MEATBALLS, MEATBALLS EVERYWHERE
Simon: \"I’ve just finished the shooting of a book that will be coming out next year that celebrates the delight that is the meatball. A whole book on meatballs? Well, yes! Why? Because, it turns out, pretty much every country and culture has a meatball dish that they hold dear, treasure and love. It turns out in this dumpster fire of a divided world that there are some things that unite us, and that one of those things is a love of the mighty meatball. Who’d have thought?\"
KOFTA W.QUINOA TABBOULEH
Add ½ cup quinoa to a full saucepan of boiling water. Cook for 20 mins until tender. Drain and set aside.
While the quinoa is cooking, zest 1 lemon. Finely chop a garlic clove and add to a bowl with ½ cup panko breadcrumbs, 2 tablespoons water, 250g beef mince, the lemon zest, garlic and a good fat pinch of salt and a few big grinds of pepper. Shape into 6 koftas (patties), then cook in a frying pan for 5-6 minutes until golden brown on both sides.
While the kofta are frying away, whip up a quick dressing for the tabouli by mixing the juice from the lemon together with another 1 tbsp olive oil, a splash of red wine vinegar and some salt and pepper. And finely slice an eschalot/1/2 red onion and chop a tomato and lebanese cucumber into 1cm pieces. Combine all the tabouli ingredients in a bowl, tear over a bunch of mint leaves, pour over the dressing and toss together. Serve in bowls topped with the kofta and a few big dollops of…you guessed it… Greek yoghurt.