Sandwich Kefta de Fès

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Heavy cast-iron griddle or plancha
• •Wide metal spatula
• •Small saucepan for chili sauce
• •Kitchen thermometer, optional but useful

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the sauce

   Stir the chili paste, tomato paste, grated garlic, cumin, paprika, vinegar, olive oil, 2 tablespoons warm water, and a pinch of salt in a small saucepan. Warm it over medium-low heat for 3 to 4 minutes, until the color deepens and the oil shines at the edge. Add water spoon by spoon until the sauce is loose enough to spoon generously but still thick enough to cling to bread.

   Taste before adding much salt. Some chili pastes are already sharp and salty, and the sauce should bite without flattening the meat.
2. 2

   Season the kefta

   Put the minced meat in a bowl with the grated onion, parsley, coriander, paprika, cumin, salt, black pepper, hot paprika, and cinnamon if using. Mix with your fingers until the meat feels lightly tacky and evenly speckled with herbs. Squeezing the onion dry matters: wet onion makes the kefta weep on the griddle, and you want browning.

3. 3

   Rest and shape

   Chill the kefta for 15 minutes while you heat the griddle. Shape it into 8 thin ovals or loose flattened slabs about 1cm thick. Thin pieces give more surface to the iron, and more surface means more of that browned edge that makes the sandwich smell like Fès at noon.

4. 4

   Brown the onions

   Heat a cast-iron griddle or plancha over medium-high heat and slick it with olive oil. Add the sliced onion with a pinch of salt and cook for about 4 minutes, turning often, until the edges turn gold and the onion softens. Push the onions to one side but keep them on the hot plate so they catch the meat juices.

5. 5

   Cook the kefta

   Lay the kefta on the open part of the griddle and press each piece firmly with a wide spatula. Cook 2 to 3 minutes per side, until deeply browned and cooked through to 71 C or 160 F. Do this in batches if the plate is small. Crowd it and the meat boils in its own juices; give it space and it browns.

6. 6

   Warm the rolls

   Split the rolls and press the cut sides onto the griddle for 30 to 60 seconds, just until warm and lightly marked. The bread needs a warm face so the sauce sinks in a little without turning the whole sandwich soft.

7. 7

   Fill and serve

   Spoon chili sauce generously into each roll. Add the hot kefta and onions, a little chopped coriander if you like, and another spoon of sauce over the top. Press the sandwich in paper or on a plate and serve at once, with extra sauce on the table. La cuisine du lien, the cooking of connection, can be a feast in a roll.

Chef Tips

• •Ask the butcher for meat with some fat in it. Kefta made from lean mince turns dry before the onions have time to sweeten.
• •This is one place where ras el hanout is not the flag-bearer. If your family or butcher adds a pinch, make it a real blend from someone who'll tell you what's in it. Avec le ras el hanout, on ne triche pas, with ras el hanout, you don't cheat.
• •Cook in small batches. The whole flavor of this sandwich is contact with hot iron, meat browning, onion softening in fat, sauce waking everything up.
• •Use a soft white roll, petit pain, or short baguette roll. A hard crust fights the filling and throws sauce onto your shirt before you reach the second bite.
• •Keep the raw kefta cold until it meets the griddle. Ground meat is generous, but it asks for clean hands, cold storage, and proper cooking.

Advance Preparation

• •Make the chili sauce up to 5 days ahead and keep it covered in the refrigerator. Warm it gently before serving.
• •Season the kefta up to 24 hours ahead and keep it cold. Shape it just before cooking so the pieces stay tender.
• •Slice the onions earlier in the day and keep them covered in the refrigerator. Cook the sandwiches to order.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 280g)