Kobeba

Ingredients

Shell

• 400 gfine bulgur
• 300 glean minced beef
• 1onion, grated and drained
• 2 teaspoonsground allspice
• 1 teaspoonground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoonground nutmeg
• 2 teaspoonssalt
• black pepper
• iced water, for shaping

Filling

• 300 gminced beef
• with some fat
• 2onions, finely chopped
• 60 gpine nuts
• 1 teaspoonallspice
• 1/2 teaspooncinnamon
• 3 tablespoonsghee or oil
• salt and black pepper
• a handful of parsley, chopped

To fry

• oil, for deep frying

To serve

• lemon wedges
• tahina sauce
• salad
• alongside taameya

Directions

1. Rinse the fine bulgur in cold water. Drain it and then let it stand. Give it about twenty minutes to soften. Squeeze out any excess afterwards. Put the softened bulgur in a large bowl. Add the lean minced beef to it. Add the drained grated onion to it.
2. Add the allspice, cinnamon and nutmeg. Add the salt and plenty of black pepper. Knead it hard with wet cold hands. Work it for a good ten minutes. Dip your hands in iced water as you go. Cold water keeps the paste from sticking. Keep a bowl of it beside you throughout. Judging the paste takes a feel. Work the bulgur and meat in batches. Pulse it until it forms a smooth paste.
3. Add iced water if it seems dry. Cover the paste over and chill it. Give it about thirty minutes to firm. Heat the ghee in a wide heavy pan. Add the pine nuts to it first. Fry them until they turn golden. Lift them out and set them aside. Take them out while still pale gold. Add the chopped onions to the pan. Cook them for a good eight minutes.
4. Add the fattier minced beef to it. Fry it until it is well browned. Add the allspice, cinnamon and seasoning. Stir the fried pine nuts back in. Add the chopped parsley at the end. Spread the filling on a wide plate. Let it cool down completely there.
5. Warm filling softens the shell paste. Wet your hands in the iced water. Take a piece of paste the size of an egg. Roll it into a smooth even ball. Turn the ball around your finger slowly. Press the walls out as it turns. Keep the walls even all the way round. Filling them takes a light touch.
6. Spoon cold filling into the hollow. Fill it about two thirds full. Do not overfill it at any point. Pinch the open end firmly closed. Smooth it into a point with wet fingers. Check every one before frying them. Set them out on a well floured tray.
7. Chill them for thirty minutes. Cold shells hold together far better. Pour the oil into a deep heavy pot. Fill it no more than half full. Heat it to about one hundred and eighty degrees. It should sizzle and rise steadily. Keep a lid nearby to smother a flare-up. Never put water on an oil fire at all.
8. Keep children well away from the pot. Frying them takes care and batches. Turn them gently with a slotted spoon. Give them another two or three minutes. Turn them so the ends move about. Lift them out onto a wire rack. A rack keeps the shells crisp underneath. Let all the excess oil drip away. Making the tahina takes a moment. Add lemon juice, crushed garlic and salt.
9. Whisk it until it is smooth and pourable. It thickens before it thins, so keep going. Pile them all onto a serving plate. Serve tahina sauce alongside them. Add a sharp salad on the table. They keep two days refrigerated. Fry them from frozen with two minutes more.

Technique

• Kobeba is the Egyptian form of kibbeh, the same preparation the pronunciation shifted for as it travelled from the Levant; fried is one form among many, with kibbeh labaniyeh simmering the same shells in yoghurt and baked kibbeh spread in a tray in layers.
• The shell uses very lean meat, since fat in it makes the kibbeh fall apart in the oil, while the filling uses fattier meat to stay moist; fine bulgur is essential because coarse bulgur will not bind and the shells split open in the fryer.
• Any crack in the seal lets hot oil into the shell and the kobeba bursts in the fryer, which is genuinely dangerous; smooth every crack with wet fingers and check each one before frying.

Substitutions

• Minced lamb works in place of beef in both the shell and the filling.
• A food processor makes the shell paste far easier than kneading by hand.

Variations

• Baked kibbeh layers the same two mixtures in a tray instead.
• Kibbeh labaniyeh simmers the shells in stabilised yoghurt.
• Cairo counters sell them alongside taameya, the fava bean falafel.

History

Brought into Egyptian cooking from the Levant and sold hot from Cairo takeaway counters alongside taameya.

Frequently asked questions

What is Kobeba?

Kobeba is a street food from Egypt: bulgur shells stuffed with spiced minced meat and pine nuts, deep-fried. Brought into Egyptian cooking from the Levant and sold hot from Cairo takeaway counters alongside taameya.

How long does Kobeba take to make?

Kobeba takes 1 hour 30 minutes of preparation and 25 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes about 24 pieces. It is rated hard to make.

What can I substitute in Kobeba?

Yes, within limits. Minced lamb works in place of beef in both the shell and the filling. A food processor makes the shell paste far easier than kneading by hand.

What is the most important thing to get right in Kobeba?

Spoon cold filling into the hollow. Fill it about two thirds full. Do not overfill it at any point. Pinch the open end firmly closed. Smooth it into a point with wet fingers. Check every one before frying them. Set them out on a well floured tray.