Kafta bil Saniyeh with Potatoes

📝 Ingredients

• 600 g minced beef, 5% fat
• 1 brown onion (about 100 g)
• 20 g fresh parsley (15 g for the kafta, 5 g for serving)
• 1 tsp ground cumin + 1 tsp ground coriander + 1 tsp sweet paprika
• ½ tsp ground cinnamon + ½ tsp ground ginger + ¼ tsp nutmeg
• 800 g potatoes (5 medium, about 160 g each)
• 3 tomatoes (about 120 g each)
• 1 tin chopped tomatoes (400 g) + 1 tbsp tomato purée
• 2 garlic cloves (for the sauce)
• 150 ml water
• 2 tbsp olive oil (1 for the potatoes, 1 for the sauce)
• Salt, black pepper

🍴 Utensils

• Large ovenproof dish (about 30 × 20 cm)
• Mixing bowl
• Saucepan
• Grater
• Large knife

📖 Steps

1. Preheat the oven to 200 °C. Peel the potatoes and cut them into even 5 mm slices, so they all cook at the same rate. Toss them in the baking dish with 1 tbsp oil, salt and pepper, then spread them out in an even layer.
2. Put the potatoes in the oven on their own for 15 minutes: this pre-cooking stops them still being firm when the meat is already cooked. Meanwhile, grate the onion, squeeze it in your hands to remove its juice and finely chop 15 g parsley.
3. In a mixing bowl, combine the beef, squeezed onion, chopped parsley, cumin, coriander, paprika, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, 1 tsp salt and some pepper. Knead by hand for 2 minutes until the mixture is uniform and slightly sticky.
4. Divide the meat into 8 balls of about 85 g. Flatten them between slightly wet hands into patties about 1 cm thick and 9 cm across: the water stops the meat sticking to your fingers.
5. Make the sauce: heat 1 tbsp oil in the saucepan over a medium heat, fry the chopped garlic for 30 seconds without letting it colour, then add the chopped tomatoes, tomato purée, water, salt and pepper. Leave to simmer for 5 minutes.
6. Slice the fresh tomatoes. Take the dish out of the oven and arrange the kafta patties on top, alternating them with the tomato slices and overlapping them like roof tiles. Pour the sauce evenly over everything.
7. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for a further 15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, the sauce has reduced and the top of the kafta is nicely browned.
8. Leave to rest for 5 minutes out of the oven so the sauce can set a little, then sprinkle with the remaining chopped parsley. Serve straight from the dish, allowing 2 patties per person.