• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Picnic on a Broom

  • Accueil
  • Recettes
  • Contact
    • À propos
    • Mentions légales
  • Français
  • Türkçe
  • Navigation Menu: Social Icons

    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Tumblr
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipe box
  • About
  • Contact
  • Français
  • Türkçe
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Tumblr
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipe box
    • About
    • Contact
    • Français
    • Türkçe
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Tumblr
  • ×
    Picnic on a Broom » Recipes » Turkish

    Koftes

    July 29, 2020 by Amélie Leave a Comment

    • Facebook
    • X
    Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe
    koftes on a plate
    koftes on a plate
    koftes on a fork
    koftes on yogurt
    koftes on a white board

    A plate of tender koftes, now this hits the spot! You won’t find anything more comforting than meatballs, still warm from the frying pan, accompanied by a big dollop of cold yogurt. Lightly seasoned with cumin and onion, this is Turkish home cooking at its best!

    koftes on a plate this recipe

    Sure you can find restaurants specialized in koftes (köfte) all over Turkey but, in my opinion, they always taste better prepared by loving hands. If you don’t have a Turkish grandma doting on you, or in my case a loving mother-in-law, this recipe will get you as close to anne köftesi (mother’s meatballs) as possible.

    These traditional Turkish meatballs are super tasty and moist and you only need a handful of ingredients. Moreover, the hands-on time is rather short since there is no resting time. You just combine everything, shape the meatballs and fry them!

    Classic home cooking

    Frying the koftes makes them really tender and indulgent but, for a healthier twist, you could cook them in a nonstick pan with a trickle of olive oil. Grilling koftes on the barbecue is also very popular in Turkey during summer and it adds a nice smokey flavor to the meat.

    Pairing meat with yogurt might seem unusual but they complement each other beautifully. Between the tasty meatballs and the tangy yogurt, it’s an explosion of flavors! And if you can’t wait to dig in, the cold yogurt will prevent you from burning your mouth (and it’s simply delicious).

    I usually make koftes to put in a Turkish fry up or to eat with Turkish spaghetti. I also love eating them with a bulgur pilaf or with a simple salad and slices of fluffy bread! There are so many ways you could enjoy koftes.

    Don’t worry if your koftes don’t all look alike. They don’t have to be similar, that’s the charm of homemade food. Every family has their own preferred shape. It can go from elongated to a circle. I guess, mine) are a bit in between. In any case, Turkish meatballs are always flat, unlike the round ‘balls’ you would see in Italian-American cuisine.

    koftes on a plate

    Make ahead

    These koftes freeze very well so don’t be afraid of making a big batch! I usually freeze the meatballs after having cooked them. To freeze them, place the koftes on a baking tray lined with baking parchment and place the tray in the freezer for 2 hours. When the koftes are frozen solid you can place them in a plastic container (or a freezer bag to save space). You can keep them in the freezer for up to 4 months.

    To reheat the frozen koftes, first, thaw them overnight in the fridge. Then place them in a single layer on a baking tray or a baking dish lined with parchment paper and cover with aluminum foil (to keep the meatballs moist). Reheat the koftes in a preheated oven at 150°C (300°F) for 15 minutes or until warm through. My dad’s trick to check if it’s hot enough is to prick a meatball with the blade of a knife and to feel if it’s hot enough with the tip of his tongue.

    You can also prepare the koftes in advance. Make the beef mixture, shape the koftes and keep them in the fridge covered with plastic wrap for up to 24 hours. Don’t wait longer than that before cooking them for food safety reasons.

    Print
    clock clock iconcutlery cutlery iconflag flag iconfolder folder iconinstagram instagram iconpinterest pinterest iconfacebook facebook iconprint print iconsquares squares iconheart heart iconheart solid heart solid icon
    koftes on a plate

    Koftes

    • Author: Amélie
    • Prep Time: 25 minutes
    • Cook Time: 12 minutes
    • Total Time: 37 minutes
    • Yield: 14 meatballs 1x
    • Category: Dinner
    • Method: Frying
    • Cuisine: Turkish
    Print Recipe
    Pin Recipe

    Description

    Koftes are traditional Turkish meatballs, lightly seasoned with cumin and onion. They are super tasty and tender and oh so easy to make at home!


    Ingredients

    Scale
    • 1 big onion
    • 500g ground beef (2 ¼ cups / 18 oz)
    • 1 egg
    • 6 tbsp breadcrumbs
    • 1 tsp cumin, heaped
    • 1 tsp salt
    • ½ tsp black pepper
    • frying oil
    • Turkish (or Greek) yogurt, to serve

    Instructions

    instructions for koftes

    1. Peel the onion, discard the stems and rub the onion against the medium side of a box/cheese grater. Discard most of the onion juice and keep the pulp.
    2. Place the ground beef in a mixing bowl. Add the grated onion, egg, breadcrumbs and spices.
    3. Mix together well and knead for 5 min, like you would for bread dough. If you press a bit of mixture in your hands, it should hold its shape. If not, it might be too moist and you should add more breadcrumbs.
    4. With wet hands, take a small handful of the meat mixture and pat it into a flat elongated meatball, about 1cm thick (½ inch).
    5. Repeat until you run out of the köfte mixture. You should have about 14 koftes. Place them on a lightly oiled plate.
    6. Cover the surfaces of a frying pan with 2cm (1 inch) of oil and place over medium-high heat. Wait until the oil reaches 170°C (340°F), or until it’s hot enough to brown a cube of bread in 1min.
    7. Cook the koftes in 2 to 3 batches, frying them for 2 to 3 min per side or until brown.
    8. Remove the meatballs with a slotted spoon and place them on a plate covered with paper towels to absorb the excess oil. Serve the koftes straightaway with cold yogurt on the side.

    Notes

    Any leftover koftes will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.


    Nutrition

    • Serving Size: 7 koftes
    • Calories: 811
    • Fat: 19.2g

    Keywords: turkish meals, köfte, barbecue recipes

    Did you make this recipe?

    Tag @picniconabroom on Instagram and hashtag it #picniconabroom

    « Zucchini tian
    Apricot turnovers »
    • Facebook
    • X

    Reader Interactions

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe rating ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆

    Primary Sidebar

    BIENVENUE !

    I’m Amélie and Picnic on a Broom is my little corner of the internet where I share my favorite comforting recipes. I’m French, but I grew up in the Caribbean, lived in Turkey for years (and married a Turkish guy).

    I love all kinds of food and my recipes are time-tested, accessible, and all pretty satisfying. Here’s to home-cooked meals, delicious desserts, and having fun in the kitchen! 🍹💗

    Want to learn more about Picnic on a Broom →

    trending now

    • pişi on a plate
      Pişi
    • bowl of turkish bamya
      Turkish bamya
    • ekmek wrapped in tea towel
      Ekmek
    • apricot turnovers on baking parchment
      Apricot turnovers


    in season in July

    • french peas in a ladle
      French peas
    • scoop of homemade raspberry ice cream
      Homemade raspberry ice cream
    • mücver on a plate
      Mücver
    • turkish stuffed eggplants on a plate
      Turkish stuffed eggplants

    Copyright © 2025 Picnic on a Broom on the Foodie Pro Theme

    Manage Consent
    To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
    Functional Always active
    The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
    Preferences
    The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
    Statistics
    The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes. The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
    Marketing
    The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
    Manage options Manage services Manage {vendor_count} vendors Read more about these purposes
    View preferences
    {title} {title} {title}