Can you bake keftedes?

[mj_toronto8]

I had someone recently tell me that traditional keftedes are fried and not baked. Is this true? For what it's worth, I think the fried ones taste better!

I tried baking them once, and the keftedes fell apart in the oven. If I do bake them, do I need to do anything different to the recipe?

 

[ellinasgolfer0320]

Keftedes are small meatballs are generally fried. Biftekia are large meatballs and are generally baked in the oven.

In Greece if you say you're making keftedes to someone then they will assume you're frying small meat balls, and the same goes for biftekia and baking.

As for them falling apart, I don't know why that's happening because they are pretty much the same. With keftedes you dip them in flour to fry them but you don't do this with biftekia because they aren't fried.

 

[Jawge]

I had someone recently tell me that traditional keftedes are fried and not baked. Is this true? For what it's worth, I think the fried ones taste better!

I tried baking them once, and the keftedes fell apart in the oven. If I do bake them, do I need to do anything different to the recipe?

The mixture my mother used was hamburg, egg, bread, spearmint, and onion. Perhaps you didn't use bread. My mother fried them. Later, my wife would bake them. None fell apart that I can remember.

 

[mj_toronto8]

The mixture my mother used was hamburg, egg, bread, spearmint, and onion. Perhaps you didn't use bread. My mother fried them. Later, my wife would bake them. None fell apart that I can remember.

I used bread crumbs, not bread. Maybe it made a difference!

 

[mj_toronto8]

Keftedes are small meatballs are generallg fried. Biftekia are large meatballs and are generally baked in the oven.

In Greece if you say you're making keftedes to someone then they will assume you're frying small meat balls, and the same goes for biftekia and baking.

As for them falling apart, I don't know why that's happening because they are pretty much the same. With keftedes you dip them in flour to fry them but you don't do this with biftekia because they aren't fried.

I had no idea the difference - thank you! I made a batch the other day and they didn't fall apart, so I don't know what I am doing differently from batch to batch. Maybe next time I will try soaked bread instead of bread crumbs, and then maybe that will make it more consistent.

 

[k_tsoukalas]

Yup, that is the difference that I learned, too. Keftedes are typically fried. Really, it is all the same mixture so when I cook, I don't overthink naming it... but naming it can help put things into context.