Close up of meat and rice dumplings submerged in a large pot of red sauce with vegetables.
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Koufteh in Tomato Sauce

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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Persian koufteh are meat and rice dumplings simmered in a rich tomato broth, absorbing its savory flavors for a deliciously hearty dish.
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By Candice Walker on February 20, 2025 (Last updated February 23, 2025). This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.

Koufteh are Persian meat and rice dumplings (like porcupine meatballs), and this version with a tomato sauce base is the one my mom always made for us growing up. As the meatballs steam and simmer in the sauce, the fat from the ground meat releases into the tomato broth, infusing it with a meaty savoriness. The rice in the koufteh will soak up that tomato broth to make this dish even richer and more tasty.

Close up of meat and rice dumplings submerged in a large pot of red sauce with vegetables.

This tomato sauce base is not a sweet, marinara-style sauce. Instead, it’s more luxurious and fills you up in a way that feels hearty. Compared to Koufteh in broth, this is a more crowd-friendly choice, especially for kids, with a richness that makes it feel like a complete main dish rather than a soup.

🌟Why You’ll Love This Recipe

  • Ultimate stick-to-your-bones comfort food: This is a dish that’s filling and warming without being too heavy or overwhelming. It’s deeply satisfying in the way only a slow-simmered dumpling soup can be. If you love this, you’ll also love my khoresh bademjan or khoresh gheymeh.
  • Tender meatballs: The meat cooks to perfection in the broth to give you tender, fall-apart porcupine meatballs.
  • Light, savory tomato base: Unlike more herb-heavy Persian stews like Ghormeh Sabzi, which some people may find overwhelming, this one simmers gently in a light tomato-based broth, allowing the flavors of the meat, rice, and onions to meld into a meal that’s just the perfect amount of comforting.

🧾 Ingredients in This Recipe

Ingredients including meat, onions, herbs, and tomato paste laid out on a counter.

Tomato Broth

  • Beef broth – I like to use this to add extra flavor to the broth, but leave it out if I’m using homemade broth like chicken stock. You can also use better than bouillon, or vegetable broth for extra flavor.
  • Tomato sauce and tomato paste – We use both tomato sauce and tomato paste to create a balanced, flavorful stew. Tomato sauce provides a smooth, tangy base that blends easily, and the tomato paste adds richness and a slight thickening effect.
  • Aromatic vegetables (yellow onion, carrots, tomato, celery) – Aromatics are ingredients that release fragrant flavors when cooked. These form the foundation of our tomato broth and become lovely and tender when cooked in the liquid.

Meatballs

  • Ground beef or lamb – This recipe will work well with beef, lamb, turkey, or chicken. My favorite is lamb, and the traditional choice for this dish is beef.
  • Basmati rice – Long-grain white basmati rice is preferred for this recipe, but you can substitute it with other rice as long as it isn’t a par-boiled quick-cooking rice.
  • Oil – any flavorless oil works great in this recipe like canola, sunflower seed, or avocado seed.
  • Turmeric – this recipe uses dry, ground turmeric, not fresh.
  • Fresh herbs – you can use parsley and cilantro, and add tarragon and/or basil if you prefer. A great shortcut is to purchase sabzi koufteh which is a pre-made herb mix especially for making koufteh.
  • Grated onion – This adds amazing flavor while the enzymes in the onion tenderize the meat. I use yellow onions.

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

👩‍🍳 How to Make This Recipe

Carrots, celery, tomato and onion simmering in a red broth in a large pot.
  • Bring the stock, tomato sauce, tomato paste, quartered onion, tomato, celery, carrots, bay leaves, salt, and pepper to a simmer.
Rice, herbs, onion, and raw meat separated in a large glass bowl.
  • In a large bowl, add the ground meat, grated onion with the water squeezed out, garlic, turmeric, basmati rice, parsley, cilantro, oil, salt, and pepper.
A raw meat mixture with rice and herbs in a large ribbed glass bowl.
  • Mix the ingredients gently until they form one mass.
Meat and rice dumplings in a large pot of red sauce with vegetables.
  • Once the soup is boiling, roll the meat mixture into 2-inch diameter balls and drop them into the boiling soup. Add up to half the can of water to make sure the koufteh are covered at least 3/4 of the way by the liquid.

