Koofteh Tabrizi Recipe, Delicious Persian Stuffed Meatballs

Tabriz’s foods are popular among people due to their unique taste and aroma. Undoubtedly, Koofteh Tabrizi, dating back many years in Iran, is the most famous.

Persian people have various Koofteh recipes, such as Koofteh Berenji, Koofteh Nokhodchi, Koofteh Rizeh, etc.

Today, we will make the most delicious one, Koofteh Tabrizi. It’s undeniable that making Koofteh Tabrizi needs skill, and only professional chefs can cook it.

Still, by reading this recipe in Cookery Magazine, you can make it just like an expert chef.

Koofteh Tabrizi Ingredients

Split peas	1 cup
Onion	1 large
Eggs	2
tomato paste	2 tablespoons
ground cumin	2 teaspoons
turmeric powder	2.5 teaspoons
sea salt	as needed
black ground pepper	1 teaspoon
dried barberries	3 tablespoons
basmati rice	1 cup
ground beef	2 lbs. (about a kilogram)
green onion	1 cup

Recipe for making Persian Meatballs

How to start cooking

To get started, cook your split peas in 2 cups of water over medium heat for 20 to 30 minutes until they become overcooked and mushy.

The cooking time of split peas really depends on their quality and age, so it may take you longer or shorter to cook them.

The second step

Later add your cooked split peas into a food processor or blender and let them ground for 30 seconds. You may use a potato masher if you don’t have access to a blender. Set aside your split peas mixture.

The third step: Making beef ready for Koofteh Tabrizi

Add 2 pounds of ground beef Along with half of a large onion into your food processor or blender. Let the food processor run for about 1 minute as there aren’t any bits or pieces of onion left in your mixture.

This will help the meatball shape and prevent it from falling apart.

The fourth step

Fry the remaining half of your onion with olive oil and add 2 tablespoons of it along with 1 cup of chopped Green onions into a large bowl. Green onions will help to lighten the taste and aroma of the meatballs.

The fifth step

Crack your eggs into a small ball. Add your spices which include one and a half teaspoons of turmeric powder 3 teaspoons of black ground pepper, and one and a half teaspoons of sea salt or less; add 2 teaspoons of ground cumin to the ball and make it really well.

Use a whisk or fork to achieve a homogeneous mixture. And add it to your ground beef mixture.

Need the meatball mixture with your hands several times to blend well.

The sixth step: How to Globe Koofteh Tabrizi

Comes from the part that the name Koofteh ( to be beaten) comes from. Pick up a handful of the ingredients. Raise it above the bowl level and throw it back in the bowl; repeat this with the rest of the batter.

The seventh step

Picking and throwing down will be done several times until you have a smooth piece that easily sticks together and will not fall apart when you pick it up in your hand.

To form meatballs, take a generous amount of mixture formed into a disk play a handful of stuffing in the middle of it and try to make its meatballs.

The eighth step

You can use Dry barber and prunes for the stuffing of your meatballs. You may also use other dried fruits such as raisins and apricots. In addition for a crispy taste, you can add nuts such as almonds and walnuts. The stuffing should give a fiesta of different tastes and textures.

The ninth step

The result is six meatballs the size of large grapefruits or oranges. The professional method of cooking Persian meatballs with rice is to make massive meatballs.

You need to be an experienced and skillful chef or have a lot of courage and desire, and that’s because if you use this amount of mixture to make one huge meatball, it will most likely fall apart in the cooking process.

The tenth step

Suppose you’re a risk take care and want to make one massive meatball. In that case, you need a thick fabric to contain the meatball mixture without leaking but thin enough to let the sauce do its magic.

Put half of the meatball mixture inside the fabric and form a semi-sphere, place your stuffing in the middle, and put the other half on top to create a complete sphere.

Koofteh Tabrizi or Persian Meatball Sauce

Now, it’s time to cook delicious meatballs and prepare the sauce. Add 1 tablespoon of fried onions, 1 teaspoon of dried Barberries, 2 tablespoons of tomato paste, and 6 cups of water into a large pot.

Put it on the high hits to bring your sauce to a boil, and add in your meatballs, once the sauce thickens.

Please notice that the sauce should rise enough to cover half of the meatballs. They should cook for about 1 to 2 hours and hold their shape. (Take note that the part must have sufficient space, only as much as your meatballs.)

Serving Koofteh Tabrizi

To serve Tabrizi meatballs, you should pay attention to people’s taste.

Some cooks also pour the sauce around the meatballs, but some cooks put Tabrizi meatballs without sauce on the plate and bring the sauce to the table separately.

Persian Koofteh Tabrizi is usually served along with Persian flatbread (lavash, sangak, barbari, taftoon) pickle vegetables, whole garlic, fresh onions, and radishes.
I hope you enjoy learning about this fabulous recipe. Write for us about your experience of cooking Koofteh Tabrizi 🙂

Golden tips for having the best tabriz meatballs

• In the northwestern provinces of Iran, meatballs are prepared and cooked according to different recipes. In Tabriz, they are filled with a mixture of ingredients such as hot onion, barberry, walnut, almond, and raisin.

