Kefta Mkaouara (Moroccan Meatballs in Tomato Sauce)
Morocco
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Small beef meatballs browned and then finished in a tomato and onion sauce with ras el hanout. It is Moroccan, and the fuller name for the dish is kefta mkaouara. The name belongs to an enormous family. Kefta, kofta, köfte, kufta and kafta are all the same word rendered from different languages, and versions of the dish run from Morocco through Egypt, Turkey and the Levant to South Asia. What distinguishes the Moroccan one is the seasoning, ras el hanout, the North African blend that varies by spice merchant but typically runs to a dozen or more spices, and the tagine format, where the meatballs finish in a shallow tomato sauce rather than being served dry. The size matters and is easy to get wrong. Moroccan meatballs are small, the source compares them to a large marble, because they are eaten communally from a shared dish with bread rather than plated individually. Larger ones do not work the same way. Eating it is part of it. The tagine is set in the middle of the table and everyone scoops from it with pieces of Moroccan bread, traditionally with mint tea afterwards. A separate Egyptian kofta recipe exists on this site. The two are relatives rather than duplicates: different meat, different spicing, different country.
Kefta mkaouara is a Moroccan dish of small seasoned meatballs cooked in a tomato sauce, usually served in a tagine and eaten communally with bread. Kefta belongs to a wide family of spiced meatball dishes found from North Africa through the Levant and Turkey to South Asia.
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Combine the ground beef with half the minced garlic and a tablespoon of the chopped onion.
Mix with your hands until fully incorporated.
Shape the meat into small oblong patties about 1 1/2 inches long, you should get 12 to 14. Keep them small; Moroccan meatballs are about the size of a large marble.
Warm a skillet over medium-high heat and brown the meatballs in batches until crisp on both sides and no longer pink in the middle, about 10 minutes. Set them aside in a rimmed serving dish.
Lower the heat to medium and put the remaining chopped onion into the pan with the meat drippings.
Season with salt and pepper and cook, turning constantly, until the onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes.
Mix in the remaining garlic and cook for 30 seconds.
Tip in the diced tomatoes, dried parsley, ras el hanout and water.
Cook until the tomatoes have softened, about 5 minutes, then pour the sauce over the meatballs and serve.
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