Kabob Koobideh (Persian Ground Beef Kabobs)
Authentic Kabob Koobideh is a Persian dish of seasoned ground beef on skewers that’s often found as a street food in Iran. My version of these ground beef kabobs are delicious and easy to make on a grill at home.
PIN Kabob Koobideh to make it at home!
If you’re familiar with my website at all, you may have noticed I have quite an assortment of recipes for grilled kabobs. But this recipe for Kabob Koobideh is a unique type of kabob made with double-ground seasoned ground beef that’s cooked on skewers. This is my version of the type of ground meatkabob that’s often seen as a street food in Iran.
I learned to like these Persian ground beef kabobs in a Salt Lake City restaurant that’s now called The Med. When I started my blog, I did some experimenting to try to reproduce the dish I’d enjoyed at The Med, where it’s still on the menu and called Kabob-e-Kubideh. I searched on the internet and found several recipes, but for my first few attempts the result was nothing like the dish I’d loved so much at The Med.
Then I visited a now-closed Middle Eastern grocery store in Salt Lake where the owner recommended Sadaf Ground Meat Kabob Seasoning (affiliate link). When I tried making Kabob Koobideh using that seasoning blend I thought the seasoning for the meat was perfect (and one description of the product on Amazon does say, “for that authentic Persian taste.”)
When I decided recently that this favorite recipe desperately needed a photo update I discovered Sadaf Ground Meat Kabob Seasoning at Black Cherry Market in Salt Lake, a fantastic place to find middle eastern food of all kinds. And I discussed my Kabob Koobideh recipe with the charming man who owns the place and he thought I was on the right track with the Sadaf Seasoning, double grinding the beef, and adding a generous amount of finely chopped onion. I also added a little salt and pepper and I couldn’t resist adding a little Spike Seasoning (affiliate link), but that’s definitely optional.
There are also other suggestions included in the recipe, including a recipe sent to me by a reader who is married to a man from Iran, so read those if you don’t want to buy a seasoning mix just for this recipe. However you end up personalizing your version of Kabob Koobideh, if you like middle eastern flavors like I do I bet you’re going to love this recipe!
What ingredients do you need?
(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)
- ground beef, I used organic ground beef with 15% fat
- onion
- Sadaf Ground Meat Kabob Seasoning (affiliate link), or see notes in the recipe for other options
- Spike Seasoning (affiliate link), optional but good
- salt and fresh-ground black pepper
- water
- Olive Oil (affiliate link), for oiling the grill
What did we serve with Kabob Koobideh?
We couldn’t resist photographing the Kabob Koobideh with Tzatziki Sauce, which is also what it’s served with at Cafe Med as well. And I realize that’s certainly combining food cultures, but it’s definitely a delicious combination.
Is my version of Kabob Koobideh an authentic recipe?
I’m not claiming this is an authentic Persian recipe, but my version of this kabob is made of double ground beef mixed with onions, salt and pepper, which is certainly true to the descriptions I found online, summarized here. I did use a purchased spice mix, but it was recommended by two different middle eastern grocery stores. Of course the addition of Spike Seasoning (affiliate link) is strictly my idea, and you can definitely skip that if you like. Traditional Koobideh in Iran will sometimes have some ground lamb combined with the beef, so definitely try that if you like the sound of both beef and lamb ground together.
What spices are in the Sadaf Ground Meat Kabob seasoning I used?
The label of the Sadaf Ground Meat Kabob Seasoning (affiliate link) I used says “Onions, garlic, sumac, parsley, salt, pepper, turmeric, and other spices.” (And in case anyone is wondering, this company hasn’t paid me to promote their product and they have no idea I’m mentioning it here!)
What kind of skewers should you use for the ground meat kabobs?
I love to use these Double Kabob Skewers (affiliate link) to make Kabob Koobideh, and having two skewers in one really helps the ground meat stay together on the skewer. But in the middle east ground meat kabobs are often cooked on blade-type skewers (affiliate link) which are similar to these skewers that I got in Turkey. If you only have regular round skewers, I would use two skewers in each cylinder of ground meat to duplicate the double kabob skewers.
Can you make Kabob Koobideh without an outdoor grill?
