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Baked Lebanese Kibbe

5.0(444)

The Middle Eastern way with ground lamb, or beef, for that matter, is in combination with cracked bulgur wheat and onion. There are hundreds of ways to turn this delicious mixture into kibbe, little football-shaped savory treats sold and eaten everywhere and made daily in homes throughout the region. (There are other kinds of kibbe, too, like fish, but that’s another story.) For a less labor-intensive version, kibbe can also be baked like a flat cake. It makes an extraordinarily fragrant meatloaf, adorned with long-cooked caramelized onions and pine nuts, to be eaten hot, warm, cold or reheated.

by David Tanis·published 2011-09-21

Open original recipe

Middle EasternDinner, Weeknight, Main Course

Servings

(4–6)

Total time

1h 20m

Calories / serving

458 kcal

Ingredients (11)

serves

1 cup fine-grain bulgurbulgur
1 pound lamb shoulder, ground finelamb-shoulder
1/4 cup grated oniononion
1 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted and ground, or 1 teaspoon ground cumincumin
Pinch cayenne pepperpepper
Saltsalt
pepperpepper
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for oiling the panolive-oil
2 cups sliced onions, 1/4-inch thickonion
1/2 cup pine nuts, lightly toastedpine-nut
Greek-style yogurt, for servingyogurt

Instructions (5 steps)

01Rinse the bulgur well, then cover with cold water and soak for 20 minutes. Drain well.
02Put the drained bulgur, lamb, grated onion, cumin and cayenne in a large mixing bowl. Season with 2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Mix well with your hands to distribute the seasoning. With a wooden spoon, beat in about 1/2 cup ice water. The mixture should be smooth and soft.
03Heat the olive oil in a cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and fry gently, stirring occasionally, until they soften, about 5 minutes. Season generously with salt and pepper. Raise the heat and add 1/4 cup of the lamb mixture. Continue frying, allowing the meat to get crumbly and the onions to brown nicely, another 10 minutes or so. Stir in the pine nuts and taste. Let cool to room temperature.