Kabab koobideh (Persian: کباب کوبیده) or kūbide (Persian: کوبیده) is an Iranian minced meat kabab which is made from ground lamb, beef or chicken, often mixed with parsley and chopped onions.
Kabab just means "Cooking on Fire" and Koubideh refers to the style that meat was prepared, originally meat was placed on a flat stone ( perfectly a black flat stone) and was smashed by wooden mallet . It is cooked on a skewer - "shish" means skewer in Turkish (written şiş), but "six" in Persian.
You take minced lamb or beef ( perfectly 20% fat 80% meat) you must mince the meat twice for better consistency ( kabab will look like hamburger if you mince it just the once). Add salt, garlic powder, black pepper, celery powder, sumac, very finely grated onion ( please squeeze the extra juice out and save for later application) and one egg yolk per LB of meat. Mix all ingredients, cover it and let it marinate in the fridge for at least four hours or overnight.
Grill like a burger. Serve on Polo (Persian Rice Pilaf with oil, salt and saffron) or Adas Polo (same rice pilaf with lentils), accompanied by grilled tomatoes and onions cooked on the grill next to the kabob. Sumac is usually served as a tableside garnishing spice.
Some restaurants serve it squished into long machine-molded sausage looking things, but all home cooks make it with their hands, resulting in it being shaped and portioned like a burger.
Chicken kabab koubideh is made in the same method using chives or green onions, parsley, salt and pepper. No turmeric and no sumac. It is served over Baghali Polo (dill and broad bean rice pilaf)