Potato Kibbeh

 

      The story of why I never learned to make Kibbeh:

           Kibbeh or kubbeh is a traditional Levantine dish from the Arab countries of Lebanon, Jordan and Syria made from lamb or beef and bulgur (cracked wheat).  The most popular version is basically a fried, stuffed meatball in the shape of a little football - at least the one that shall live on in my dreams is.  A shell is formed from ground meat and onions mixed with fine bulghur, a cavity created, then filled with more cooked ground meat, onions, spices and pine nuts, the outer casing pinched closed smoothed and then fried.

           Kibbeh is very difficult to get right.  It's one of the things I most wanted to learn to make in the Middle East so I approached the best cook I knew, the mother of a friend of ours. I asked my friend, the cook's daughter-in-law, if she would ask her if I could come and watch her make them which Um-Amar (the Syrian cook) agreed to. But when I got there she had already made them and presented a tray of them to me as a gift.  I just don't think she understood or wanted anyone to watch her make them.  

        Over the years, I have made many attempts at creating these glorious, crunchy, meaty snacks (including for weddings and parties - sometimes I'm more confident than I should be) but have always failed with cracks or shells that haven't been crispy or just fell apart.  I've studied numerous recipes. I know all the techniques, how to stuff and roll them, how to mix ice chips into the outer layer so it's really cold, how to keep your hands wet and smooth out all the cracks with ice water, freeze them before frying....I know it all, but they still don't work for me!

         So, while living in Jordan, I gave up and would buy them from the Lebanese cook who ran a catering company.  Those were our favorite but we always ordered them at any restaurant as part of the mezza.  While living in Israel and shopping in Jerusalem, we would always stop first at a shop owned by a Palestinian friend where he would insist we sit to rest and he would have his son run and get us fresh orange juice and the best kibbeh ever from an old man that made them in the market.  They were huge - 3 times the regular size.  We were in heaven!  Then the old man hopefully went there as he died.  That was the end of those kibbeh.

          However, I finally found a recipe that worked for me!  It was the recipe from a friend of my daughter's whose parents lived in the West Bank the same time we were in Israel.  However, I lost the recipe and was embarrassed to ask Jameela for it again as she was kind of miffed with us as we lost our dog while visiting our daughter in North Carolina and had to leave without the dog, to come back to Virginia.  Our daughter had to leave for a work trip to Africa when we left.  But happily, someone called us as soon as we arrived home to tell us they had found the dog (we had put flyers around) so we asked Jameela if she would get the dog and we would drive back down and get it "soon". 

          Well, she got the dog but wasn't happy about it as he was defiling her carpet but we just couldn't get down there right away.  We checked into kennels and doggy daycare there but could find nothing available.  So the dog stayed with her for 10 days until our daughter returned and we could get down there.  Jameela has not been our friend since and there went the only recipe for kibbeh that ever worked for me.

         The following recipe is the only silver lining to my rocky culinary relationship with kibbeh.  The bottom and top layers are replaced with mashed potatoes mixed with bulgur then simply layered in a baking dish and baked.  I could handle that, besides which, it is delicious in its own way.  Now, I will not say that I enjoy it more than fried kibbeh (the football shaped ones) but certainly more than kibbeh nayeh (the raw one which I forced myself to taste and found that it was smooth and silky and also delicious, but was too freaked out at the thought of "raw " to take another bite.) Then there is kibbeh saniyeh which is layered and baked in a pan and looks similar to the potato kibbeh.  You can master this one too!  And if you've already mastered fried kibbeh, let me know.  Meantime, I'll make the potato kibbeh but continue my quest to master the authentic kibbeh.  And when I do, I will share it with you!

Kibbeh Batata

Meat Filling:

     1 finely chopped onion

     1/4 cup butter

     1 pound lean ground beef

     2 teaspoons cinnamon

     1 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

     1 tablespoon tomato paste

     salt and pepper to taste

     1/2 cup toasted pine nuts

     -In a medium skillet, melt the butter and add        the onion. Saute onions over medium heat until soft.  Add the ground beef, breaking it up as it browns.  Stir in cinnamon, allspice, tomato paste, and salt and pepper.

       -Cook over medium-low heat stirring frequently, about 10 minutes to allow spices to meld.  Stir in 1/4 cup pine nuts.  If mixture is too oily, drain off some of the oil but leave a bit of the melted butter in the mixture.  Set aside.

Potatoes

     1 onion , cut in thin slivers

     3 medium-large  potatoes, peeled and cut into 8ths

     1/3 cup fine bulgur

     5 tablespoons water

     3 tablespoons olive oil

     1 teaspoon salt

     1/2 onion, chopped

     2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped

     1/3 cup toasted sliced almonds

     paprika

      -Place the slivered onions into a microwave-proof mixing bowl and toss with 2 tsp. salt.  Microwave the onions for 5 minutes on high and then rinse in a colander.  Spread the onions out on paper towels or a clean dishcloth and blot out as much moisture as you can.  Let rest until cool.

    -In a medium skillet heat 1 tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat.  Add the slivered onions and 1 teaspoon salt and stir for 2 minutes.  Lower heat to low and allow onions to caramelize, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes.  Set aside.

     -Place the potatoes in a pot with salted water and cook over high heat until water comes to a boil.  Cover with lid and turn heat to medium-low and continue cooking for about 40 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.  Drain and mash the potatoes with a potato masher.

       -Add 5 tablespoons hot water to the bulgur and allow to sit for 20 minutes. Place 1/2 onion, olive oil and bulgur in a food processor and pulse until the mixture is smooth.  Pour mixture over warm potatoes and mash and stir until smooth.  Add salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.  Stir in chopped parsley.

To Assemble:

        -Heat 2 tablespoons butter in medium-large cast-iron (or other) skillet over medium-high heat.  Layer half the potatoes over the bottom of the skillet.  Spoon meat mixture over potato layer and then cover meat layer with another layer of potatoes.  Cook for 5 minutes then reduce heat to medium and continue to cook another 10 minutes.  (Lift edge of bottom potato layer to check for doneness.  Potatoes should be browned and slightly crispy.)

       -Remove from heat.  Let kibbeh sit for 5 minutes.  Score top of kibbeh into diamond pattern if desired.  Garnish top with 1/4 cup toasted pine nuts, toasted sliced almonds, fried onions and a sprinkle of paprika.  Cut into wedges to serve.

Layer of potatoes on bottom of skillet, 

covered with layer of meat filling.

Meat sauteed with onions and spices.  

Potatoes combined with onion and bulgur.

Garnish with sliced almonds, pine nuts

carmelized onions and paprika.