Hajars Zwina Beef Kefta Recipes

Steps:

• Mix all ingredients together in suitably sized bowl.
• Form the meat into small patties; about as big round as your thumb and forefinger when you form a circle from tip to tip.
• Pan fry, grill, broil, or BBQ until fully cooked. Press a bit flat before cooking as you want to avoid much browning.
• I most often use the young beef for this and it is always served at home or eaten out with; sauce tomatish, salad, potatoes frites, bread (for dipping into the sauce and scooping up a piece or breaking a piece in half as it is always in a communal bowl/platter), a dish of marinated olives and a pot of mint tea along with your cold beverage. Serves 4.
• You can freeze this cooked or prepared to cook. Freeze it as you would any hamburger patty or meatball. Freeze in a container or seperated with wax paper wrapped in cling film, foil, or a ziplok type bag. This is a freindly freezer!

Steps:

• In a large bowl combine the beef, onion, garlic, parsley, coriander, mint, marjoram, salt, pepper, cumin, paprika and cayenne. Cover and let sit for one hour. Soak 12 wooden skewers in water for one hour.
• In a separate bowl combine cucumber, tomato, bell pepper, hot pepper, garlic, mint, red wine vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper tossing to combine. Cover and let marinate at room temperature until ready to serve.
• Preheat grill or broiler.
• Dip hands into a bowl of water. Shape and pack about a 1/3 cup of the meat mixture into 2 sausage-shapes on a soaked wooden skewer. Repeat procedure for remaining meat and skewers.
• Grill the keftas on both sides until cooked through, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Serve hot with chopped salad.

Steps:

• In a large bowl using your hands or a large spoon, combine the beef, onion and the juices, parsley, cilantro, mint, sweet paprika, cumin, salt, black pepper and cayenne.
• Take about 1/2 teaspoon of the kefta mixture, cook it (in a pan or in the microwave) and taste it to check the seasoning. Add more salt to the kefta mixture if necessary.
• Take about 2 1/2 tablespoons of the kefta mixture (slightly larger than a golf ball) and mold it onto a skewer to form a log. (If using a long skewer, form two logs on each.) Repeat until you've used all the kefta mixture. Place the skewers on a plate, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to cook.
• Heat your grill or grill pan to medium-high and cook for 3 to 4 minutes on each side, until cooked through, using a thin spatula to help turn if the kefta sticks. Serve immediately with bread and a side of vegetables or a salad.

Steps:

• Place the semolinas, salt, and sugar in a mixing bowl. Use your fingertips and work in the softened butter. Gradually add approximately 1/4 cup water to make a firm dough. Knead it just until it comes together into a dough.
• NB: You can use cornmeal for this should you not be able to find the proper semolinas with okay results. You may need to add a bit of liquid though.
• Roll out the dough to about 1/2-inch thickness. Cut into rounds. I make mine failry large though they can be made any size from two inches round upwards. Mine are probably three to three and a half inches around. Roll the trimmings again and continue to cut until all of the dough has been used.
• Brush a large (non-stick) skillet with softened butter and put onto medium heat. When the pan is hot, add as many rounds as wilt fit with a bit of space between them. Cook for 1 to 3 minutes on each side. You don't want them to color much, just to become firm and very lightly browned. You can serve these hot, warm or room temperature though are always best eaten the day of making. Serve with butter and your choice of honey, sugar, powdered sugar, cinnamon but always serve with butter. Cooking time listed is to cook the entire batch if small ones are made.
• See the African Forum for my column on breads and my regular columns; Hajar's Morocco for Foodies.

Steps:

• Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat. If using wooden skewers, soak in water.
• In a large bowl, mix together the ground beef, onion, parsley, cayenne, allspice, salt and pepper until evenly blended. Divide into 6 portions, and press around one end of the skewers to form a log shape approximately 1 inch thick and 6 inches long.
• Grill for 10 to 15 minutes, turning occasionally, until meat is no longer pink.