Slow-Cooker Kofte in Tomato-Lime Broth

By Ali Slagle

Slow-Cooker Kofte in Tomato-Lime Broth
Joel Goldberg for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
Total Time
4 hours 10 minutes
Rating
4(916)
Notes
Read community notes

While you’re at the beach, at work or doing anything at all, these bright, light, brothy meatballs can be stewing in the slow cooker. They are made in the style of kofte (from the Persian word meaning “grind”), in which ground meat is combined with lots of herbs and ground spices. Yogurt adds moisture and tang, but you don’t need another binder or to brown the meat first. As the meatballs slowly cook, their juices mingle with the tomatoes to create a rich but tart broth. Eat with grains (bulgur wheat, farro, rice), couscous, noodles or pita. For a stovetop version, see the Tip.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 to 6 servings
  • 1lime
  • 4garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
  • 1cup chopped dill, mint, parsley or a combination, plus more for serving
  • ½cup full-fat Greek yogurt (about 4 ounces)
  • 1½teaspoons ground turmeric or another warm spice, like baharat, paprika, cumin, coriander, allspice or a mix
  • Kosher salt (Diamond Crystal) and black pepper
  • 2pounds ground lamb, beef, turkey or a combination
  • 3pints cherry or Sungold tomatoes (about 30 ounces)
  • Granulated sugar, to taste
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)

287 calories; 10 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 14 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 9 grams sugars; 36 grams protein; 792 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Use a vegetable peeler to peel the rind off the lime in wide strips. Add the rind to a 6- to 8-quart slow cooker, along with the garlic and ¼ cup water. (Reserve the lime.)

  2. Step 2

    In a large bowl, stir together the herbs, yogurt, turmeric, 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon black pepper. Add the meat and use your hands to combine. Form the meat into 8 balls (roughly 4½ ounces each) and add to the slow cooker in a single layer. If they don’t fit in one layer, add a few tomatoes to buffer the meatballs from one another, then add another layer of meatballs. Add the cherry tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, then cover and cook on low until the meatballs are cooked through, 3 to 4 hours.

  3. Step 3

    Transfer the meatballs to plates, then remove and discard the garlic and lime peel. Burst most of the tomatoes by smashing them on the side of the slow cooker with a spoon. Squeeze the reserved lime into the slow cooker, then season to taste with salt, pepper and sugar. (The sugar helps compensate for too-tart tomatoes.) Spoon the tomatoes and broth on top of the meatballs, along with more fresh herbs.

Tip
  • To make this dish on the stovetop, cook the tomato sauce first (follow the timing in step 3 here), then add the meatballs and cover to cook through.

Ratings

4 out of 5
916 user ratings
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Cooking Notes

Luxi

Does anyone have any tips on how long this might take an Instant Pot?

JE

Very good. Did not have cherry tomatoes on hand, so used a can of diced tomatoes. Added an egg to the meat mixture because I like my meatballs to not fall apart. When my son arrived, he said it smelled amazing walking up to the house.

Mildred P.

I made this tonight and while it didn't rock my world, it was easy and very tasty; the husband and teen boys liked it a lot and cleaned their plates. I used even amounts of mint, parsley and dill for the herbs; and allspice, turmeric and paprika for the spices. Served with couscous and topped with roasted pine nuts. Next time, I may skin and half some roma tomatoes instead of using the cherry ones, just to have less skin to contend with. Will definitely make again as a weeknight dinner.

Marie

Made this with Beyond meat burger for my vegetarian friends. The dish turned out lovely. I didn't have dill, so I used a combination of fresh mint, cilantro, and parsley. I will definitely make this again but maybe add a little more turmeric.

molly

You can use a 200 degree oven instead, put in a dutch oven and bake for the same time.

burnoutbakes

Made this for dinner last night and it was quite good. The store was out of lamb and I used beef, but I'd like to do a blend of beef/lamb next time. I used equal parts mint and dill for the herbs, and mixed in 1/2 teaspoon each of allspice, coriander, cumin, paprika and cured sumac. Served it over a bed of orzo and sprinkled crumbled feta and more mint on top.

Dee

I had the same question about using the Instant Pot. I found this conversion sheet in a couple of places and it looks reasonable. https://5dinners1hour.com/instant-pot-cheat-sheet/

Marie

I made this with beyond meat burger. I used the stove top cooking method, and the meatballs were not dry at all

MtnNewf

I thought her times at pressure were a little short, but one should always expect that you might have to put the top on and cook it a little longer. My starting point for converting is thirds (or threes, depending which direction you're going)--stove top is about 1/3 the amount of time for a slow cooker and cooking at pressure is about 1/3 the time for stovetop.

