Cig Köfte are a popular street food not only in Turkey, but also in Germany. Bulgur meatballs are easy to prepare at home.
They taste wonderfully spicy and fresh. Cig Köfte, a Turkish street food that is becoming increasingly popular here, is the perfect snack for the summer. Whether as finger food at the next barbecue party, wrapped in a wrap or as a light main course - the meatballs made from bulgur go well with almost every occasion. Traditionally, the oval-shaped bites are served with a wafer-thin flatbread (lavash bread), iceberg lettuce, fresh mint and parsley, and a sweet and sour dip made from pomegranate syrup. In this combination, Cig Köfte is also offered in the numerous snack bars that specialize in Turkish finger food and that have appeared in more and more cities in recent years.
Recipe for Cig Köfte requires fine bulgur
Cig Köfte has been around in its country of origin for 4,000 years, reports the
Westfälische Nachrichten
. In the original version, which comes from the city of Urfa, the recipe included raw meat. However, for hygiene reasons, street sales of the traditional recipe were banned by law in Turkey in 2008, explains the cooking blog
Eat this
. Since then, the plant-based version of the dish has come to the fore. The vegan version has its origins in the Antep region near Izmir. Since every area in Turkey prepares the meatballs a little differently, there is no universal recipe for the meal. Only the basic ingredients are always the same.
If you want to prepare Cig Köfte at home, you need very fine bulgur, “Köftelik Bulgur” in Turkish. The grain can be found either in the delicatessen department of well-stocked supermarkets or in Turkish supermarkets. You can usually buy larger quantities of parsley and mint there for very little money. You can also buy isot, a spice made from roasted and fermented peppers, in the Turkish market. Alternatively, depending on how spicy you want it, you can use chili flakes instead. All the ingredients you need for 30-35 cig kofta are:
500 g fine bulgur (“Köftelik Bulgur”)
0.5 L hot water plus a little more in a small bowl
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 medium tomato, cut into small cubes
50 g ground walnuts
100 g paprika pulp (Ajvar, but can also be replaced with tomato pulp)
250 g tomato paste
50 ml olive oil
1 tbsp sweet paprika powder
1 tbsp pepper
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp salt
1 tbsp isot or chili to taste
5-10 sprigs of parsley
To serve:
Thin flatbread
1 head of iceberg lettuce, divided into individual leaves
5-10 lemons, sliced
several sprigs of mint and parsley
Pomegranate syrup or any other dip
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Preparing the bulgur meatballs is simple and basically consists of three steps: letting them soak, kneading and shaping. For the second step, you can take your time. Only the repeated grating of the bulgur grains ensures the right consistency and that the spices are distributed perfectly, explains the cooking blog
Eat This
. In detail, proceed as follows when preparing Cig Köfte:
Place the bulgur in a bowl and cover the grain with half a liter of hot, but not boiling, water. Stir, cover and let sit for about 20 minutes.
Add the onions, garlic, tomatoes, walnuts, paprika paste, tomato paste, oil and spices (except parsley) and knead everything very well with your hands. It's best to work the mixture in a shallow bowl with the heel of your hand - similar to bread dough. Squeeze the bulgur through your fingers repeatedly to marinate each individual grain with the spices.
Finally, fold in the fresh parsley. Season the Cig Köfte and then let the dish rest, covered, for another 30-40 minutes.
To shape, prepare a small bowl with a little water to moisten your hands. You get the typical look of the Cig Köfte by shaping a tablespoon of the mixture into a roll in your hand. At the end, squeeze the roll so that the finger print is visible.
Serve with bread, lettuce leaves, lemon wedges and herbs.
If you're even more in the mood for Turkish cuisine, you can also try the traditional lentil soup or crispy, homemade falafels. A sweet semolina cake is ideal for dessert.