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Grilled Beef Kafta Kebabs are easy to prepare and use warm, rich Middle Eastern spices. You can eat the beef kebabs in a pita sandwich or on a plate of hummus with pita on the side. 

GRILLED BEEF KAFTA KEBABS

Grilling season is the best season. Am I right, or am I right?

We are those crazy Midwesterners that grill year round, but we really amp it up in the warmer months.

These Grilled Beef Kafta Kebabs will be on repeat this summer and I can’t wait.

If you are familiar with Middle Eastern food you might have had beef kafta before.

We eat beef kafta a lot in Lebanese cooking and it is one of my favorite things to order at my go-to local Middle Eastern restaurants, Aladdins.

While I love getting take-out from time to time from my favorite Middle Eastern restaurant. I also like cooking at home as much as possible for obvious reasons–to save money and to really know exactly what is going in my meal.

I knew I had to share these kafta kebabs with you because they are my favorite way to eat beef using Middle Eastern flavors.

If you have had my Beef Kafta Meatballs than today’s Grilled Beef Kafta Kebabs will remind of you those. The big difference is the way these are cooked — on the grill.

I love how easy grilling makes meal time, especially with beef.

Beef really doesn’t need much time to cook on the grill and with these kebabs that is one of my favorite parts.

This beef kafta cook in less than 10 minutes on the grill.

Today we are celebrating grilling season with Certified Angus Beef ® brand.

By now you have probably seen some of my delicious recipes featuring their delicious, juicy beef including this Beef Shawarma, One Skillet Beef Taco Pasta and these Slow Cooker Philly Cheesesteak Rice Bowls.

WHAT INGREDIENTS ARE IN THIS KAFTA RECIPE?

BEEF: Ground beef is the star of the show in this recipe. I like to use 80/20 to make sure there is some fat in the beef giving it more flavor.

You can also use 1/2 ground lamb and 1/2 ground beef. 

ONION & GARLIC: Minced onion and garlic help to create a nice flavor in this kafta recipe. 

SPICES & HERBS: The spices and herbs are my favorite part of this recipe.

It features fresh parsley and mint along with cumin, coriander, cinnamon, allspice, cloves and oregano. 

BREADCRUMBS: The breadcrumbs help to hold the kafta together. I use plain, regular breadcrumbs. 

EGG: The egg also helps to bind the kebabs together when you are forming the mixture on the skewers. 

HOW DO YOU MAKE BEEF KAFTA?

If you are using wooden skewers you will want to soak them for an hour before you grill. If you are using metal skewers set about 6-8 aside depending on how big you want to make your kebabs.

Preheat the grill on medium-high heat for 10- 15 minutes before you start grilling.

In a food processor chop the onion and garlic until finely chopped.

Add the ground beef, parsley, mint, salt, pepper, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper, oregano and give it a few pulses.

Add the egg and process until the beef starts to become a thick mixture and everything is pretty well mixed together.

 

Add the breadcrumbs and process until everything is combined. Remove the beef mixture from the food processor and put it into a large mixing bowl.

Use your hands to form 1 to 1 1/2 inch thick kebabs around the skewers making them as long as you want. Do this using each of the skewers until your beef is done.

Put the kofta kebabs on the grill and grill them over the medium-high heat for about 4-5 minutes on one side, flip and grill another 4 to 5 minutes.

Serve the kebabs with your favorite pita, hummus, tabbouleh and a drizzle of the tahini garlic sauce.

When I make these I like to either put them on a pita sandwiched with a spread of hummus, a drizzle of the tahini garlic sauce and some fresh vegetables or even a scoop of Tabbouleh.

If pita sandwiches aren’t your thing than I suggest serving it with hummus {similar to this hummus with spiced beef recipe}, pita, an Easy Lebanese Salad and some Mediterranean Roasted Vegetables.

Grilled Beef Kafta Kebabs

Yield: 6

Grilled Beef Kafta Kebabs are easy to prepare and use warm, rich Middle Eastern spices. You can eat the beef kebabs in a pita sandwich or on a plate of hummus with pita on the side. 

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Ingredients

For the Beef Kafta:

• 1  1/2 pounds Certified Angus Beef ® brand ground beef
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 of a medium sweet onion 
• 2 Tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
• 2 Tablespoons fresh mint, finely chopped
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon coriander
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes {optional}
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper {optional}
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup breadcrumbs

For the Tahini Garlic Sauce:

• 1 cup tahini 
• 3/4 cup warm water {you might need more depending on the consistency you like}
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice, or more to taste {1 lemon usually does the trick}
• 1/4 tsp salt, or more to taste

Instructions

For the Beef Kafta:

If you are using wooden skewers you will want to soak them for an hour before you grill. If you are using metal skewers set about 6-8 aside depending on how big you want to make your kebabs.

Preheat the grill on medium-high heat for 10- 15 minutes before you start grilling.

In a food processor chop the onion and garlic until finely chopped. Add the ground beef, parsley, mint, salt, pepper, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper, oregano and give it a few pulses. Add the egg and process until the beef starts to become a thick mixture and everything is pretty well mixed together.

Add the breadcrumbs and process until everything is combined. Remove the beef mixture from the food processor and put it into a large mixing bowl.

Use your hands to form 1 to 1 1/2 inch thick kebabs around the skewers making them as long as you want. Do this using each of the skewers until your beef is done.

Put the kebabs on the grill and grill them over the medium-high heat for about 4-5 minutes on one side, flip and grill another 4 to 5 minutes.

Serve the kebabs with your favorite pita, hummus, tabbouleh and a drizzle of the tahini garlic sauce.

For the Tahini Garlic Sauce:

Put all the ingredients for the Tahini Garlic Sauce in a food processor and process until everything is combined and the sauce is smooth. Add more water to reach the consistency you like.

Notes

These Grilled Beef Kafta Kebabs work great in many meals. Try adding them on top of Fattoush or alongside Tabbouleh. Make a pita sandwich out of the beef along with tomato, a scoop of tabbouleh, hummus and the tahini garlic sauce.

Traditional beef kafta doesn't always use breadcrumbs but I like to add that in to help with the consistency of the meat and make it easier to form into kebabs on the skewers.

This post is sponsored by the Certified Angus Beef ® brand in conjunction with a social media campaign through Sunday Supper LLC. As always, all opinions are my own.