Moroccan Lamb Meatballs In An Aromatic Sauce

I do like lamb meat, and that includes lamb mince.

These Moroccan lamb meatballs are simply divine, as is the sauce you cook them in. I also add sweet green peas to the sauce towards the end. I love this dish!

I do use quite a few different spices in this recipe, but these spices are good to have at home if you are a fan of Middle-Eastern food – as well as Asian-style food.

I serve this dish with oven-roasted carrots and steamed broccoli and green beans – making it into a healthy and easy-digestible meal.

You can add quinoa or couscous to the meal as well – protein-rich and super-nutritious quinoa being the best choice.

Following “food combining” rules as much as possible means not eating concentrated protein foods (meat, poultry, fish, whole eggs) together with concentrated starch foods (potatoes, wheat, rice, oats, pasta and bread).

Both of these food groups go well together with vegetables though (apart from potatoes) – including beans, lentils and chickpeas.

The reason behind food combining is that concentrated protein and concentrated starch are digested totally different. So to be able to digest all of what you eat in the best possible way and thus get the as much nutrients out of your food as possible, you are better off not eating these two food groups together.

For 4 people:

For the sauce:

1 tablespoon olive oil

½ large red onion (the other half is used for the meatballs), finely chopped

1 teaspoon ground allspice

½ teaspoon ground cloves

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg

½ teaspoon chilli flakes

500ml, 18floz, 2¼ cups, chicken stock

2 heaped tablespoons tomato puree/paste

Salt and black pepper

200g, 7oz, 1¼ cups frozen peas

For the Moroccan lamb meatballs:

½ large red onion, finely grated

2 garlic cloves, crushed

Handful of fresh mint leaves, finely chopped

1 egg

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 level teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon black pepper

500g, 1lb 2oz, 2¼ cups (firmly packed), lean lamb mince

1.    Start by making the sauce. Place the oil in a spacious pan or pot that has a lid over a medium high heat. Add the chopped onion and cook - stirring frequently - for about 5 minutes, until the onion has softened.

2.    Add all of the spices and continue to stir and cook for a further minute before adding the stock and tomato puree/paste. Stir and bring to a simmer. Season with some salt and pepper and leave the sauce to simmer and thicken for about 15minutes.

3.     While the sauce is cooking, make the meatballs. Mix together the grated onion, crushed garlic, chopped mint, egg, cumin, salt and pepper in a bowl. Add the mince to the bowl and mix everything together thoroughly. With your hands, form the mixture into little balls – slightly smaller than a walnut.

4.    Check the seasoning of the sauce before adding the meatballs. Bring back the sauce to a simmer and keep rolling the balls around so that they cook evenly, for about 15 minutes. Add the frozen peas to the pan/pot, stir, cover with the lid and increase the heat. As soon as it comes back to a boil, turn off the heat. Leave for a couple of minutes before serving.

“So long as you have food in your mouth, you have solved all questions for the time being.” Franz Kafka

Get delicious and nutritious tips and tidbits in my monthly Newsletter. You will get time-saving cooking tips, ideas for how to make your diet more nutritious and flavourful recipes.

Subscribe today and you will get an instant download to my Ebook “A Tasty Way to Salsa, Dips & Sauces”.

Click on Tasty & Healthy Nuggets to subscribe..

New Comments! Have your say about what you just read! Leave me a comment in the box below.