Vegan Beetroot Kubbeh

To make vegan beetroot Kubbeh, you don't need too many ingredients—just some semolina, a bit of beetroot, spices, onion, tofu, and that's it.

Seriously.

It only looks complicated, but the truth is it's a very simple dish to enjoy.

It requires a bit of fussing (patchke, as they say in Yiddish) – cooking the soup, preparing the filling, and slowly rolling the balls with the filling inside.

But I assume you already know (otherwise you wouldn't be here) that this is one of the most delicious foods in the world.

A bit about Vegan Beetroot Kubbeh

Let's talk a bit about nutritional values and how you can incorporate Beetroot Kubbeh into your training routine or during a cutting/bulking phase at the gym.

Let's start with the Semolina

Semolina comes from wheat (usually) and is the basic, initial grind of the wheat kernel. If we keep grinding the semolina, we get flour.

Because semolina comes from wheat, it contains gluten, which also increases the amount of protein consumed (admittedly, it's quite negligible in this case).

Mainly, it helps bind the dough and turns the Kubbeh from simple dough into a stable, firm dumpling after cooking in the soup.

The starch in the semolina thickens the soup and makes it just about the most delicious thing on earth.

If you want to switch to gluten-free flour - that is entirely at your own risk. I have no idea what could serve as a substitute.

The Filling

Instead of ground meat, I used grated tofu with some spices and a little white flour to bind the mixture.

Don't skip the flour. There's very little of it, and it gives the Kubbeh an excellent, melt-in-your-mouth texture after cooking.

You can swap it for any meat substitute you want, but it's very possible it won't perform the same as in this recipe.

The Soup

Contains 2 beautiful large sliced beetroots, lemon juice, paprika, sugar, and a bit of salt.

That's it.

Its thick and amazing texture is achieved thanks to the starch released from the semolina into the liquid.

You can replace the beetroot with pumpkin (to make Pumpkin Kubbeh).

Nutritional values for Vegan Beetroot Kubbeh

• Each Kubbeh out of 25 total with a tablespoon of sauce (including cooked beetroot) contains:
• 110 Calories
• 5g Protein
• 16.5g Carbohydrates
• 2.7g Fat (of which less than 0.5g is saturated fat)

Another beetroot recipe? Click here

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Vegan Beetroot Kubbeh

Prep time 40 minutes

Cook time 20 minutes

Servings 25 Kubbehs

Calories 110 kcal

Ingredients

For the dough

• 500 g semolina
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1.5 cups water one and a half cups

For the filling

• 300 g tofu
• half onion
• 3 green onions
• 1 handful parsley
• 1 level tsp baharat
• 1/2 tsp chicken seasoning (vegan)
• pinch salt
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 2 tbsp wheat flour any flour with gluten will work: white, whole wheat, spelt, rye

For the soup

• 2 beetroots medium
• 1 heaping tbsp paprika
• 1 tsp sugar stay calm, it's for an entire pot
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/3 cup lemon juice
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1.5 liters water

Instructions

Starting with the dough

1. Pour the semolina, salt, and one and a half cups of water into a deep bowl

2. Using your hands (or a fork), mix well until all the water is absorbed into the semolina

3. Set aside to let the semolina rest and absorb the water for 30 minutes

Making the filling

1. Finely chop the onion and green onions, mix together, salt slightly, and set aside for 10 minutes

2. Finely chop the parsley and set aside

3. Using the coarse side of a grater (the large holes), grate the tofu and transfer to a bowl

4. Add the flour, spices (baharat, chicken seasoning, garlic powder, salt), the onions, and the parsley to the bowl and mix well

5. Using your hands, form 25 small patties, place on a tray, and put in the freezer or fridge to firm up

Preparing the soup

1. Peel and cut the beetroot into cubes or any other size you like (I like matchsticks)

2. Chop the onion

3. Sauté the onion in a large pot

4. Add the paprika, sugar, and salt

5. Fry for a few seconds until the spices bloom in the oil

6. Add the beetroots and sauté for another minute or two

7. Add one and a half liters of water and the lemon juice and bring to a boil

8. Lower the heat and cook for about 20 minutes

Making the Kubbehs

1. Remove the Kubbeh filling from the fridge

2. At this stage, the dough should be flexible, not very sticky, and easy to work with.

3. With wet hands (this prevents sticking and makes the work easier), pinch off a bit of dough, roughly the size of a ping-pong ball

4. Flatten the dough with your hands and roll it out as thin as possible over the palm of your hand

5. Place the filling in the center and fold the dough over it

6. Seal it from all sides with the dough and roll it into a nice, uniform ball

7. If there are any holes, you can seal them with a bit more dough

8. Ensure you are creating as thin a layer of dough as possible; remember the dough swells during cooking, and if it's too thick, you'll get a heavy, doughy Kubbeh

9. When the Kubbeh is nicely rounded, drop it into the soup and move on to the next one

10. To prevent the Kubbehs from sticking together in the pot, drop them in one by one and not all at once

11. Cook the Kubbehs in the soup for about 10 minutes

12. Serve with plenty of white rice

Notes

You can freeze the rolled Kubbehs, and when you crave beetroot Kubbeh, just prepare the soup and drop the frozen balls in.

Pinch