Kibbeh, lebanese meatballs

Kibbeh, lebanese meatballs

Meatballs stuffed with… beef! And spices… Oh if you could just smell it when it it baking in the oven, so good. I couldn’t wait to bite into one!

There are plenty of steps in the recipe but it is quite simple and easy. I prepped the stuffing and the “coating” the night before, this way I just had to put it all together and bake it! It was so delicious I am adding it to my list of “friends gathering bites”!

Kibbeh (16 pieces):

  • 750g ground beef
  • 250g bulgur
  • 30g pine nuts
  • 2 onions
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 1 tsp all spice mix
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp cumin
  • Olive oil

Soak the bulgur in cold water for 10 minutes.

Chop an onion in small pieces.

In a frying pan, cook 250g ground beef, the chopped onion, spices and minced garlic clove until the beef is no longer pink. Turn off the heat and add the pine nuts.

Put the mixture (that is the stuffing) aside to cool.

Drain the bulgur through a cheese clothes and press to extract water.

In a food processor, add the remaining raw beef (500g), the other onion, bulgur and season generously.

Mix until smooth, we will call that the coating.

Preheat the oven at 180°C/350°F.

Take a tablespoon of the coating in your lightly oiled hand and make a hole in it with your fingers. Add a little bit of stuffing in it and close the coating.

Shape the kibbeh in a rugby ball shape. Repeat until you have no more stuffing and coating.

Add the kibbeh to a lightly oiled baking sheet. Drizzle olive oil on top of the kibbeh and massage it with your hands until well coated.

Bake for 20/30 minutes flipping the kibbeh halfway through cooking.

You could also fry them in oil!