Turkish Kofte Seasoning

Description

The country of Turkey is often considered the crossroads of Asia, Europe and the Middle East and it has a long history as a central hub of trading. A visit to the spice bazaar in Istanbul and you’ll instantly see why Turkey has such well earned reputation for having access to such a wide variety of spices. Luckily you don’t have to take a trip there to enjoy some of these amazing flavors.

Our Turkish Kofte Seasoning, pronounced “cough-tay”, has also been called by some Turkish Baharat and is similar to the Arabic Baharat. This blend is primarily used in preparing kofte and kibbeh and can also be used for grilled and roasted chicken and lamb.

Kibbeh, pronounce ki-bay, is also known as kebbah, kibbe, kubbeh or kubbi and is a Middle Eastern dish that is made with minced onions, cracked wheat (bulghur) and finely ground lean beef, goat or lamb. Typically kibbeh looks like a torpedo-shaped fried croquette but they may also be made into patties or balls. These are then baked, fried or cooked in a broth. Kibbeh is widely considered Lebanon’s national dish.

Kibbeh is also very popular in Israel, Palestine and Syria. In the late 19th century many Lebanese and Syrian immigrants migrated to Latin America where this dish is also now popular in parts of Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Honduras and Mexico.

Köfte kebab is a version of the kebab and is popular in Iran and Turkey. These are usually minced lamb meatballs with herbs, skewered on a stick and grilled. There are hundreds of versions of these.

Turkish BBQ often involves threading the meat on a skewer before grilling - the kebab - and this is frequently served with rice. Skewered kebabs are one of those foods that has seamlessly crossed borders and been assimilated into the cuisine of numerous countries. Food historians believe the first kabobs originated in the Mediterranean region while many believe that they’re indigenous to Turkey. The word “kebab” is Persian in origin and Arabic lore believes it was first created by Persian soldiers who stuck meat on their swords and grilled them over open battlefield fires.

Our salt free Turkish Kofte Seasoning is hand blended from cinnamon, black pepper, Aleppo pepper, allspice, nutmeg, sumac, cardamom, cumin and coriander.

I particularly love our Kofte seasoning as a very flavorful and exotic chicken kabob seasoning rub. The delightful flavor profile features Aleppo pepper in a starring role and Aleppo’s hints of sweetness plays well with the cinnamon in the blend and also its slight tartness marries well with the sumac. In testing this blend on our backyard grill the feedback from our neighbors about the aroma coming from our backyard was higher than usual.

If you’re a fan of Middle Eastern seasoning blends you’ll love these and if you crave unique chicken flavors then you can’t go wrong either. One of our new favorite Middle Eastern seasonings is Dukkah.


Nutritional Information
Serving Size 1 Teaspoon, Amount Per Serving: Calories 5.4, Fat Cal. 1.8, Total Fat .2g (0% DV), Sat. Fat .1g (1% DV), Trans Fat 0g (0% DV), Cholest. 0mg (0% DV), Sodium 0g(0% DV), Total Carb. 1.2g (0% DV), Dietary Fiber .6g (2% DV), Sugars .1g, Protein 0.1g (0%DV), Vitamin A (2.7% DV), Vitamin C (1% DV), Calcium (1.1% DV), Iron (1.9% DV), Percent Daily Values (DV) are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.