Take a deep breath and relax; this kibbeh does not require any special skill, or a relative from the Middle-East for guidance. It is easy to make and tastes so good that you will find the plate emptied in minutes.
Bulgur, lots of tomatoes and onions, a dash of hot red pepper and coriander. The tomatoes need to be very ripe and since it is not specifically tomato season, a can of the best Italian tomatoes will do just fine.
Recipe for tomato kibbeh is provided courtesy of Asma Zeito
INGREDIENTS: 4 servings
- 1 cup of fine bulgur (#1), preferably the white kind
- 4 tomatoes or 1 large can of good-quality tomatoes, peeled and diced
- 1 heaping tbsp of tomato paste (optional, but highly recommended if the tomatoes are bland or mealy)
- 2 large onions, chopped
- 1/2 cup of chopped parsley
- 1 tbsp of ground coriander
- 1 tbsp of hot chili powder or hot Aleppo pepper or 1 tbsp of hot red pepper paste
- salt, pepper
- olive oil, as needed
METHOD:
- Heat a generous amount of oil (at least 1/4 cup); fry the onions until golden. Add the diced tomatoes and tomato juice and simmer for about 35 minutes. Add the spices and taste to adjust seasoning. You should have about 3 cups of liquid (or purée) at this point, if not add some water. Pour the bulgur onto the sauce, cover and let the bulgur absorb the sauce for 30 minutes or longer.
- To shape the kibbeh: Transfer to a food processor and process for a few seconds until a paste is formed. This step can easily be done by hand, by using the palms of the hand and rubbing the bulgur until a rough paste is formed (like a play dough!). Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and shape into oblong balls (or any shape, really). Serve at room temperature.
NOTE: The key here is to have a really good sauce to soak the bulgur in. If the tomatoes are bland, add some tomato paste, sundried tomatoes, anything, to give the sauce intense tomato flavor.
I sometimes don’t bother with shaping the kibbeh and eat this straight, as is; the flavor is not affected, the presentation is, well, less elegant!
25 Comments
Looks excellent – at first I had wondered if they might be fried like falafel.
Wow! Looks yummy. How did you come up with this one?
Delicious, I’m sure!
Cheers,
Rosa
@Mark: Recipe is from my friend Asma. She called it ballou3.
@Hegui: Sure, if they are good ones! Flavor is key here!
Can’t wait to try this out, love this idea. The tomatoes don’t look good right now on this side of the planet. Can’t wait for the wether to firm up a bit so more vegetables arrive in the markets. Will this work with canned tomatoes?
Heg
You make it look easy and beautiful! Not sure I can do these justice, but I’m going to certainly try.
I love bulgur, and this is the perfect recipe to use up some of what is left in my pantry! Thanks for sharing and have a happy weekend
Love this combination – and a flavorful way to use winter tomatoes.
What a nice variation! I love the combination of flavors and plan to try this soon!
So easy, pretty, and healthy! What a great dish – I have to try ASAP!
Looks delicious. I have some fine bulgur in my pantry waiting for good inspiration. Gonna try this….
That’s interesting! U always amaze us withbur new creations!
Never tried kebabs with tomato.Looks very easy and the click is awesome..
Mmmm anything tomato, really, but this is a delicious and unsual (for us) way of serving them. They do look so good (and I must admit I thought they were fried as well). I always discover such great ideas and great food on your blog!
So excited to try out this recipe–so bold and simple. Thanks for the recipe, Joumana!
What a great version of kibbeh! The hot pepper flavor sounds fantastic in them. I want to try these.
Who knew there were so many different types of kibbeh to be made? Every time I visit you’ve made a new one! Lovely.
These look very yummy. How far in advance can you make these? If they keep a few days, I can see them being perfect to make before company comes.
@Coleen: I would make the kibbeh up to a couple days before; shaping them into torpedoes the day before would be fine.
Joumana, I abolutely love your recipes! Wonder if you can suggest a substitute for burghol that is gluten free. Now that would make my life easier! Thanks in advance!
@Louis:How about rice? There is a rice kibbeh (I still have to post the recipe).
Very interesting version you give us here, will be sure to try it.
Food for my kibbeh obsession here, and an easy one too. I’ll probably blend in some sun-dried tomatoes in this corner of the world as you suggest.
What an intriguing flavor combination and I love that it uses burghal – something that I am using a *lot* of these past weeks & really love. However, I have the coarse, red kind. Would this work equally as well with that?
@Needful things: the coarse kind would work but it would be a bit difficult to shape it into balls; you could eat it as is.