Beef and Lamb Meatballs with Fava Beans and Lemon!
Author: 
Recipe type: Entree
Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 6
 
Pair up the fava bean with another springtime delicacy, lamb and finish it all with the brightness of lemon and you have the PERFECT dish! Mop this up with fresh pita bread OR serve it over basmati/orzo rice…perhaps do BOTH, which is my favorite! I also add a yogurt-tahini sauce to the top which mixes in a creaminess to the complex flavors.
Ingredients
  • For the meatballs
  • ½ lb minced beef
  • ½ lb minced lamb
  • 1 medium onion, finely chopped
  • 1 cup breadcrumbs
  • 2 tbsp each chopped flat-leaf parsley, mint, dill and coriander, plus ½ tbsp extra of each to finish
  • 2 large garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 tbsp baharat spice mix, recipe below
  • 1 tbsp ground cumin
  • 2 tsp capers, chopped
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 4½ tbsp olive oil
  • 1½ cups fava beans, fresh or frozen
  • 
4 whole thyme sprigs
  • 6 garlic cloves, sliced
  • 8 spring onions, cut at an angle into 2cm segments
  • 2½ tbsp lemon juice
  • 
2½ cups chicken stock
  • salt and black pepper
  • Baharat spice mix:
  • 4 tablespoons ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons ground coriander
  • Fresh cinnamon stick
  • 2 tablespoons ground cloves
  • 3 tablespoons ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
  • 4 teaspoons fresh nutmeg, grated
  • 4 tablespoons paprika
Instructions
  1. Put all the ingredients for the meatballs in a large bowl. Add three-quarters of a teaspoon of salt and plenty of black pepper, mix with your hands and form into balls about the size of ping-pong balls. Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in an extra-large frying pan for which you have a lid. Sear half the meatballs over a medium heat, turning them until they are brown all over – this will take about five minutes. Remove from the pan, add another half-tablespoon of oil to the pan and cook the other batch of meatballs. Once browned all over, remove these from the pan, too, then wipe it clean with paper towel.
  2. While the meatballs are cooking, throw the fava beans into a pot with plenty of salted boiling water and blanch for two minutes. Drain, refresh under cold water, then remove and discard the skins from half the fava beans.
  3. Heat the remaining oil in the meatball pan, add the thyme, garlic and spring onion, and sauté over a medium heat for three minutes. Add the unshelled fava beans, 1/1/2 tablespoons of the lemon juice, ⅓ cup of the stock, a ¼ teaspoon of salt and plenty of black pepper. The beans should be almost covered by liquid. Pop on the lid and cook over a low heat for 10 minutes.
  4. Return the meatballs to the pan, add the remaining stock, cover again and simmer gently for 25 minutes. Taste the sauce and adjust the seasoning. If it is still very runny, remove the lid and reduce a little. Once the meatballs stop cooking, they will soak up a lot of the juices, so make sure there is still plenty of sauce at this point. You can leave the meatballs now, off the heat, until you're ready to serve.
  5. Just before serving, reheat the meatballs and add a more broth, if needed, to get enough sauce. Gently stir in the remaining herbs, lemon juice and the shelled fava beans and serve immediately.
Recipe by Eatentions at https://www.eatentions.com/beeflamb-meatballs-with-fava-beans-broad-beans-and-lemon/