Koftas are essentially meatballs or dumplings that are of Middle Eastern and South Asian origin. I love making any type of meatballs, so I jumped at the chance to make this when I read the recipe in an old cookbook I had from several years ago, called The Ultimate Chicken Cookbook. I had tried many of the recipes in this book before but I couldn't believe I had missed this one. The meatballs have a nice earthy smokey undertone to it from the spices added in. It is really a great twist to the traditional spaghetti and meatballs dish. I'm going to have to make this one for my mom and dad sometime.
- 1-1/2 lb chicken breasts, skinless and boneless
- 1 onion, grated
- 2 garlic clove, grated
- 1 tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- 1/2 tsp each: ground cumin and ground coriander
- 1 egg, beaten
- coarse salt and ground black pepper
- seasoned flour, for rolling the meatballs in
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 tbsp butter or margarine
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 14-oz chopped tomatoes, with their juices
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/4 tsp dried Italian herbs
- 1 cup orzo, cooked
1. Place the chicken breasts into a food processor and pulse it a few times, until the chicken looks is grounded up in texture. Make sure not to grind it up too fine. Place the chicken into a large bowl, then start to combine the grated onion, grated garlic, parsley, spices, egg, salt and pepper. Shape the chicken mixture into 1-1/2" balls, then roll them lightly on the seasoned flour.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large heavy bottom skillet, on medium heat, and brown the meatballs in small batches. Then remove the browned meatballs onto a plate lined with paper towel. Note: you don't need to cook the chicken all the way through, as it will be cooked in the sauce later.
3. Sauce: Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Sprinkle in the flour, then whisk in the stock and tomatoes, along with their juices. Add in the sugar and the dried Italian herbs. Bring it up to a bubble, then add back in the chicken meatballs, cover and simmer for a good 10 minutes. Cook the orzo in the meantime. Follow package instructions. Once done serve it immediately.
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