Beautifully spicedMoroccan Lamb Meatballs served with a Mint Yoghurt Sauce.
Stuff into pitas, pass them around at a party or pile over pilaf!
This is such a great recipe for lamb mince.
Lakemba night markets during Ramadam
Lamb loves Middle Eastern spices!
Juicy Lamb Meatballs with Moroccan flavours!
If you love Middle Eastern food, youll be in street food heaven.
Lakemba night markets during Ramadam
One of the (ahem many!)
things Ive enjoyed from these street stalls are spiced lamb meatballs stuffed into pita pockets.
What you need for Moroccan lamb meatballs
Its all about the spice mix.
And youll be delighted to see theyre all pantry staples theres a good chance youve got them all!
Lamb mince(ground lamb) Lamb is a favourite in Middle Eastern cuisine!
However, these meatballs would also be terrific made with beef, chicken or turkey.
Onion A key flavour base in most of my savoury dishes!
It softens the panko which makes the meatballs juicier and more tender.
Plus, if you use diced onion youd need to cook it separately beforehand.
When its grated, theres no need!
Panko breadcrumbs Adds bulk and absorbs moisture so the mixture isnt too wet to form meatballs.
Panko breadcrumbs are easy to find these days in the Asian and breadcrumb aisle of grocery stores.
Egg For keeping the meatballs together.
Worlds best food glue!
Garlic Very rare to find savoury dishes on my website that dont involve garlic!
Spices Classic Middle Eastern mix.
Cumin, coriander, paprika (any, I like smoked), cinnamon (Middle Eastern secret ingredient!
), cayenne pepper (spiciness feel free to increase or omit).
Coriander/cilantro For a hint of freshness and for visual purposes too.
Really worth using, though it can be substituted with parsley.
Most of the photos in the post are the slightly thicker bready pita pockets.
However, small Lebanese bread will work too pictured below.
Youll fit 3 meatballs in each half.
Flatbreads would be great too.
Prevent screen from sleeping
Leafy greens Fresh lettuce, tomato and red onion For stuffing.
Theres no need for dressing, just plain is fine.
Plenty of flavour and juices from the meatballs, plus the mint sauce!
Dressed leafy greens Shredded purple cabbage, carrot, mint saladpictured in the pita pocket below.
How to make Moroccan meatballs
1.
The mint sauce
Blitzthe fresh mint, lemon and salt with just 1/4 cup of yogurt.
To avoid this, blitz a bit first, then stir in the remaining yogurt.
Mint sauce thickness The above photo shows the consistency of the mint sauce.
Thin enough to drizzle but thick enough to cling!
Keep it in the fridge until required.
Make the meatballs
Gratethe onion into a bowl using a standard box grater.
Also, the onion juices mix throughout which adds extra flavour.
Win, win, win!
Mix Put all the remaining meatball ingredients in a bowl and mix well with your hands.
Portion I use a cookie scoop to portion the mixture into 20 to 22 meatballs.
Rollthe mixture into rounds with your hands.
Tip to keep meatballs rounds Refrigerate the meatballs for an hour to firm up the mixture before cooking.
This will help them stay more round as you cook on the stove.
Pan fryfor 8 minutes, rotating to brown all over.
These days, I use a spoon and fork to turn the meatballs rather than tongs.
I find it easier and also it helps maintain the round shape of the meatballs.
Baking option The recipe also includes a baking option.
However, for lamb meatballs, baking works better than other proteins because its a fattier meat.
Once the meatballs are cooked, transfer onto a plate and theyre ready to serve!
Or piled high over a beautiful fruit and nutpilaf, or the goldenJewelled Rice Pilafthat I shared recently.
Or make salad bowls!
Like a meatball salad.
Share other ideas below!
Updated in April 2022 with a much better video because I love these meatballs so much!
The spicing was also improved slightly.
I Get A Round: More Meatball Recipes
Life of Dozer
It still fits!
I ask you does helookunhappy?
He looks perfectly comfortable to me!
