Kufta bozbash

Ingredients

Broth

• 800 glamb on the bone, such as neck or shank
• 2.5 litreswater
• 1onion, halved
• salt

Chickpeas

• 200 gdried chickpeas, soaked overnight

Meatballs

• 700 gminced lamb, fatty
• 1onion, very finely grated
• 80 gshort-grain rice, rinsed
• 1egg
• 1 tspturmeric
• 1/2 tspground black pepper
• a handful of chopped mint
• salt

Hidden inside

• 6dried sour plums, alcha, or 6 dried apricots

To finish

• 4potatoes, peeled and halved
• a good pinch of saffron, steeped in warm water
• 1 tspdried mint
• salt

To serve

• flatbread
• sumac
• fresh herbs

Directions

1. Rinse the dried chickpeas and pick over them for stones. Cover them with plenty of cold water and leave them overnight. Drain them and discard the soaking water. Put the lamb on the bone in a large pot with the cold water. Bring it slowly up to the boil. Skim off the grey foam thoroughly as it rises. Skimming properly is what keeps the broth clear.
2. Add the halved onion and a pinch of salt. Add the drained chickpeas to the pot. Simmer it for an hour and a half. Do not let it boil, since that clouds the broth. Grate the onion finely and squeeze out most of its liquid. Mix the minced lamb, grated onion, rinsed rice and egg in a bowl.
3. Add the turmeric, pepper, chopped mint and salt. Knead the mixture with your hands for a full ten minutes. Work it hard, lifting and slapping it back into the bowl. It should become sticky and cohesive rather than crumbly.
4. Cover it and chill it for thirty minutes. Now shaping, which is done with wet hands. Divide the mixture into six equal portions. Each should be about the size of a small fist. Flatten one portion into a thick disc in your palm. Press a dried sour plum into the centre. Bring the meat up around it and close it completely.
5. Roll it between wet palms into a smooth ball. There must be no cracks, since the ball will open along them. Set the finished balls on a plate and chill them again. Now cooking them, which needs a gentle broth.
6. Strain the broth, keeping the chickpeas and discarding the bones and onion. Pull any meat off the bones and return it to the pot. Bring the broth back to a bare simmer. It must not be boiling when the meatballs go in. Simmer them for thirty minutes.
7. Add the halved potatoes after fifteen minutes. They need about twenty-five minutes to become tender. Pour the saffron and its liquid into the pot. It will colour the broth a clear golden yellow.
8. Simmer it for five minutes more. Taste the broth and adjust the salt. Now checking that it is ready. Put one whole meatball in each deep bowl. Add a potato half and a spoonful of chickpeas to each. Ladle the golden broth over them. Crumble dried mint over the surface. Serve flatbread and sumac at the table.

Technique

• Knead the meat mixture hard for ten minutes, which is what stops it disintegrating.
• Never let the broth boil once the meatballs are in, and do not stir for fifteen minutes.
• Squeeze the water out of the grated onion or the meatball will fall apart.

Substitutions

• Dried apricots in place of sour alcha plums.
• Tinned chickpeas, added in the last twenty minutes.

Variations

• With a walnut hidden inside alongside the plum.
• Made with smaller meatballs, which is easier.
• With more turmeric and no saffron, as an everyday version.

History

Broth with a large meatball that hides a dried plum inside, plus chickpeas and potato.

Frequently asked questions

What is Kufta bozbash?

Kufta bozbash is a soup & stew from Azerbaijan: saffron broth with giant meatballs hiding sour plums. Broth with a large meatball that hides a dried plum inside, plus chickpeas and potato.

How long does Kufta bozbash take to make?

Kufta bozbash takes 40 min plus overnight soaking of preparation and 2 hours of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Kufta bozbash?

Yes, within limits. Dried apricots in place of sour alcha plums. Tinned chickpeas, added in the last twenty minutes.

What is the most important thing to get right in Kufta bozbash?

Add the halved onion and a pinch of salt. Add the drained chickpeas to the pot. Simmer it for an hour and a half. Do not let it boil, since that clouds the broth. Grate the onion finely and squeeze out most of its liquid. Mix the minced lamb, grated onion, rinsed rice and egg in a bowl.