Kibbeh bil Laban (Lebanese Kibbeh in Yogurt Sauce)

About This Recipe

Kibbeh bil laban is a mountain-Lebanese dish particularly associated with Tripoli and the Akkar region — small football-shaped kibbeh, made from a bulgur-and-lean-lamb shell filled with spiced minced lamb and pine nuts, gently poached in a warm sauce of stabilized yogurt perfumed with crushed garlic, dried mint, and a touch of fresh coriander. The yogurt is whisked with cornstarch and egg white to keep it from breaking when simmered (the trickiest part of the dish), and the finished bowl is a study in contrast: nutty bulgur shell, savory spiced filling, and a creamy tangy bath that pulls everything together. It's a winter dish in Lebanon, served at festive home meals and at Maronite Christian Easter tables, where the cooks of one family argue about whose grandmother makes the best version.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 400 gfine bulgur (#1), rinsed and soaked 20 minutes
• 400 gvery lean lamb (or beef), trimmed and twice-ground
• 1 largewhite onion, grated and squeezed dry
• 2 tspLebanese seven-spice (baharat)
• 1 tspground cinnamon, divided
• 1.5 tspfine salt, divided
• 1 tspfreshly ground black pepper
• 300 gfatty minced lamb (for filling)
• 1 mediumyellow onion, finely chopped
• 60 gpine nuts, toasted
• 2 tbspghee or olive oil
• 1 kgfull-fat plain yogurt (Greek or strained Lebanese laban)
• 1 largeegg white
• 2 tbspcornstarch
• 500 mlwater, divided
• 5 clovesgarlic, crushed to a paste with 0.5 tsp salt
• 2 tbspdried mint, crumbled
• 2 tbspfresh coriander, finely chopped

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the shell dough

   Drain the bulgur thoroughly. Combine with the lean lamb, grated dry onion, 1 tsp seven-spice, 0.5 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp salt, and pepper. Knead in a food processor (in batches) for 60 seconds at a time, adding 2–3 tablespoons of ice water, until you have a smooth, slightly sticky paste. Refrigerate 30 minutes.

2. 2

   Cook the filling

   Heat ghee in a skillet. Sweat the chopped onion 6 minutes. Add fatty minced lamb, remaining seven-spice and cinnamon, and 0.5 tsp salt. Cook 8 minutes until browned and crumbly. Stir in pine nuts. Cool fully.

3. 3

   Shape kibbeh

   Wet your hands with cold water. Take a tablespoon of shell dough, roll into a ball, then press a deep indent with your index finger to form a thin-walled shell. Fill with 1 teaspoon of cooled filling, close, and shape into a small football (5 cm long).

   The shell should be 4–5 mm thick — too thick and it tastes pasty, too thin and it bursts when poached.

4. 4

   Make the yogurt sauce

   Whisk yogurt, egg white, and cornstarch in a large heavy pot until completely smooth. Stir in 400 ml water.

5. 5

   Stabilize the yogurt

   Bring the yogurt mixture to a simmer over medium heat, stirring constantly in ONE direction with a wooden spoon. This takes 8–10 minutes — do not stop stirring or change direction.

   Stirring in one direction prevents the yogurt from breaking. The moment you switch direction, the proteins seize.

6. 6

   Add aromatics

   Once the sauce is gently bubbling and slightly thickened, add the garlic-salt paste, dried mint, and chopped coriander. Stir in (still one direction).

7. 7

   Poach the kibbeh

   Gently drop the kibbeh into the simmering yogurt sauce in a single layer (work in batches if needed). Simmer very gently 12–15 minutes, basting occasionally with the sauce. Do NOT let it boil hard or the yogurt will break.

8. 8

   Serve

   Ladle into shallow bowls with several kibbeh per portion and plenty of sauce. Serve with vermicelli-studded rice on the side, and a small dish of olive oil drizzled with sumac.

Variations

• •

  Akkar-style: add a tablespoon of pomegranate molasses to the filling for a sweet-tart edge.

• •

  Vegetarian (kibbeh raheb): replace the meat filling with sautéed Swiss chard and chickpeas.

• •

  Make the kibbeh extra crisp by frying briefly in oil before adding to the yogurt sauce — Beiruti restaurant version.

Storage

Refrigerate up to 3 days. Reheat very gently over low heat, never let it boil. Don't freeze — the yogurt sauce breaks on thawing.

Frequently Asked Questions