🍖 İzmir Köfte
İzmir köfte are oval meatballs of seasoned minced meat, briefly browned and then baked in a tray with wedges of potato, green peppers and tomatoes in a light tomato sauce. The köfte turn soft and juicy, the potatoes absorb the sauce and the peppers add a fresh note. It is a homely one-tray dish, served hot with rice or salad.
Diets
Allergens
Contains (in a typical recipe):
What it is made of
Recipe
Ingredients
- 500 g minced beef
- 1 onion, grated
- 1 tsp cumin
- 3 medium potatoes, cut into wedges
- 3 green peppers, halved
- 2 tomatoes, sliced
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 300 ml hot water
- 2 tbsp oil
- Salt and black pepper
Method
- Mix the beef with onion, cumin, salt and pepper; shape into finger-length oval köfte.
- Brown the köfte quickly in a hot pan with a little oil.
- Toss the potato wedges with the remaining oil and salt and arrange them in a baking tray with the köfte, peppers and tomato slices.
- Dissolve the tomato paste in the hot water and pour over the tray.
- Bake at 200 °C for 35–40 minutes until the potatoes are tender.
How to make it lighter
- Use lean minced beef and skip browning the köfte in oil; they can go straight into the tray.
- Replace some potato with extra peppers or zucchini.
- Serve with a large salad instead of rice.
History
As the name suggests, the dish is associated with the Aegean city of İzmir, and it is now a standard home-cooked meal across Turkey.
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Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →