Recipe: Kibbeh

Cooked by pounding bulgur wheat together with meat into a fine paste and
forming it into balls with toasted pine nuts and spices.

Vincenzos Plate

Preparing the burgul

1. Put 200 gms burgul in a large mixing bowl and add water to it. wash the grain well using your hands to mix the water through. you can leave this aside for an hour, but if you don’t have the time, a few minutes will also suffice.

2. Strain the water out, leaving just a small amount so it can continue to absorb.

3. Add ½ tsp of each of the following ingredients: salt, pepper, paprika, dry mint and cumin powder. mix thoroughly so the grain is well flavoured.

4. Grate an onion and add it to the mixture, then blend it together really well.

Preparing the meat

5. Chop up 2 medium size onions.

6. Put a deep fry pan on high heat and drizzle 2 tbsp of olive oil.

7. Add 50g of combined pine nuts and slivered almonds and mix gently while on the stove. simmer for 2-3 minutes.

8. Turn off the stove and remove the nuts from the fry pan, leaving them to the side to rest. make sure you leave the oil inside the fry pan and put it back on the stove.

9. Add 500 gms of sheep or lamb mince to the pan so it cooks in the nutty flavoured oil and break it down using a wooden spoon so it cooks through really well.

10. Add 2 chopped onions and continue to mix through so all the flavours combine.

11. Add in the fried nuts, ½ tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper and leave to simmer until the onion is cooked through.

12. Take the burgul that has been left to rest and crush it down using your hands so it is the perfect consistency for the kibbeh recipe. add a few sprinkles of water and mix again.

13. Then, add 300 gms ground sheep or lamb meat to the bowl, squashing it down until there are no burgul grains left in the bowl.

Kibbeh qrass (hollowed balls stuffed with filling)

14. Fill a small bowl with water, and take a portion of the burgul/meat mixture and roll it into the shape of a ball.

15. Once you have created the ball, take one into your hand, and using the index finger of the other hand, make a hole in the centre of one side of the ball, and swipe your finger in a small curve while turning the ball around and creating a cone like shape.

16. Keep smoothing out the centre until you have created a thin border which creates a pocket.

17. Add the mince/nut filling you prepared earlier, then close the top by moulding a point on the other end.