Kurdish Kutilk in Mint-Yogurt Sauce (Meatballs / Bulgur Balls)

Name: Kurdish Kutilk in Mint-Yogurt Sauce (Meatballs / Bulgur Balls)
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 60 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: Dough: 500g very fine bulgur, 300 ml room-temperature water, 1/2 tsp salt; Filling: 250g button mushrooms finely chopped (or ground meat in traditional version), 1 yellow onion finely chopped; 3 tbsp parsley, 3 tbsp raisins, 50g chopped almonds or pine nuts; 1/2 tsp Aleppo chili, 1/2 tsp coriander, 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/8 tsp cardamom, 1/8 tsp clove, salt and pepper, 1 tbsp oil; Mint-yogurt sauce: 250 ml thick yogurt, 250-300 ml boiling stock, 2 tsp dried mint, 1 tbsp butter, salt and pepper; Chili butter: 3 tbsp butter, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1.5 tbsp Aleppo pepper flakes, salt

Kutilk / Kitêl

Known internationally as kibbeh (Arabic), içli köfte (Turkish), kufteh (Armenian). The signature Kurdish version 'kutilk daw' is served in a tangy yogurt-garlic broth with mint-chili butter. Traditionally the shell is stuffed with spiced ground lamb/beef; this source uses a vegan mushroom filling.

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Kurdish Kutilk in Mint-Yogurt Sauce (Meatballs / Bulgur Balls)

Prep

40 min

Cook

20 min

Serves

Difficulty

Medium

Method

Mix bulgur, salt and room-temperature water; cover and rest 15-20 min, then knead by hand ~10 min into a smooth, playdough-like shell dough.
For the filling, sauté onion with the spices, add mushrooms (or meat) and cook until browned and dry; stir in almonds, raisins and parsley; cook 2 min and cool completely.
Roll dough into golf-ball portions; press your finger into the center and thin out the walls into a shell; add ~1.5 tbsp filling, then pinch closed into a shell or half-moon.
Drop the kutilk in batches into salted boiling water; once they float, cook 10-15 min until the bulgur is tender.
Make chili butter by melting butter, olive oil and Aleppo flakes together.
Make the sauce: fry dried mint in butter 30 sec, whisk into yogurt, then slowly add hot stock a ladle at a time; season.
Plate the kutilk, top with warm mint-yogurt sauce and drizzle with chili butter.

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