Kofta recipe - super easy

[SteveK]

Here is a great recipe which I often use when I fancy something non-Thai and can't be arsed to cook a proper meal. Very easy, and very tasty. Lamb koftas are sensational but unfortunately this is Thailand so I use pork in this recipe. Total cost for this is under 60 baht, and you get almost a pound of meat.

 

Here we go:

 

Soak your wooden kebab skewers in water for at least 20 minutes so they don't burn in your grill/oven/bbq.

 

Put 2 garlic cloves and 2 red chillis in a pestle and mortar and pound into a paste.

Add this paste to a 400gm pack of pork mince.

 

Then add the spices:

Half teaspoon salt

Half teaspoon msg

Pinch of white pepper

Pinch of freshly ground black pepper

Pinch of paprika

Half teaspoon coriander powder

One teaspoon cumin powder

Juice of half a small lime

 

It should look like this:

 

 

Then mix well with your hands for about a minute or two, don't create a paste because you want to keep some texture to the mixture.

 

Divide the mixture and create sausage shapes, pierce with your skewer. Here is what mine look like (I make them extra big so they retain moisture in the middle but it's up to you).

 

 

Then put them into your oven at about 200C for 20-25 minutes, keeping an eye on them.

 

Ideally I would serve in pitta bread with salad, a squeeze of lemon and some chilli sauce but that's up to you.

 

 

 

Sorry for the bad photos.

[JHolmesJr]

These turn out better over an actual fire....plus dont be shy to add some more spice:

 

cayenne, clove powder, mace powder, cardamom powder etc

 

Im also surprised the flimsy bamboo slivers can take the weight...I would imagine nice 

broad metal skewers would be nice...

[SteveK]

Just now, JHolmesJr said:

These turn out better over an actual fire....plus dont be shy to add some more spice:

 

cayenne, clove powder, mace powder, cardamom powder etc

Problem is they have a tendency to disintegrate on the BBQ.

[JHolmesJr]

some sort of binding agent....perhaps an egg mashed into the mix....might help

[tutsiwarrior]

kofta using pork?...an interesting concept as it's a middle eastern/persian dish and pork is haram...I've tried making kofta using the frozen ground beef from makro but it has too much fat...and yeah you can use an egg as a binder, also some bread crumbs sorta like meatloaf with some spices and chiles added as in the OP's recipe...cooked the same way as meatloaf without the skewers...

 

 

[JHolmesJr]

for a good one I would recommend ground goat mince

from the thigh.

[SteveK]

57 minutes ago, tutsiwarrior said:

kofta using pork?...an interesting concept as it's a middle eastern/persian dish and pork is haram...I've tried making kofta using the frozen ground beef from makro but it has too much fat...and yeah you can use an egg as a binder, also some bread crumbs sorta like meatloaf with some spices and chiles added as in the OP's recipe...cooked the same way as meatloaf without the skewers...

 

 

Yes you are correct, but I am not Muslim so can eat any meat. If I could get goat, I would be making my slow cooked Caribbean curry goat recipe. Only place I have found where I can get lamb is online delivery and it's so expensive it's stupid.

 

This pork recipe comes out super tasty and above all, cheap. Ate the whole lot myself today making sure nobody knew I was eating because I didn't want to share.

 

I grill the kebabs in my Otto cooker, the oil drains out - I have tried using breadcrumbs to bulk it out but prefer sticking with the recipe above. Today I ate mine in home made tortillas with some lettuce and chilli sauce.

[AlQaholic]

Swedish meatballs...

[SunsetT]

1 hour ago, AlQaholic said:

Swedish meatballs...

...And the same to you.....555!

[SunsetT]

18 hours ago, SteveK said:

a 400gm pack of pork mince.

Why unecessarily add to the World's plastic pollution problem? Why not buy it loose?

 

Why use msg?

[MrBanks]

13 hours ago, SteveK said:

Only place I have found where I can get lamb is online delivery and it's so expensive it's stupid.

Hi SteveK, obviously I don't know where you are located. We are a little out from Pattaya, we have minced lamb available in Big C Extra, I think that I have also seen it in Macro (but not 100% sure). Yes I am sure that it is more expensive than pork because it is imported from Australia, however, it might be cheaper than the offerings on-line.

[JHolmesJr]

no goats in Thailand?

[mrwebb8825]

On 1/29/2020 at 8:47 AM, AlQaholic said:

Swedish meatballs...

those weren't the balls, they were the other part. ???? 

 

ETA: OP- have seen lamb for sale at some macros and a few foodlands. you could get the chops and grind it yourself if you have a meat grinder.

Had rack of lamb at sofitel in hua hin. the "chef" destroyed it. was as chewy as jerky.

[tutsiwarrior]

swedish meat balls use a mixture of ground beef and pork and very tasty if a bit rich...

 

ground meats are versatile and can be used for almost anything...thais don't eat much goat although it's available at the local market occasionally, they're big on the pork, chicken and fish like most 3rd world places, we get ours outta the klong and a BiL has a harpoon and net arrangement...the local beef ain't worth mentioning...even with grinding...needa go to the frozen meat section at makro for the AUS and NZ stuff...

 

 

[worgeordie]

On 1/29/2020 at 7:25 PM, JHolmesJr said:

no goats in Thailand?

They must have been Unicorns I have seen then.

there will be herds of them down South.

regards Worgeordie

[Nyezhov]

On 1/29/2020 at 10:28 AM, SunsetT said:

 

 

Why use msg?

Becasue it makes things tasty.

[tifino]

1 minute ago, Nyezhov said:

Becasue it makes things tasty.

 people say the same thing about Salt...

 - to me Salt makes it taste more of Salt

 

Mum used to say the same thing about Butter

 - to me it made the meal taste more of butter 

[Nyezhov]

Just now, tifino said:

 people say the same thing about Salt...

 - to me Salt makes it taste more of Salt

 

Mum used to say the same thing about Butter

 - to me it made the meal taste more of butter 

Different. MSG has no taste.

[tifino]

2 minutes ago, Nyezhov said:

Different. MSG has no taste.

 

heh heh heh I guess you have become immune to it! 

[sirineou]

On 1/28/2020 at 4:26 AM, SteveK said:

Soak your wooden kebab skewers in water for at least 20 minutes so they don't burn in your grill/oven/bbq.

A great recipe  , thank you for sharing, though I would agree with others and add an egg, and a bit of breadcrumbs, the breadcrumbs would not only change the consistency a bit but also absorb some of the spices and add to the taste .    I also add finely chopped onions and mint leaves. 

 I use the skewers when done on a grill for keeping them together and flipping them over ,(they are arroy mak mak on one of those clay Thai barbeques over wood coals  ) but find them unnecessary when broiling in the oven, 

IMO They go great with a Tzatziki Sauce!!