I am used to combine with ingredients and ways of cooking coming from different culinary traditions, and the recipe I want to share is a perfect example of this idea: the meat is rapidly stir - fried (something similar to what we call "straccetti"), but before is marinated in a ginger-soy sauce-sesame oil- garlic-chili mixture which gives an oriental deep flavor, and is paired with onions and peppers cooked in the same sauce; and everything in cooked in a wok (which I really like because it permits to make very tasty and perfectly seared food limiting the quantity of fat used).
I admit that the dish is not the most photogenic in the world - especially if pictured when prepared for a family dinner, as I did - but it gives a lot of satisfaction; and, not less important, is fast and easy to make.
I have not done yet, but I think it would be perfect for being eaten with chopsticks.