My Persian neighbor first introduced me to these turkey kofta kebabs nearly 20 years ago. Although I was never given his recipe, I’m generally skilled at recreating flavors, and these were rather similar. He cooked them with beef, but switching to turkey makes them significantly lighter.
| Prep Time: | 15 mins |
| Cook Time: | 25 mins |
| Total Time: | 40 mins |
| Servings: | 12 |
| Yield: | 12 kebabs |
Ingredients
- vegetable oil for grill
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 1 small onion, minced
- ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 large egg
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ teaspoon chopped green chile pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground coriander
- ¼ teaspoon ground paprika
- ¼ teaspoon chili powder
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the grill for medium heat and lightly oil the grate.
- Combine turkey, onion, cilantro, egg, garlic, chile pepper, coriander, paprika, chili powder, and salt in a large bowl; mix thoroughly. Divide mixture into twelve 1/4-cup portions; roll into log-shaped ovals and place on a baking sheet.
- Grill ovals over indirect heat, turning occasionally, until no longer pink in the center, 25 to 30 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the center should read at least 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 65 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 1 g |
| Cholesterol | 42 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 0 g |
| Protein | 8 g |
| Saturated Fat | 1 g |
| Sodium | 41 mg |
| Sugars | 0 g |
| Fat | 3 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
Delicious! The mixture was very soft so I ended up adding about a cup of breadcrumbs. Instead of grilling I formemd into kofta-esque shapes and baked at 375 for 30 minute. This was SO yummy—definitely will be making again! Thanks!
Delicious! We added a little bit of panko to make the meat less wet to help everything hold better. other than that, amazing flavour! Great recipe!
Delicious. Will make these again. I used a spicy Serrano pepper.
Really enjoyed making this dish. Very simple and I had everything on hand. I really liked the kofta although wish I had been able to grill them. I formed them and baked at 375 for 40 minutes (internal temp reached 165 degrees). They held up well in the oven. I think they would be fine as written and cooked on the grill. However, skewering to make a “kabob” would be difficult with the moisture content of the meat mixture, but then again…the recipe does not instruct you to use a skewer. If you choose to skewer them, reduce to 1 egg or 1 egg white, gauge the moisture content, and slowly mix in some plain breadcrumbs (about 1/4-1/2 cup should be fine) for these to hold together.
I was a little heavy handed with the spices to suit our taste but other than that I made as written. I liked the idea of no breadcrumbs but because of that, these ovals were pretty wet which made it hard to keep them in one piece when flipping. The title of the recipe is Kabobs so I felt it fitting to stick them on a skewer for serving. Great flavors in this recipe and one that would work nicely with ground chicken or beef too.