CTV Recipes
Search Recipes
Lamb meatballs with spiced seeds and olive salad
These Mediterranean-inspired spiced and herby meatballs from Tara O'Brady are made with lamb, garlic confit, and served with an olive salad.
SERVES
4
TO
6
Ingredients
Garlic confit and olive salad
- 2 heads garlic, cloves separated and peeled
- A good pinch dried red chilli flakes
- 1 bay leaf
- Olive oil, as needed
- Zest from half an orange, julienned
- 1 cup green olives, such as Castelvetrano, stoned and torn
- 1/4 cup large caper berries
- Juice from half an orange
- Juice from half a lemon
- Kosher salt, as needed
Seed Spice
- 1 teaspoon coriander seeds
- 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
- 1/4 cup raw hazelnuts
- 1/4 cup mixed seeds, hulled sunflower, sesame, pepitas
- 1 teaspoon Ras el Hanout
- 1 teaspoon olive oil, or oil from garlic confit
- 2 teaspoons honey
- Kosher salt
Meatballs
- A small red onion, finely minced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon Ras el Hanout
- 1 teaspoon medium-grained kosher salt, plus extra
- A small bunch cilantro, leaves and tender stems, minced
- 1 tablespoon mint leaves, minced
- 1/4 cup bulgur, soaked as per package instruction
- 1 pound ground lamb
- Oil, for frying
To Serve
- Hummus, baba ganoush, tzatziki, or plain Greek yogurt (optional)
Directions
For Garlic Confit
- Tumble the garlic cloves into a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Sprinkle in the chile flakes and pop in the bay leaf.
- Pour in enough olive oil to just submerge the cloves, then set the pan over medium heat. Bring to the barest simmer, then lower the heat to only maintain it, and poach the garlic until opulently tender, 45 minutes to one hour.
- About halfway through cooking, strew the orange zest over top, gently nudging the strands with the tines of a fork or tip of a knife to submerge them.
- When the garlic is ready, remove the bay leaf, then set everything else aside to cool. At this point, the garlic confit can be transferred to an airtight container and refrigerated for a few weeks or frozen for months.
For the Olive Salad
- Spoon half the garlic into a bowl. Fold in the olives and caper berries.
- Pour in three tablespoons of the oil from the confit, then the juice from the orange. Taste, season with salt, and lemon juice as needed. Set aside.
Make the Spiced Seeds
- Lightly crush the cumin and coriander seeds with a pestle and mortar.
- Tip in the hazelnuts, and bash them a bit.
- Scatter the seeds and nuts into a medium skillet, and place over medium heat. Roast, stirring and turning often, until fragrant and lightly toasted, around two to three minutes, depending on the pan.
- Sprinkle the Ras el Hanout overall, stir a few times, then drip on the oil. Stir again, then drizzle on the honey. Working quickly, stir to stickily coat the seeds, maybe 30 seconds. Scrape the seeds onto a heat-safe plate and set them aside.
For the Meatballs
- In a large bowl, stir in the onion, garlic, Ras el Hanout, salt, cilantro, and mint. Fold in the bulgur, followed by the lamb.
- Using clean hands or two forks, break up the lamb into the vegetables, mixing quickly and lightly. Do not compact or overmix. (As an optional step, cover and refrigerate the meat for one hour, or up to overnight.)
- Use two tablespoons of meat to form each meatball, rolling them with damp hands.
- Fill a high-sided heavy pan such as a Dutch oven or deep cast-iron skillet with enough oil to come halfway up the sides of the balls. Over a medium flame, heat the oil to 325°F. Working in batches so as to not overcrowd the pan, fry the meatballs, turning often, until golden brown and cooked through, five minutes. Drain on paper towels and season lightly with salt.
- Spread hummus across a platter. Arrange the meatballs atop, dress with the olive relish. Shower with seeds, then serve immediately. Enjoy!