If you don’t have an outdoor grill, these kabobs can be cooked on a Stovetop Grill Pan (affiliate link), a George Foreman Grill (affiliate link) which cooks both sides at once so it’s quicker, or under the broiler in your oven or toasted oven.
How to make Kabob Koobideh (Persian Ground Beef kabobs):
(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)
- I used organic ground beef from Costco that’s 15% fat, and comes in a package that’s 1.3 pounds which made four generous-sized kabobs.
- Here’s a photo of the Sadaf Ground Meat Kabob Seasoning (affiliate link) that was recommended to me. I think this gives great flavor, but see other options in the actual recipe below if you don’t want to buy it.
- Start by very finely chopping one medium onion in the food processor with the steel blade.
- Then add the ground beef, Sadaf Ground Kabob Seasoning, salt, fresh-ground black pepper, Spike Seasoning (if using), and water.
- Process those ingredients until everything is very well combined. This double grinding of the meat is traditional, and helps keep the meat on the skewers and gives it a denser texture than regular ground beef.
- Then the meat needs to be refrigerated for several hours so the flavors can develop. (You could even grind the seasoning with the meat in the morning before work, and cook the kabobs when you get home.)
- When it’s time to cook, divide the meat into four pieces. Oil the grill with a paper towel dipping olive oil and preheat the grill to high.
- Form each piece of double-ground meat into a long cylinder and push a skewer into it. You want to make them uniformly thick so they’ll cook evenly. (Traditional Kabob Koobideh is probably flatter than mine, but I found this shape much easier to manage on the grill.
- Turn the grill to medium-high and lay the skewered kabobs on pre-heated grill. (Of course I put them on an angle to make grill marks, but that’s not essential.)
- If you’re making grill marks, be sure to cook until the meat is well-browned before you try rotate them, about 4-5 minutes; lift one kabob to see if it lifts easily off the grill.
- Then rotate going the other way if you’re trying for grill mark and cook about 3-4 minutes more.
- Then turn the kabobs over carefully and cook until the internal temperature shows 160F for ground beef, when tested with an an instant-read thermometer (affiliate link.)
- Total cooking time will depend on the temperature of the grill, the thickness of the kabobs, and even the temperature of the air, but total cooking time will be about 12-15 minutes.
- Serve hot. I served my kabobs with Tzatziki Sauce, which is not authentic with this recipe, but it was certainly tasty!
Make it a low-carb Meal:
For a low-carb meal I’d eat this delicious Kabob Koobideh with Middle Eastern Tomato Salad, Cottage Cheese Salad with Za’atar, or Fattoush Lebanese Salad. If you’re not so worried about carbs it would also be delicious with Balela (Middle Eastern Bean Salad, Mujadarrah, or Greek Lemon Rice.) And I love this with Tzatziki sauce on the side.
Read more about Kabob Koobideh:
If you want to see other options for Koobideh (that may be more authentic than my recipe), check out the grilled ground meat kabob recipes from Persian Mama, The Delicious Crescent, or Family Spice.
Kabob Koobideh (Persian Ground Beef Kabobs)
Authentic Kabob Koobideh is a Persian dish of highly seasoned ground meat on skewers. My version of these kabobs is delicious and easy to make on a grill at home. I use the spice blend that's been recommended to me twice at a middle eastern market, but read below if you want to see another option that was sent to me by a reader!
Ingredients
- 1.3 lbs. ground beef (
- 1 medium onion, very finely chopped
- 2 T Sadaf Ground Meat Kabob Seasoning (See notes for other options)
- 1 T Spike Seasoning (see notes)
- 1/4 cup water
- olive oil, for oiling the grill
Instructions
- Coarsely chop up the onion and then finely chop it in the food processor with the steel blade.
- Add ground beef in food processor. Then add Sadaf Ground Kabob Seasoning, salt, fresh-ground black pepper, Spike Seasoning (if using), and water.
- Process the meat, onions, and spices until it's well-combined and finely ground.
- Put meat into a plastic container with a snap-on lid and refrigerate two hours or as long as all day if that's what works for you.