⭐️ Pro Tip ⭐️

It’s helpful to keep your eye on the sauce so it doesn’t get too thick. If the soup level drops too low, a splash of water (just a quarter to a half cup at a time) will bring it back to the right consistency. You want the broth to thicken just enough to coat the dumplings while keeping an eye on it so it doesn’t reduce too much.

Meat and rice dumplings submerged in a large pot of red sauce with vegetables.
  • Bring the liquid back to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 1 hour.

🥡 Serving Suggestions

This is already a complete, tasty meal but it does pair nicely with a side salad—Shirazi salad is a fantastic, fresh option. You can also serve Koufteh with some bread like noon barbari if you want something extra.

🍍More Persian Soups and Stews

Slow-simmered dishes infuse the most incredible flavor. Here are some that will inspire your next cooking adventure.

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Close up of meat and rice dumplings submerged in a large pot of red sauce with vegetables.

Koufteh in Tomato Sauce

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Persian koufteh are meat and rice dumplings simmered in a rich tomato broth, absorbing its savory flavors for a deliciously hearty dish.
Author: Candice Walker
Print Recipe Save
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings: 4
Course: Main
Cuisine: Persian
Calories: 597

Ingredients

The Broth
  • 1 can tomato sauce plus up to half the can filled with water
  • 10 oz. beef broth or 1 beef bouillon + water
  • ¼ cup tomato paste
  • 1 yellow onion quartered
  • 2 carrots chopped into 3-inch long pieces
  • 1 tomato quartered
  • 3 stalks celery chopped into 3-inch long pieces
  • 2 bay leaves
  • ½ teaspoon salt or more, to taste
  • ½ teaspoon pepper or more, to taste
Koufteh Meatballs
  • 1 lb. ground beef lamb, turkey, or chicken
  • 1 yellow onion grated
  • ½ tsp ground turmeric
  • ½ cup basmati rice
  • ½ cup parsley finely chopped, ~1/2 bunch, leaves and small stems only
  • ¼ cup cilantro finely chopped, ~1/2 bunch, leaves and stems ok.
  • ¼ cup oil canola or other flavorless oil
  • ½ teaspoon salt or more, to taste
  • ¼ teaspoon pepper or more, to taste

Instructions

  1. Bring the stock, tomato sauce, tomato paste, quartered onion, tomato, celery, carrots, bay leaves, salt, and pepper to a simmer.
    1 can tomato sauce, 10 oz. beef broth, 1 yellow onion, 2 carrots, 1 tomato, 3 stalks celery, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, 1/4 cup tomato paste
  2. Mix the ground meat, grated onion with the water squeezed out, garlic, turmeric, basmati rice, parsley, cilantro, oil, salt, & pepper in a bowl. Set aside.
    1 lb. ground beef, 1 yellow onion, 1/2 tsp ground turmeric, 1/2 cup basmati rice, 1/2 cup parsley, 1/4 cup cilantro, 2 bay leaves, 1/4 cup oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper
  3. Once the water is boiling, roll the beef mixture into 2-inch diameter balls and drop into the boiling soup. Add up to half the can of water to make sure the koufteh are covered at least 3/4 of the way by the liquid. Bring back to boil, reduce to simmer, cover, and cook for 1 hour.

Notes

You can use any combination of parsley, cilantro, tarragon, and basil. A great shortcut is to purchase sabzi koufteh, a dried herb mix made especially for this dish.

Nutrition

Calories597kcalCarbohydrates40gProtein26gFat38gSaturated Fat10gPolyunsaturated Fat5gMonounsaturated Fat19gTrans Fat1gCholesterol81mgSodium1782mgPotassium1278mgFiber6gSugar11gVitamin A6928IUVitamin C34mgCalcium113mgIron5mg

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