Fresh and delicious: vegetarian köfte in lettuce leaves

These delicious, high-quality yet affordable and nutritious bulgur and lentil balls are a hit with everyone; you can serve them wrapped in lettuce leaves with a little lemon juice or drizzled with pomegranate molasses. The fried onion is important in this recipe, as it adds a great deal of flavour and moisture to the balls.

Ozlem: ‘My mother got this recipe from the neighbours when we lived in Elazığ, a city in the southeastern part of Turkey. These delicious balls were served there during ladies’ gatherings. I can still remember that the locals were very friendly and always happy to share their food.’

• Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a wide sauté pan over medium heat, add the onion and fry for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring regularly, until the onion is soft and begins to caramelise. Add the tomato purée and pepper paste, stir well and leave to cool.
• Put the rinsed red lentils in a medium-sized saucepan and add 500 ml of hot water. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes, until the lentils are cooked. If necessary, skim any foam from the surface with a spoon and stir the lentils occasionally so they do not stick to the bottom of the pan. Drain off any excess liquid; the cooked lentils should have the consistency of a thick purée. Leave to cool in a large bowl.
• Put the bulgur in the saucepan, add 200 ml of hot water and leave covered for 5 minutes so that the bulgur can absorb the water.

• Add the soaked bulgur to the lentils, followed by the fried onion, spring onion and flat-leaf parsley. Stir in the ground cumin, pul biber if desired, salt and pepper to taste (the bulgur mixture should be well seasoned, so add more salt if necessary).
• Prepare a small bowl of room-temperature water with a little olive oil. Lightly moisten your hands with the water from the bowl and knead the bulgur and lentil mixture thoroughly for a few minutes, until it has the consistency of a soft dough. Season with more salt or spices if necessary and mix well. Moisten your hands again, take a walnut-sized amount of the bulgur mixture and shape it into an oblong ball. Place on a wide serving dish lined with lettuce leaves. Repeat with the remaining bulgur mixture.
• Serve with lemon wedges or drizzle with some pomegranate molasses, as my husband likes it.