Koobideh

Once upon a time, I went to a Persian restaurant with my friend Kimberly. I had not been before, nor have I gone since (I don't even remember exactly where this particular place was), but it was some of the best food I have ever tasted. One of the dishes we had was these ground meat kebabs served with roasted tomatoes over basmati rice. Thinking about that meal recently, I decided to search out a recipe and try to duplicate it at home.

These were made with 1 pound of ground beef, 1 egg, 2 medium onions (the recipe called for them to be grated, but I minced mine very fine in my food processor), 2 minced cloves of garlic, 1 teaspoon turmeric, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. I mixed it all together and let it sit in the refrigerator all day. Then I pressed the mixture around the skewers and broiled it until it was good and browned, about 20 minutes. The tomatoes should have gone under the broiler, too, but I sauteed them in some olive oil, garlic, salt, and pepper. 

I think it turned out looking pretty nice, but the taste did not come close. They tasted good, but not nearly like what they made in the restaurant. My teenager gave them 5 stars, but that's just because it was meat and he's a raging carnivore. My hubby and I went for 4 stars, and the 10-year-old gave them 3 (3.5 when he added some more salt). If I make these again, it will be with a different recipe. I'll keep hunting.

So, Kimberly, when you are ready to renounce your vegetarian ways and come back to the dark side, perhaps we can hunt down that restaurant again. Call me.