- Oil grill grates with a paper towel dipped in olive oil, then preheat gas or charcoal grill to high heat. (You can only hold your hand there for a few seconds at that heat.)
- Form meat into cylinder shaped patties.
- Carefully put meat on skewers. (I had double skewers, which worked well, although Koobideh is traditionally cooked on blade type skewers. If you only have thin round skewers I would use two skewers for each kabob.)
- Turn heat down to mediumm-high when you put kabobs on the grill.
- If you’d like criss-cross grill marks, cook kabobs about 4-5 minutes on first side, lifting one kabob to be sure the meat is brown enough that it's not sticking to the grill.
- Then rotate kabobs going the other way and cook 3-4 minutes more.
- Carefully turn kabobs and cook the second side, for a total cooking time of about 15 minutes. (Actual cooking time will depend on the temperature of your grill, the thickness of your kabob meat, and even the temperature of the air that day, so keep an eye on them.
- If you have an instant-read meat thermometer, ground beef should be cooked to an internal temperature of 160F.
- Serve Kabob Koobideh hot, with Tzatziki sauce if desired.
Notes
(If you don’t have Sadaf Ground Meat Kabob Seasoning (affiliate link) the package lists the ingredients as onions, salt, pepper, sumac, parsley, turmeric, and other spices. Most recipes for Kubideh that I found online season the meat with turmeric, onion, garlic, salt and pepper. Some recipes add parsley, lemon juice, or bread crumbs to the mixture.
If you don't want to use Spike Seasoning, I would probably use a bit more of the Sadaf Kabob Seasoning (or whatever seasonings you're using).
A Reader Shares Her Recipe for Kubideh:
After I posted this recipe I heard from a reader named Donna who's married to a man from Iran. She shared her version of this dish, which I have to say, sounds like it would taste wonderful. (Thanks Donna!)
--1 lb lean (90% or better) ground beef or lamb
--1 tsp salt (more if you like)
--1 med onion quartered
--1 lemon juiced
Put the lemon juice and onion in a food processor or blender. Puree. Add to meat and mix well. Form into patties and grill on skewers or straight on the bbq pit. Also you can bake these on a broiler pan in the oven and have a very nice substitute for the grilled ones.
This Koobideh Recipe was created by Kalyn in an attempt to duplicate the Kabob-e-Kubideh she enjoys at a restaurant in Salt Lake.
Nutrition Information
Yield
4Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 508Total Fat 34gSaturated Fat 12gTrans Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 18gCholesterol 148mgSodium 1403mgCarbohydrates 3gFiber 1gSugar 1gProtein 45g
Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.
Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Suggestions:
This Kabob Koobideh is a great main dish for low-carb or Keto diets, which would prefer higher-fat ground beef. When it’s made with lean ground beef it would for for any phase of the original South Beach Diet.
Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Grilling Recipes to find more recipes like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.
Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This recipe for Kabob Koobideh was first posted in the very early days of my blog. It was updated with better photos in 2009. The recipe was updated again with new photos and more information again in 2023.
48 Comments on “Kabob Koobideh (Persian Ground Beef Kabobs)”
It sounds delicious but very high in sodium.
I know that both the Spike Seasoning and the Ground Meat Kabob Seasoning contain some salt, but neither of them seems unusually salty to me. I use a built-in program to calculate nutritional info and it can definitely get it wrong on ingredients like that which might not be in the database, but neither of those has good info on the label for me to do it by hand. That said, you can use salt-free spike and make your own kabob seasoning without salt.
If you are going to call it Kubideh then know that its Iranian and not Middle Eastern!
I’m sorry you are bothered by how I have described the recipe. But Iran is considered part of the middle east (I googled it to be sure wasn’t wrong about that), and I did say the Kabob Kubideh I tried at the restaurant was in the Persian section of the menu. I will check into it a bit more and edit to mention Iran for people who don’t know that’s the modern name for Persia. Thanks for the input which will help me improve my recipe.
Kalyn: I’m so sorry, I thought I was still on David Lebovitz’s post. He had a link for this and I assumed it was just to a recipe on his site. Again I am so sorry! Now, I am going to take my red face and look through all your recipes.
Charlie, NO WORRIES! Hope you find some recipes to enjoy!
