Vegan kofta with basmati rice

Köfte are strongly seasoned, fried or grilled meatballs, which are found in numerous variations throughout oriental cuisine from North Africa through southeastern Europe to India .
They are traditionally made from minced lamb and beef and seasoned with cumin . For our vegan version we use Lotao organic veggie mince, red beans, onions, garlic, parsley and some breadcrumbs as needed .
In summer you can simply grill them and serve them with fresh mint tzatziki, parsley tomato salad and basmati rice. If the weather isn't good, you can of course simply fry the vegan kofta in the pan.

Ingredients:

(for 2 people)

• 75 g Lotao organic veggie mince
• 75 g red beans (cooked)
• 1/2 onion
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 3 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
• 3 tbsp fresh mint, chopped
• 50 ml vegetable soup
• 1/2 tsp allspice powder
• 1 teaspoon coriander seeds, ground
• 1 teaspoon cumin, ground
• 1 teaspoon Bali Pure salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 50g breadcrumbs
• Vegetable oil for frying

for the mint tzatziki

• 200g soy yogurt
• 1/2 cucumber
• 1 garlic clove
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• Salt
• olive oil
• mint

Preparation:

1. Place the red beans, onion, garlic, parsley and mint in a blender and puree everything together into a soft, homogeneous paste.
2. Put the bean puree in a bowl, fold in the veggie mince , allspice powder, coriander, cumin, pepper and salt and pour over the hot vegetable soup.
3. Mix into a doughy mass and add enough breadcrumbs until the mixture becomes firm and malleable. Let it rest for about 5 minutes, taste again and add more salt if necessary.
4. In the meantime, prepare the tzatziki: Remove the seeds from the cucumber and grate it into a bowl using the coarse side of the grater. Salt the cucumber shavings well and after a while wring out the excess juice.
5. Mix the soy yogurt in a bowl and add pressed garlic, olive oil and lemon juice. Season with salt and ground black pepper to taste. Fold in the chopped mint and stir everything well.
6. Form the “sausage-shaped” vegan kofta out of the veggie mince mixture with two spoons and place them on a kitchen towel. The mixture should make approx. 10 kofta.
7. Heat the vegetable oil in a large pan and fry the vegan kofta over medium heat for about 5 minutes on each side - until they are nice and golden brown and crispy all over.
8. Be careful when turning the vegan kofta so that they don't break apart. Serve hot with the mint tzatziki, lotao basmati rice and a fresh tomato and parsley salad.
9. Alternatively, you can wrap the vegan kofta in warm flatbread and serve like a kebab sandwich. Bon appetit!

By the way: If you would like to try the Indian version of "Köfte" - you can go directly to the recipe for " Jackfruit Tikki " here.