Moroccan Kefta Tagine

Fragrant lamb kefta meatballs sit in tangy, warmly spiced tomato sauce – this Moroccan kefta tagine is so simple and tasty. A warming, flavour-packed dish that’s a cinch to whip up at home.

I love meatballs! From Italy to Spain, South East Asia to India, there are so many variations to be enjoyed. This Moroccan kefta tagine recipe features delectable juicy balls of lamb in a rich, tangy and silky tomato sauce. It's full of colour, flavour and texture, and really very simple. Want to learn how to make a tagine? Let's get started.

What's Ahead?

Kefta, Köfta, Kufta, Qofte, Kjofte, Cufte, Cufteta, Cufti, Meatballs?

What are kefta? Where you live dictates how you pronounce the word for these ubiquitous balls of meat. Found all across the Europe, The Mediterranean, North Africa, Balkans, and into Central Asia and South East Asia there's a million variations of spelling and preparation for meatballs.

In Morocco they're named Kefta and Typically made with ground lamb or mutton and an array of fragrant spices. When cooked in a super tasty Moroccan tomato sauce they're elevated into taste sensation territory.

At Cook Eat World, I'm no stranger to the delights of the meatball... try some of my most favourite recipes from around the world that feature them: My Indian Kofta Curry, Vietnamese Bun Cha Salad or the deliciously juicy Cypriot Sheftalia are yours for the taking.

What's a tagine?

What most people refer to when they think of a tagine/tajine is the earthenware dish with a conical lid. Used throughout North Africa as the dish to cook many stews and soups. This is indeed a tagine, but ingeniously, the foodstuff inside the tagine is also called a tagine! Keeps it simple, right? I long ago broke my tajine (tear face emoji), but that doesn't mean I can't still enjoy a tagine! A regular pan will do just fine. Are you keeping up? Good.

For those not sure how to use a tagine, it's simple - you can use either on a stove top (a flame stove), or in the oven. This includes wood burning or BBQ grill ovens. The terracotta is flame and heat resistant so work in many environments.

Stuff You'll Need

This recipe is a game of two halves. Firstly you'll need all the Kefta ingredients, then the sauce ingredients. Here's what goes into both:

• For the meatballs
  The meatball mix is a harmonious blend of ground lamb (mince), onion, green chilli, mint, cilantro, cumin, cinnamon and salt & pepper
• For the sauce
  Olive oil, green/spring onion, garlic, cumin, coriander, turmeric, salt & pepper, chicken broth/stock and tomato passata.
• Garnishes can be many, but I like to add a few fragrant herbs in the form of mint and dill and sometimes parsley.

Step by Step

Let's see each step of how to cook a tagine - it's really very easy. And fear not if you don't have a tagine pan, a regular pan works just as well.

1. Making the kefta balls. As simple as combining a few ingredients and spices with the ground lamb and then rolling into small balls.
2. Making the sauce. We simply fry the kefta then remove and fry the onions and garlic. Then add a few spices and tomato. We then return the kefta to the pan and wait for a little until they cook. That's it! Not too technical, right?

• Step 1 - All the ingredients for the meatballs are added to a bowl. Get your hands in and combine into a sticky mixture.
• Step 2 - Using lightly wet hands will make rolling the lamb mix much easier to shape into balls.
• Step 3 - The kefta go into a frying pan and are lightly browned to help seal in the flavour and keep them juicy. We then take them out to make the sauce.
• Step 4 - Onion, garlic and spices are gently fried until a little soft. We can then add the tomato and meatballs.
• Step 5 - Everything is done. All we need now is 30 minutes to wait for everything to cook. Give the pan a few shakes once in a while to keep everything moving.

Serving & Storage Suggestions

• To serve - I like a big bowl of couscous - typically I'll add a little butter when I soak/cook the couscous with boiling water or broth for added flavour. When cooked I'll stir in plenty of fresh herbs and sometimes some chopped preserved lemon and/or chopped nuts like almonds, pistachios or walnuts. Then I simply spoon over a generous helping of kefta and sauce for the ultimate Moroccan treat.
• Storage - The kefta once cooked will stay fresh in the fridge (well covered) for 4-5 days. In the freezer, you can store in bags or sealed containers for 3+ months. Just defrost when needed and reheat in the microwave or pan until piping hot. You might want to add a little water to avoid it being too reduced.

Ready to get cooking?

This kefta tagine is one of my favourite recipes to cook at home. The tangy, silky sauce is just packed with flavour and those lamb meatballs are pure juicy perfection. It's always a treat to serve this at a dinner party, especially if you serve in a traditional tagine pan! If anyone out there wants to send me a new Tagine to replace the one I dropped, I'd be very open to the idea - thank you so much. Hope you enjoy the recipe. If you found it helpful, let me know and show some love in the comments below.

More Moroccan recipes

If you liked my kefta tagine, I'm sure you'll love some more of my favourite Moroccan recipes too.

• Zaalouk (Moroccan Eggplant Salad)
  
• Freekeh Pilaf with Chickpeas
  
• Moroccan Blood Orange Salad
  
• Moroccan Fava Bean Dip with Mint & Harissa (Bessara)
  
• Roasted Cauliflower Couscous
  
• Moroccan Matbucha – Tomato & Pepper Salad
  
• Moroccan Carrot Salad
  
• Moroccan Rice with Silverbeet

This recipe uses affiliations and may receive a commission based on your activity (link clicks). Learn more.