If the mixture feels dry: The traditional way of making cig kofte is to not add any water. Hydration comes from the juice of grated tomatoes and ice cubes. However, the water content and size of tomatoes may vary quite a bit, so if you feel the mixture too dry, use more ice cubes (for gradual water release) and more olive oil. Some recipes do use hot water in the very beginning by adding it to the bulgur before mixing. When I tried that, I thought there was less flavor overall, likely because the bulgur soaked up water instead of the umami-packed tomato juice. 

Whole Food Plant Based: You can easily make this recipe oil-free by omitting the EVOO for the same amount of water or grated tomato. 

To save in the refrigerator: The mixture can rest in the refrigerator in an airtight container/Ziploc bags prior to forming the balls. I'd recommend saving in the fridge for up to two days to be safe, as anything more would be risking it since all the ingredients are uncooked. Although I'll admit we've had five-day-old cig kofte from the fridge before and were okay... but the taste is always best when fresh. 

To save in the freezer: Save it as a mixture (not the balls) in the freezer for up to three months in an airtight container/Ziploc bags. To serve, thaw in the fridge for at least four hours. The mixture at this point will have excess water due to cell wall damage of the ingredients. Squeeze the excess liquid out and form into balls. But again, since most ingredients in this dish are raw, this approach can be risky depending on how the mixture was handled before it was frozen.