If I did these under the broiler how long would I cook them for? Also, how far from the broiler would I put them. I have a gas oven.
I have no experience cooking this type of thing under the broiler, but I have no doubt you could do it. I measured on my gas grill and there would be just under two inches between the flame and the meat. So if you use that as a guide, I think the cooking time would be very similar. Maybe slightly longer under the broiler since on the grill the heat rises. Hope that helps!
As I read the ingredient list now, I'm thinking the spices would be great for something else… like a boneless leg of lamb cooked on the grill. Hmmmmm.
Lydia, I bet you're right about that!
Silly question I suppose but the size of those kabobs seems like you could forgo the skewers as the meat is not so small that it would fall through the grate, right? Been wanting to make these but the skewers were holding me back. Was going to buy the traditional flat skewers as they sell them on amazon but I think I'm just going to make elongated patties and grill them. The skewers were originally used when they cooked over an open fire with no grill.
Bridget very smart; I think they will be fine without skewers.
This recipe sounds good. I know it will not have the open pit taste, but I do not have a BBQ grill, so I am going to try it on my counter top George Forman grill, you still get the grill marks and less fat from the meat. They will also cook in 1/2 the time as usual, because the grill heats on the top and bottom plate's. I hope they will still turn out as good as they sound. thnx for sharing…..
Hope you enjoy. I think this will work well on the George Foreman.
Family Spice, thanks for sharing.
I am half-Iranian and I grew up kabob-e koobideh. I married an Iranian and kabob is a huge part of our lives! My mother-in-law has been making this wonderful recipe for so long that she can do it with her eyes closed! Flat skewers are generally used, and you purée the onions in a food processor, then drain most of the juice. She also puts the meat in the food processor. I wrote about making kabob with her on my blog.
If anyone is interested, I have full recipes for kabob-e koobideh , joojeh kabob (chicken), and kabob-e barg (filet kabob) on my website, all made the-old-traditional way: flat skewers over an open flame.
Enjoy!
Please send me the link to your site 🙂
There is absolutely zero chance that someone who left a comment in 2010 will see your comment now, but I do have a link to this recipe on Family Spice in this post.
I made this the other day for dinner, only I used ground lamb instead of ground beef for the protein. I cooked them in my contact grill and didn't use skewers, but I formed the meat into a kubideh shape. It all turned out fabulous and my husband declares that he has a new favorite dish.
Thanks for the great recipe! Not only does it taste great and was super easy, but it is carb friendly. It doesn't get better than that.
Sally, I think chilling will definitely make a difference! Let us know how it turns out this time.
Thanks….
I don't think I chilled the meat when I tried it, that could definitely help.
I have flat skewers, but not the double type. I really want to be able to make these, perfect for dinner on a busy weekday.
I will try it again!
Sally, I think the double grinding of the meat is the most essential thing, combined with the chilling of the meat. You don't mention whether you did that, but if not I'd definitely try it. Also using the double skewers like I have (or the thick blade-type skewers they use in the middle east will definitely help.) If you don't have one of those types of skewers, I might just make a cylinder shape and grill without a skewer.
Kalyn, I am a little traumatized by ground meat on skewers… I tried it twice and ended up with a huge mess, they more or less disintegrated during grilling
do you have a tip for keeping them in one piece? Do you think it could be linked to the fat content of the meat used?
I love the "concept", have just been unable to do it right (sigh)
That's such a great dish. I always make either meatballs, burgers or tacos with ground beef and this will be a nice change of pace!
Thanks for posting the recipe!
Dara, the ones at Cafe Med are so great, and I don't know if you noticed, but they have Sumac on the table there!
Anonymous, I want to go to Croatia! It seems like such an interesting country. I didn't know they had this dish there, but I'm not that surprised.
We had Koftas while visiting Croatia, and loved them. I will have to try this!
This looks so flavorful and it would taste so good with your delicious tzatziki. I will have to try this the next time I go to Cafe Med.
Lydia, I want skewers like that (although I guess I don't need them, now that I found these!) I love those blade-type skewers!
Bron, love the idea of adding just a touch of cinnamon in this too! Seems like it's truly an international dish!