• If you are vegan or vegetarian, you can try vegan Koofteh Berenji. The process is the same, but you can replace the eggs and beef with chickpea powder, soybeans, or tempeh.

• I recommend using ground beef with less than 10% fat because the high content of fats may result in your meatballs losing their form.

• It is better to use meats that do not have fat to make the meatballs firm; A mixture of lean veal and mutton is the best type for koofteh, because it does not decompose easily.

• Be sure to put the meatballs in boiling water so they don’t fall apart.
• To make the meatball juice (Sauce) tastier, you can use different ingredients such as some plums, lemon powder, Dried lime or plum paste.
• Also, one of the things you can do to make Koofteh Tabrizi tastier is to add dill, parsley, coriander, and tarragon herbs. In some cities, mountain and traditional vegetables are used to prepare Tabrizi meatballs.
• The main vegetable used in traditional Tabrizi meatballs (koofteh tabrizi) is only Fresh Chives and savory vegetable.
• Remember to cook the koofteh rice in a form of kateh rice so that it is more sticky and easily form.

Having a journey in the history of koofteh tabrizi

Abgoosht and koofte are among the dishes invented by Iranians. In the past, they pounded the meat in a stone mortar and continued this process until the meat became sticky.

Nowadays, a meat grinder is used instead of a stone mortar to prepare meatballs. To prevent the meatballs from falling apart, the meat is ground several times and then added to an egg.

In South Asia and the Middle East, meatballs are cooked with beef, sheep, or chicken, and in Greece, Cyprus, and the Balkans, with pork or various combinations of animal meat, and in some regions of the world, vegetable meatballs such as Indian vegetable meatballs and Japanese rice meatballs.

Kufte is a food that can be eaten as ash, soup or, stew, or along with bread.

The eating habits of the people of East Azarbaijan province are an expression of the culture, attitude, and, of course, the income of the people of the northwestern region of Iran.

Tabrizi meatball (koofteh tabrizi) is one of the most famous local and traditional dishes of East Azarbaijan province and, specifically, Tabriz city and the people of this province cook this dish mostly for their valuable guests.

This dish is one of the most famous in terms of taste, aroma, nutritional properties, cooking method, and shape not only in this province but throughout Iran, and it has many fans.

Meatball (koofteh | kufteh) is a food that is cooked in different styles in different parts of the Middle East and Iran.

The difference between koofteh tabrizi and other koofteh is in the preparation method and the ingredients used in it.

This dish is cooked with a slight difference in the cooking method in Tabrizi families. Due to the ingredients used in them, meatballs are expensive, delicious, slow-digesting, and heavy food.

This authentic and popular traditional dish of Tabriz has been registered as one of Iran’s intangible works and has a special place on Iranian families’ tables.

The traditional skill of making “koofteh tabrizi” has been registered in the list of intangible heritage under the number 1789 of Esfand, 1, 1397 (2017).

About the details of this case and the values and cultural status of this traditional food, Ali Falsafi Miyab, the person in charge of registering the intangible heritage of East Azerbaijan, said:

“Koofteh tabrizi” is one of the cultural foods of East Azerbaijan province. This dish is cooked in every house of this province. As one of the valuable foods of this region, it has become national.

“Koofteh tabrizi” are prepared in winter and on religious and national holidays and may be cooked in other cities as well, but as the name suggests, it is a Tabrizi dish, and there are differences in its cooking method, and appearance with other cities.

Koofteh tabrizi are usually prepared in large sizes, and the meat used in them is manually pounded in a stone or wooden mortar instead of grinding.

A boiled egg is placed inside the meatball. Cobs, plums, aromatic vegetables, barberry, salt and pepper, onion, oil, and turmeric are other basic ingredients used to prepare Tabrizi meatballs, which are also used in other regions.

According to “Falsafi Miab,” this Tabrizi dish introduces one of the values of hospitality in East Azerbaijan. 

Families mostly prepare this food for their loved ones’ guests, and by doing this, they value their guests. 

In some parts of East Azerbaijan, they definitely cook this traditional food on the Eids of Qurban (Eid al-Adha) and Ghadir.

Except for Tabrizi meatballs (koofteh tabrizi), the skill or method of preparing more than 28 types of local and traditional foods in East Azarbaijan province has been registered as an intangible heritage in the list of national monuments.

He starts with the description of how to cook sumac kofte, Arzoman kufte (Azerbaijani special koofte), and simple koofteh, and then goes on to describe other types of koofteh such as Serke Shireh kofte, Maala koofteh (specific to Isfahan and Shahan’s court) and the like.

The author has written a description that is understandable in the simple meatball section. The tools for making koofteh were not available to everyone, and not all cooks and chefs knew this.

Also, this food has gone from the cities that were the seat of kings to other cities. Cities like Tabriz, Isfahan and Tehran.

Conclusion

Thank you for being with us with this delicious and popular traditional Iranian koofteh tabrizi. If you have any questions, it’s my honor to answer. Enjoy your exploration of Persian cuisine!

Remember to be diligent in preserving and maintaining the unique buildings and structures of this city and don’t forget to visit the Constitution House of Tabriz.

Try the delicious Tabrizi dishes and don’t forget the delicious taste of koofteh tabrizi and enjoy talking with the sweet-speaking people of Tabriz.

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