Red Lentil Kofte (Kofta) / Mercimek Köftesi

Ingredients

  • 1 cup red lentil
  • 1/2 cup fine bulgur
  • 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 2 cups of water
  • 1 medium onion, very finely chopped
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • tbsp tomato paste + 1 tbsp red pepper paste (if you cannot find red pepper paste you can use 2 tbsp tomato paste)
  • ~1 tsp salt
  • juice of half or 1 lemon (depends on how you like it: sour or not so sour)
  • 1/3 bunch parsley, finely chopped
  • 1/2 bunch spring onion, finely chopped
  • curly leaf lettuce

Method

This vegetarian kofte is one of the most popular appetizers of Turkish cuisine.

  1. Wash lentils and boil them in 2 cups of water until it almost soaks the water.
  2. Once you turn it off, add bulgur and salt. Mix once and cover to let the bulgur expand. Let it cool off.
  3. Heat oil in a pan and add the onion (not the spring onions) and cook until soft.
  4. Add tomato paste and cook for another 1-2 minutes.
  5. Add cumin and stir once you turn it off.
  6. Add this to the lentils which should be cool by now.
  7. Add half of finely chopped parsley, spring onion, and lemon juice to the lentils. Mix all well.
  8. Take walnut size pieces and give them kofte shape in your hands.
  9. You can either place lettuce leaves on a serving plate and put koftes on top, or serve koftes and lettuce leaves separately. However, when you eat them you should wrap each kofte in a lettuce leaf.