They look delicious Kalyn! I make some very similar with grated/finely minced onion, cinnamon and turmeric however now I'm keen to try adding a little sumac too next time. xx
I have some very long flat metal skewers, with wooden handles. The handles don't get hot, but need to rest off the edge of the grill or they'll burn. The skewers came from a Greek market so I think they're used for souvlaki, but they work well for kebabs like these, too.
Peachkins, I love it. I think it's the turmeric, a spice I don't use much but apparently I really like the flavor of it.
TW, The double skewers are great. I had some cheap ones once that I loved, but they fell apart. These seem solid. Lucky you having a meat grinder, but the food processor is great for this.
Sarah, now you're tempting me! I'll have to look at that book. I love this type of food.
Trish, just checked but will check back when you post the Kafta!
Oh Kalyn: I cooked a full Lebanese meal yesterday….and starting to post today. Come on over and see…I started posting with dessert but I have a whole menu coming!!! Including kafta and Zatar
simple and delicious. I was told that the metal skewers help to conduct heat within the kebab/kubedeh for better cooking. The new food of life which holly mentions is a very nice book. I don't have double skewers but what I have is not round but flat so the meat doesn't fall off.
I just noticed that one of the older comments on this post had the ingredients from the package, so I just added that info to the post.
I was wondering how the ground meat would hold together on the skewer, and those double skewers are perfect. I'll have to look for them. My parents recently gave me my grandmother's meat grinder. It's a great piece, but it looks like a food processor could do the work in record time.
This looks super delicious!
Hi Kalyn,
I used the kubideh seasoning that I ordered from Amazon last week. Using 2 tbsp for a pound of ground meat, I think one jar would season about 6 pounds of meat. I used lamb instead of beef. I had a package of it in the freezer so I decided it was time to use it up. Next time I do this with lamb, I am going to add chopped onion and chopped green pepper to the food processor and use less water. I also have some Penzey’s dried celery so might fling some of that in too. I like the spices a lot, but felt it needed more for my taste. Maybe it was the lamb that needs more seasoning. Anyway I love this recipe and if you have leftovers like I did, you can make a great Ph 2 or 3 sandwich with them!
Libby
Libby, don’t you just love amazon.com! I will check it out because I’m out of this now. Thanks!
This is January 20, 08. I just ordered that same kubideh seasoning from Amazon!! It comes in a package of 6 jars of it…I hope I like it! If you Google it, I bet you will find ways to order it.
Libby
My favorite Indian meal is the malai (cream) Kofta, which is vegetarian. I am unfamiliar with middle eastern variations ~ thanks for enlightening me. Gorgeous and informative post.
This sounds so good and I know my family will love it, thanks for sharing!
Biggles, love the idea of putting a sausage on first and then putting the ground meat over it. Of course I love sausage, any kind, any time.
Ya know what might be good, is to skewer a sausage on there first, then wrap the ground meat around it.
OooOOo, and I’ll bet fresh cilantro would be good along with some lemon zest. Yeshir, I’m sure it would.
Biggles
thanks-I’ll check t out here, there are quite lot of muslims here so i suppose there must be some food shop for them but Pistoia is not big!
Ilva, it says on the packet: Onions, Salt, Pepper, Sumac, Parsley, Turmeric, and other Spices. I know you can get Sumac from Penzeys (www.penzeys.com), which I am pretty sure ships to Europe. I don’t taste too much salt or pepper. I would say it’s mostly Turmeric, onion, parsley, with just a touch of sumac. Lemon juice is sometimes used as a substitute for Sumac too. It was really delicious. I am glad I bought a couple of packets because the store is not too close to my house.
Kalyn-this looks delicious! does it say on the packet what’s inside so that I at least can TRY to imitate it??
My question exactly. Does anyone have a copycat Sadaf mix? It is very pricey, at least as of 2023. Amazon had it for like $19 a bottle. No thanks.
The high price at Amazon was why I went to the middle eastern grocer to get it; that’s the best source if you have a store like that where you live.
Did you notice I listed the spices that are in the Sadaf blend in the recipe notes after the complete recipe. As far as a copycat recipe for that, I would try Google and see if you find something; I doubt anyone will answer you here.