Lamb koftas and baba ganoush
A great summer recipe for sharing with friends. The koftas can be cooked in a pan, oven or over a barbecue, depending on how kind the weather is to you.
Ingredients
For the koftas
- 500g/1lb lamb mince
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 1 lime, juice only
- 1 green chilli, finely chopped
- 2-3 tbsp freshly chopped coriander
- salt and pepper
- 4-5 tsp vegetable oil, for frying
- flatbreads, to serve
For the baba ganoush
Method
For the koftas, mix the mince with all the other ingredients, except the oil, in a large bowl and use your hands to make golf-ball sized rounds, which you can then mould into long cylinder-like kofta shapes. Place the koftas on a baking tray and transfer to the fridge to chill for a couple of hours.
Heat the vegetable oil in a deep frying pan until hot. Shallow fry the koftas (alternatively cook on a hot barbecue or in an oven preheated to 200C/400F/Gas 6 for 20-25 minutes). When the koftas are cooked through, set them aside to rest until ready to serve.
Meanwhile, make the baba ganoush. Roast the aubergines directly over a gas flame on the hob until the skins are blackened (or use a chef's blowtorch if you have one) taking care not to burn yourself. Leave to cool for a bit, then peel away the charred skin.
Put the aubergine flesh into a food processor or blender with the garlic, tahini, lemon juice, cumin and some salt and pepper and blend to a rough paste. Transfer to a serving dish, drizzle with the olive oil and scatter with the parsley.
Serve the cooked koftas with the baba ganoush and flatbreads.