Rita

A couple of people asked about subbing chicken or a veggie mixture like Beyond Burger. My fear is they would dry out during the long cooking. But I make grilled or broiled kofta pattys using Beyond Burger and they are delicious. They just cook in under 6 minutes.

Emily H

This was so good! I was searching for a low-carb/keto recipe and this really worked. Amped up the quantity of spice a tiny bit. Use a combo of cumin, coriander, tumeric, and garam masala for a total of 2 tsp.

spiffypaws

This was excellent and so easy. I used 1/2 lamb and half pork. A healthy cup of chopped dill and extra turmeric. I made 10 meatballs and could fit them perfectly in my instapot I 1 layer. Wine pairing: rose

Fay

It says above: Tip To make this dish on the stovetop, cook the tomato sauce first (follow the timing in step 3 here), then add the meatballs and cover to cook through.

Bunni

Followed the recipe to a "T". Subtle and delicious flavors. In future, I would put the lime peels into a herb container or wrap in cheese cloth or the like, to make it easier to fish them out. I had sufficient left over for another meal. Served on a bed of garlic sauteed spinach.

knots landing

Made this tonight :) Brothy, herby, delicious and simple! Used more herbs than called for. I left the lime peel in accidentally and it’s so good that way. Beef/mint/parsley cous cous. I’ll make this again.

nora

10 min on high pressure instant pot

Liz

This was a hit with my spouse, not so much the kids ("Who puts vegetables in meatballs?!"). It was a great way to use up leftover rice.

hsw

Part II I added 1 tsp turmeric, 1 teaspoon garam masala and 1/2 teaspoon paprika. I did slightly less salt than the recipe called for as well.

hsw

I just made this and will add it to my rotation! Very good. You don’t need to add an egg to the meat because the yogurt functions as a binder. You will want to skim the fat off the top of the broth after cooking, depending on the fat content of your ground meats. I see some notes about bitterness from the lime — make sure you don’t get the white pith when you peel the zest. I skipped the sugar — fat balances acid better than sugar. Add butter if it’s too acidic for your taste.

Audrey

We thought this was a very tasty and quick weeknight meal. I used ground venison because my husband is a hunter and I'm always looking for ways to use it. I incorporated some of the other comments on here by using a lemon instead of lime, using a teaspoon each of turmeric, cumin, and coriander, mincing some red onion to put in the meatballs, and cooking in the pressure cooker for 9 minutes. I have a quart of leftover tomato sauce to freeze and serve with baked meatballs another time!

Richard B

Not our favorite. The meatballs were very dry, and the dish was overall just bland. Definitely add an egg to the meatballs if using Turkey as we did.

Khadimir

The spicing ratios need to be ignored. 1 teaspoon for 2 lbs of meat is not enough to even know it's there, and only something like turmeric would be detectable. This recipe is a decent base, though, and the sauce wholly depends on the quality of the tomatoes.

Nancy

I must have got too much pith with the lime strips. The "broth" ended up bitter. The addition of sugar just made it bitter and sweeter. This is a good way to cook meatballs though. Next time I'm doubling the spices and adding onion to the meat.

Lisa

Wonderful recipe; I doubled the spices, including mint, parsley, and added more lime juice and a little hot pepper.

5OHS

Followed the recipe. Did 1/2 lamb and 1/2 beef. 1/2 parsley and 1/2 mint. All cumin. Served over brown rice & quinoa. No leftovers! And another night of not turning the oven on in this heat! Not mind blowing, but a decent dinner. Will repeat!

KJP

made with turkey. really enjoyed but the lime peel made for a lot of bitterness. i didn’t totally mind, but i’m surprised not to see more comments about it

Paul G.

They say Greek yogurt production is very bad for the environment.

CSN

Thanks for the tip on the 200° oven, reader. Worked perfectly as I no longer have a slow cooker or an InstantPot!

mimi

Cooked this again in instant pot w beyond beef and shawarma seasoning (per the comment I left after the first time). One additional note I wanted to include this time was that the dish came out a bit bitter and I suspect I might’ve peeled the lime w too much pith. Next time I’ll try microplaning the zest instead. I also think juice from half a lime is plenty. Otherwise as wonderful as the first time I made it.

One Change

We really liked this! The lime in the sauce is so tasty!

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