It seems at times like everything has the same name. The word, “köfte,” is the word for meatball. But, it’s not always made of meat. And it’s not always a ball. It seems like köfte refers to a ground meat formed into a ball, lump, or along a skewer (to make the famous Adana kebab).
A really famous dish of köfte is more of a hand formed polygon? I was out to eat at a local cafeteria and I ordered the Çiğ köfte which is raw meat balls. Most places do not make them with meat. They are made with bulgur, which is cracked wheat. This is because eating raw meat involves a higher risk and many restaurants do not want to take that risk. But, at the local place that we went to, one of my colleagues was a big cautious about the raw vegan balls because they are formed by hand.
The ones in the photo were delicious. Slightly tangy and spicy. Served in a lettuce wrap, they become a vegan or vegetarian raw food ball. It’s actually very modern food even though the history goes way back.
Stuffed meatballs are also famous. Called İçli köfte in Turkish, these stuffed balls are called kibbeh in the middle east. One can make them with the pointy ends so that they look like lanterns or as perfectly domed balls like the ones made for me by a Turkish mom.
The ones I got were the kind that one boils like a dumpling. They were stuffed with ground meat. The exterior was made of bulgar wheat. These can also be fried.
I look forward to more food made by Turkish moms.