User Contributed Dictionary
Declension
References
Extensive Definition
In the simplest form, koftas consist of balls of
minced or ground meat —
usually beef or lamb —
mixed with spices and/or onions. The vegetarian variety like lauki
kofta, shahi aloo kofta are popular in India.
Ingredients
The meat is often mixed with other ingredients such as rice, Bulgur, vegetables, or eggs to form a smooth paste. Koftas are sometimes made with fish or vegetables rather than meat, especially in India. They can be grilled, fried, steamed, poached, baked or marinated, and may be served with a rich spicy sauce. Variations occur in North Africa, the Mediterranean, Central Europe, Asia and India. According to a 2005 study done by a private food company, there were 291 different kinds of kofta in Turkey, where it is very popular. In Arab countries, kufta is usually shaped into cigar-shaped cylinders.Early recipes (included in some of the earliest
known Arabic
cookbooks) generally concern seasoned lamb rolled into orange-sized
balls, and glazed with egg yolk and sometimes saffron. This method was taken
to the west and is referred to as gilding, or endoring. Many
regional variations exist, notable among them the unusually large
Iranian Kufteh
Tabrizi, having an average diameter of 20cm (8").
Koftas in South Asian cuisine are normally cooked
in a spicy curry and sometimes with whole pre-boiled eggs.
Sometimes the eggs are encased in a layer of the spicy kofta meat
so that the final product resembles an Indian Scotch egg.
These kofta dishes are very popular with South Asian families and
are widely available from many Indian restaurants. In Bengal, a
region of East India, koftas are made with prawns, fish, green
bananas, cabbage, as well as minced goat meat.
Name
The word kofta is derived from Persian kūfta: In Persian, کوفتن (Kuftan) means "to beat" or "to grind" or meatball.- Arab countries: كفته (kufta')
- Iran: کوفته (kufteh)
- Turkey: köfte
- Azerbaijan: küftə
- Bosnia and Herzegovina: ћуфтa (ćufta)
- Serbia: ћуфтa (ćufta) or ћуфтe (ćufte)
- Croatia: ćufta
- Bulgaria: кюфте (kyufte)
- Republic of Macedonia: ќофте (kjofte)
- Greece: keftes
- Romania: chiftea
- Armenia: kyufta
- Albania: qofte
- India: kofta
- Bangladesh: kufta
- Pakistan: kofta
See also
References
External links
kofta in German: Köfte
kofta in Spanish: Kofta
kofta in Italian: Kufta
kofta in Dutch: Kofta
kofta in Swedish: Köfte
kofta in Turkish: Köfte