Frikadellen

Frikadelle, Hackbällchen, Fleischbällchen, Boulette or even Fleischpflanzerl. In German we have so many names for meatballs, depending on which province you come from. And meatballs themselves are just as variable as the names they're given. These ones are based on the recipe given to me by my grandpa and I decided to spice them up a little bit! They're perfect as a party-food, delicious dinner or to go along with a large pot of salad, couscous, bulgur, anything really. I like to make sure to use sustainable meat sources for this dish, as better quality meat usually not just helps the environment but also tastes better ;) Treat yourself when making such dishes!

Ingredients (3-4 people):

• 1 Onion

• 1 Clove of Garlic

• 1 tbsp Moroccan Spices

• 1 tsp Smoked Paprika

• 1/2 dried Bun, crumbed

• 2-3 tbsp Milk

• 300g ground Poultry or Beef

• 1 Egg

• 4 twigs of fresh Mint

• Pinch of Nutmeg

• 1/2 tsp Salt

• 1/2 tsp ground Pepper

• Olive Oil (Or Sunflower Oil) for frying

Method:

1. Peel and dice the onion and garlic as fine as possible. Heat some olive oil in a large pan and sauté the onion and garlic for about 2 minutes. Add the moroccan and paprika spice and sauté for a further 2-3 minutes. Set the pan aside and let the onion and garlic cool off.

2. In a small bowl, mix the breadcrumbs with milk, so that its consistency becomes porridge-like (not too wet but also not too solid).

3. In a large bowl, mix the ground meat with the egg. Cut the mint and add it to the meat, along with the nutmeg, salt and pepper. Finally, mix in the cooled onions and breadcrumb-milk mixture and knead everything until everything is well mixed.

4. Using a tablespoon, shape the meatballs and fry in a pan covered in a good centimetre of oil at medium-high heat. If you're using poultry meat, make sure to thoroughly cook the meatballs through. Usually, the meatballs take about 4-5 minutes per side.

Tip: Place the meatballs clockwise, with the longest-cooked meatball at 12:00. That way you can keep track of which meatballs are almost done and which need to stay in longer. When you take the ready-cooked meatballs out of the pan (and place them on a kitchen-paper), move the other meatballs up.