A Lebanese classic.
I still remember when my friend’s supervisor called this dish a “meat cake” the day she tasted it. Accurate description! Kibbeh is basically a meat dough filled with meat. Its spices make it a special dish, and it exists in two main forms: small fried balls, or flat in the oven. Kibbeh Bel Sayneyyeh, literally meaning Kibbeh in a tray, is the easier version to make. It’s a very traditional dish that everyone in Lebanon knows, and as with all traditional dishes, variations exist from house to house. This recipe is hugely inspired by the way my mother makes it, with a few additions of mine.
You can find this recipe’s video on Instagram and on Tiktok.
Ingredients
Kibbeh Dough
- 2.5 cups fine brown bulgur
- 500g ground meat (for fried kibbeh, this should be lean meat, but for the oven version, it does not matter)
- 1 small onion
- Fresh herbs (ideally mint, basil and marjoram; skip if not available)
- 1 tablespoon paprika (or pepper paste if available)
- 1 teaspoon chilli pepper (optional)
- 3 tablespoons Kibbeh spice blend (Kibbeh mix is available in shops that sell Middle Eastern products; I use a blend called Kammouneh, which contains dried rose leaves that give an amazing taste; if not available, you can use a mix of cumin, ground cloves, cinnamon, black pepper, dried mint, dried basil, and dried marjoram).
- Salt to taste
- Water if needed
- 1/3 cup olive oil
Kibbeh Filling
- 500g ground meat
- 1 large onion
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon Lebanese 7 spices
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1/4 cup pine nuts or crushed walnuts
Procedure
- Start by washing the bulgur in a large bowl. Once the impurities rise to the top, discard the water on top but do not strain. Cover and keep the bulgur to soak in its water for 2 hours at least.
- In the meantime, prepare the filling. Finely dice your onion and sweat it in a pan on medium high heat with some olive oil. Once translucent, add the ground meat.
- Let the meat cook completely while mixing from time to time. Add your spices, salt, and pepper, and mix thoroughly. Finally, mix in the nuts of your choice.
- Once the bulgur is soaked, start grinding it with a small onion and some fresh herbs, ideally in a meat grinder, using the finest blade. If you do not have a meat grinder, you may do this step in a food processor, but do it in batches.
- Add the meat and all spices to the ground bulgur and mix them a bit. Next, grind the mix together in a second step. If you’re using a food processor, I advise you to process the bulgur and meat separately, then mix and knead them with your hands.
- Knead the meat dough with your hand while adding some water to make it softer. Do this until its color becomes uniform, and everything is well combined.
- Divide the dough in half. Brush some olive oil on the bottom and sides of an oven dish. Spread one half of the dough at the bottom of the dish in a fine layer. Wetting your hands makes it easier to spread the dough evenly.
- Add your cooled filling and spread it evenly. Repeat the previous step with the other half of the dough. This part is trickier. Some water really helps here, but make sure you are not adding too much. Also, do not push the top dough too much into the filling.
- Pre-cut your Kibbeh tray in the shape you want, then decorate with pine nuts.
- You may bake the kibbeh now, or prepare everything and conserve it till the next day in the fridge to bake it later. If you decide to cook it later, make sure you cover it with cling film that is in contact with the meat so that it does not dry out.
- Add olive oil on the top and bake in a preheated oven at 180ºC for 25-30 minutes.
- You may serve this with a salad, hummus, and/or a yogurt-cucumber dip. Enjoy!
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