Recipe: Kafta Batata

‘Kafta’ is the Lebanese word for meat patties, ‘Batata’ means potato and Kafta Batata is my favourite Lebanese dish! I first tasted it at a restaurant called Beirut in Bangkok. As meaty and satisfying as it can get, this is true comfort food that you will crave again and again.

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Ingredients

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For the patty

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Minced meat 1/2 kg

Onions 2 Small

Za’atar powder 2 tbsp

Black pepper 1 tbsp

Salt 1 tbsp

Bunch of parsley chopped 1

For the gravy

Potatoes 3

Tomatoes 2

Tomato paste 3 tbsp

Water 3 glass

Utensils: Baking tray

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Method

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• In a grinder, process the minced beef.

• Add chopped onion and grind further, adding 1 tbsp water if needed.

• Now add parsley and the rest of the spices and grind further.

• Make patty-sized Kafta from this meat.

• Fry them till half-cooked and set aside.

• You can also fry a sample Kafta and test the spice level. You can add more Za’atar powder, salt or pepper.

• Take potatoes and fry them with a pinch of salt.

• When they’re half-cooked, take them out and dab the excess oil.

• Take a 2-inch deep baking tray and place the sliced tomatoes, onion rings, half-cooked Kafta and layer the potatoes.

• Preheat the oven to 200^oC.

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For the gravy:

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• Take about 3 glasses of water and add 3-tablespoons of tomato paste. Let it boil and simmer till mixed well.

• The quantity can increase or decrease depending on the width of your baking tray.

• Pour this gravy over the layer of Kafta and Batata in the baking tray till completely covered.

• Cover the baking tray with an aluminium foil and bake at 200^oC for 20 minutes or till the gravy thickens, sliced tomatoes and onions are soft and the potatoes cooked through. This helps in combining all the flavours in the gravy.

• Serve in a deep bowl.

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For the rice

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• Break vermicelli into 1-inch pieces. Fry in butter till brown.

• Boil some rice.

• Mix rice with vermicelli.

Madiha Hamid is a digital media professional. She runs a food blog for Pakistani and regional cuisines called cheflingtales.com. Follow her on Twitter @cheflingtales.

Published in The Express Tribune, Ms T, January 6^th, 2013.

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