Kipes or Quipes

Ingredients:

160g bulgur wheat
500g minced beef
1 bell pepper, or cubanelle pepper, very finely diced
2 bunches parsley, finely chopped
1 small red onion, very finely diced
3 tsp salt, (or to taste)
120ml tomato sauce
40g raisins
500ml oil for frying
¼ tsp freshly-cracked black pepper

Method:

Transfer the bulgur wheat to a bowl and add enough water to cover and let it soak over-night. Make sure you stir a couple of times during this period.

For the seasoning paste: Pulse onion, bell pepper, and parsley in a food processor until you obtain a slightly coarse paste.

Place the meat in a bowl then mix in the seasoning paste along with 1 tsp black pepper and 3 tsp salt. Mix thoroughly with your hands to combine then divide the meat, placing 1/3 in one bowl and 2/3 in another.

Heat 2 tbsp of oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the ⅓ of the meat you've divided then cook, stirring, until it's lightly browned. Add tomato sauce and mix well. Stir in 120ml of water and the raisins, bring to a simmer and cook over medium heat.

When all the liquid has evaporated, take the pan from the heat then set aside to cool to room temperature. Set aside.

At this point, turn the bulgur wheat into a sieve to drain. Once drained put the bulgur wheat in a clean towel and wring out as much of the excess water as you can.

Turn the drained bulgur into the bowl with the remaining raw minced beef. With your hands, mix the bulgur and raw meat, kneading it until it is mixed uniformly. This is a crucial step and may take over 10 minutes. The better kneaded this mixture is, the better the chances of kipes not breaking apart in the hot oil. You should be left with a mixture that resembles dough. If you want to reduce the preparation time, you can also pulse for a couple of minutes in the food processor for a more compact texture.

Set 2 tablespoons of the bulgur mixture on the palm of your hand and roll it into a ball. Form a deep indentation in the ball by poking it with your index finger. Place 1 tbsp of the cooked meat filling in the indentation. Gather the bulgur dough the hole, closing it, then roll the kipe with the palm of your hands making it as compact as possible. Pinch the ends to give it its traditional shape. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours to firm up.

Pour the frying oil into a small saucepan (this needs to be wide enough to hold the kipes and small enough so the oil can fully cover them) and place over medium-high heat until the oil reaches 175ºC.If you have a deep fryer, as the oil temperature has to be spot on. Cool oil will make your kipes break down and possibly ruin the oil too.

When it is time to fry them give them another quick squeeze to make them properly compact. Taking great care due to potential spluttering oil add your kipes, preferably one at a time, carefully lowering them into the oil with a slotted spoon or spider to avoid burning yourself.

When its finished frying, the kipe should be a deep golden brown in colour on the outside. Open the first one when you are done; if there is any pink part inside it means there is still raw meat... so fry the next one longer.

Set them on a paper towel to drain any excess oil before serving.

Kipes or Quipes

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