Kafta
كفتة
Minced lamb, parsley and onion on a skewer — the Levantine grill that is not a burger.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen. Native name preserved: كفتة.
0 people cooked this in the public kitchen yet. Kitchen-tested by I Want Some Food. Not a purchased rating.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 10 min
- Total
- 30 min
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Spice
- Mild
- Cost
- Weeknight budget$8–16 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Kafta is minced lamb (or a mix) with a lot of parsley, onion and spice, moulded onto skewers and grilled. It should stay juicy. If you pack it like a well-done meatball, you made a different dinner.
Ingredients
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Pulse or chop parsley, onion and garlic very fine. Mix into the lamb with spices. Chill 20 minutes.
15 minStep 2
Mould onto skewers. Grill or pan 8–10 minutes, turning, until just cooked through.
10 min
Adapt this recipe
The canonical recipe stays intact. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are maths, not AI.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 24 August.
Substitutions
Lamb → Beef mince
Common mix. Keep some fat.
Tips
- Wet hands. A wide flat skewer holds better than a thin round one.
- A little baking soda is a shop trick for bounce. Optional.
History & culture
Mixed grill platters and Thursday night. Rice or pita, a salad, toum or tahini.
Minced grilled meat under several spellings (kofta, köfte, kafta) across a wide region. This is the parsley-heavy Levantine one.
Traditional
Provenance: Editorial adaptation. Original editorial adaptation for I Want Some Food. Not copied from another recipe site. Official recipe photography is pending. Photograph: Miansari66 via Wikimedia Commons (Public domain). https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kafta%20Serving.JPG
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips — not a chatbot.
How long does Kafta take?
30 min all in — 20 min prep, 10 min cook. That is the time on this recipe, not a guess.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 4 skewers. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
Easy.
How spicy is it?
Mild.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Gluten-free, Dairy-free, Nut-free.
What does it cost to cook?
Weeknight budget — about $8–16 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Mixing bowl, Frying pan.
How much salt do I put in?
The recipe lists Salt at 1.3 tsp.
What can I use instead?
Lamb → Beef mince. Common mix. Keep some fat.
Any tips from this recipe?
Wet hands. A wide flat skewer holds better than a thin round one. A little baking soda is a shop trick for bounce. Optional.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
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