Turkish red lentil patties (mercimek köftesi)
Soft, spiced patties of red lentils and bulgur with tomato paste, green onion and parsley, shaped by hand and eaten with lemon, a vegan Turkish favorite that needs no frying at all.
- 60 min total
- 25 min hands-on
- Follow-a-recipe easy
- Serves 4
- About $1.62 a serving
- 410 calories
- Good the next day
- Vegan
- Dairy-free
Dolly says: Make the full amount. It’s just as good for lunch the next day.
Ingredients
For 4 servings.
- 1 cup split red lentils, rinsed
- ¾ cup bulgur
- 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 4 green onions, thinly sliced
- ½ cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 lemon, halved
- 1 cucumber, diced
- 2 Roma tomatoes, diced
From your pantry
- 2½ cups water
- 1¼ tsp salt, divided
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1½ tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp paprika
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes
Each serving has about 410 calories, 17 g protein, 62 g carbs and 12 g fat, and costs about $1.62 at typical US grocery prices. Both are estimates from what the recipe uses.
Missing something?
- No yellow onions? White onions or red onions work.
- No green onions? Chives work.
- No fresh parsley? Cilantro works.
- No lemons? Limes work.
- No cucumbers? English cucumbers or mini cucumbers work.
Steps
Tap an underlined word for a quick explanation.
Put the lentils, water and 1 teaspoon salt in a and over high heat.
Saucepan. A saucepan is a pot with tall, straight sides and one long handle. It’s for things that need depth, like rice, sauces or a few boiled eggs.
How you’ll know: The food fills it about halfway, leaving room to bubble without spilling over.
Bring to a boil. It means heating a liquid on high until it’s fully boiling before you move on. A lid on the pot gets it there faster, which makes it a good moment to chop something.
How you’ll know: Big bubbles break all over the surface, and they keep coming when you lift the lid.
High heat
15 minutes, stirring now and then, until mushy and the water is absorbed.
Simmer. Simmering means keeping a liquid just below a boil, with small bubbles rising gently. It cooks food evenly and lets a sauce thicken without scorching on the bottom.
How you’ll know: Small, lazy bubbles break the surface every second or so, and nothing is churning.
Medium heatTimer: 15 min
Dolly’s tip: Stir more toward the end. Red lentils catch on the bottom as they thicken.Take the pan off the heat, stir in the bulgur, cover, and leave it 15 minutes to .
Softened. For vegetables it means cooked until they bend and lose their crunch; for butter, left out until it dents easily. Soft onions taste sweet, and soft butter mixes in smoothly.
How you’ll know: Onions squash easily against the pan with your spoon, and butter dents under a finger without looking greasy.
Timer: 15 min
Meanwhile, heat the oil in a over medium heat and cook the onion 6 to 7 minutes, until soft. Stir in the tomato paste, cumin, paprika and pepper flakes for 1 minute.
Skillet. A skillet is a frying pan: wide and flat with low, sloped sides. The shape lets steam escape, so food browns instead of stewing.
How you’ll know: It’s the pan you’d fry an egg in, and a 10 or 12 inch one handles most recipes.
Medium heatTimer: 6 min
Scrape the onion mixture into the lentils, add the green onions, parsley and the juice of half the lemon, and knead it together with your hands until evenly orange.
Dolly’s tip: Let it cool enough to handle. It firms up as it cools, which makes shaping easier.Squeeze tablespoon-size pieces in your fist to make little oval patties with your finger marks on them.
the cucumber and tomatoes with a squeeze of lemon and of salt.
Toss. Tossing means gently lifting and turning food so everything gets coated, like pasta in sauce or vegetables in oil. It coats every piece evenly without mashing anything.
How you’ll know: Every piece looks glossy or evenly coated, with no dry spots hiding underneath.
Pinch. A pinch is what you can hold between your thumb and two fingers, less than an eighth of a teaspoon. It’s a small, forgiving amount, so there’s no need to measure.
How you’ll know: It’s a light sprinkle you can barely see on the food, not a little pile.
Pile the patties on a plate with the salad and lemon wedges alongside.
Plan this in Dollop, and get the grocery list
Dollop puts this dinner on a night that suits your week, lists only what you still need to buy, and walks you through each step while you cook.
More dinners like this
Red lentil soup with lemon
45 min
Moroccan harira
60 min
Ethiopian red lentil stew (misir wot)
55 min
Ethiopian-spiced red lentils and collard greens
55 min
Vegetarian dinners ›Make-ahead and freezer-friendly ›What to make with cucumber and tomatoes ›