Kafta bil tahini

Ingredients

Kafta

• 1 kgminced lamb
• or minced lamb and beef
• 2onions, very finely chopped
• a large bunch of parsley, chopped
• 1 teaspoonground allspice
• 1 teaspoonground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoonssalt
• 1 teaspoonblack pepper

Vegetables

• 800 gpotatoes, in thin slices
• 3tomatoes, in thin slices
• 2onions, in thin slices
• 3 tablespoonsolive oil
• salt and black pepper

Tahini sauce

• 250 gtahini, well stirred
• juice of 3 lemons
• 4garlic cloves, crushed
• about 350 ml water
• 1 teaspoonsalt

To serve

• rice or bread
• pickles
• a fresh salad

Directions

1. Keep adding water and it comes back smooth. Do not panic and do not throw it out. Chop the onions extremely finely. Squeeze them dry in a cloth or your hands. Squeezing keeps the flavour without the liquid. Put the minced meat in a large bowl. Add the squeezed onion to the meat.
2. Add the chopped parsley to it. Add the allspice and cinnamon. Season it with salt and black pepper. Knead it hard with your hands. Knead it for a good five minutes. It becomes smooth and slightly sticky.
3. Cover the mixture and refrigerate it. Give it about thirty full minutes. Slice the potatoes thinly and evenly. Aim for about half a centimetre. Slice the tomatoes and onions thinly too. Toss the potato slices in olive oil. Season them with salt and pepper. Thin slices cook through in the time given.
4. Press the kafta into a large baking tray. Spread it out in an even layer. Aim for about one and a half centimetres. Press it right out to the edges. Lay the potato slices over the meat. Lay the tomato slices over those. Scatter the sliced onion over the top.
5. Season it all with salt and pepper. Heat the oven to 200C before baking. Bake the tray for about twenty-five minutes. Take the hot tray out carefully. Tip off any excess fat and liquid. That liquid would thin the tahini sauce. Put the tahini into a large bowl. Add the crushed garlic and the salt.
6. Add all of the lemon juice to it. Stir it and watch it seize up. Adding the water takes patience. Add the water a little at a time. Whisk hard between each addition. It goes from stiff back to smooth.
7. Keep going until it is pourable. It should be like single cream. Add more lemon if it tastes flat. Pour the sauce evenly over the tray. Cover everything over with it. Shake the tray gently to settle it. It should sit just below the vegetables.
8. Return the whole tray to the oven. Bake it for about thirty minutes. Judging when it is done takes a look. Cover it with foil if it colours too fast. Let it stand for ten full minutes. Serving it is done hot from the tray. Cut it into squares in the tray. Lift portions out with a slice. Serve rice or bread alongside. It keeps three days refrigerated.

Technique

• Many households had no large oven, so trays of food were carried to the neighbourhood bakery, cooked for a small fee and collected at an agreed time; the practice still continues in many places and suits dishes made in quantity.
• Tahini is an emulsion that seizes and looks curdled when the first water goes in, then comes back smooth as more is added; that stage is entirely normal and is not a reason to throw it out.
• The tahini sauce must be poured on thin, like single cream, since it thickens considerably in the oven and a thick sauce sets into a paste.

Substitutions

• Minced beef or a mixture of lamb and beef works in place of lamb alone.
• Parboiling the potato slices for five minutes first guarantees they cook through.

Variations

• Some cooks add pine nuts scattered over the meat layer.
• Aubergine slices are used in place of some of the potato in some households.
• The tray is still sent to the neighbourhood bakery in many places.

History

Home-oven dish across Jordan and the wider Levant, often sent in big trays to the neighbourhood bakery.

Frequently asked questions

What is Kafta bil tahini?

Kafta bil tahini is a main from Jordan: minced lamb and sliced potato baked under a lemony tahini sauce. Home-oven dish across Jordan and the wider Levant, often sent in big trays to the neighbourhood bakery.

How long does Kafta bil tahini take to make?

Kafta bil tahini takes 35 minutes of preparation and 1 hour of cooking. The recipe makes serves 6. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Kafta bil tahini?

Yes, within limits. Minced beef or a mixture of lamb and beef works in place of lamb alone. Parboiling the potato slices for five minutes first guarantees they cook through.

What is the most important thing to get right in Kafta bil tahini?

Keep adding water and it comes back smooth. Do not panic and do not throw it out. Chop the onions extremely finely. Squeeze them dry in a cloth or your hands. Squeezing keeps the flavour without the liquid. Put the minced meat in a large bowl. Add the squeezed onion to the meat.