On the Greek island of Corfu, meatballs are traditionally served with a fragrant rice. Mimi has mixed it up with an Italian twist of orzo, which is a rice shaped pasta - a perfect accompaniment to both hot or cold dishes (makes great leftovers for lunch!).
The quantities provided above are averages only.
Boxes and ingredients are packed in facilities that handles Peanut, Nuts, Sesame, Fish, Crustaceans, Milk, Egg, Mustard, Celery, Soya, Gluten and Sulphites. Due to the war in Ukraine, it has been necessary to substitute sunflower oil with rapeseed oil in some products without a label change. The FSA have advised that allergic reactions to rapeseed oil are rare.
1
Onion
1
Garlic Clove
2
Vine Tomatoes
1
Courgette
(May contain Celery)
½
Mint
¼
Oregano
250
Lamb Mince
10
Panko Breadcrumbs
(Contains Cereals containing gluten)
1.5
Ground Coriander
1
Chicken Stock Pot
180
Orzo
(Contains Cereals containing gluten May contain Soya, Egg)
1
Feta Cheese
(Contains Milk)
Preheat your oven to 180 degrees. Peel and chop half the onion into 2cm pieces and finely chop the other half. Peel and grate the garlic (or use a garlic press if you have one) and roughly chop the tomato into 3cm pieces. Cut the top and bottom off the courgette and then cut in half lengthways. Cut your courgette in half lengthways again to create four strips and then chop into batons about 2cm wide and the length of your index finger. Finely chop the mint. Pull the oregano leaves off their stalks and finely chop.
Add a drizzle of oil to a frying pan on medium heat and add in your finely chopped onion. Cook for 4 mins, add your garlic and cook for 1 minute more. Take off the heat.
Add the lamb mince to a bowl with the breadcrumbs, ground coriander, half your mint, your cooked onion and garlic, a pinch of salt and a good grind of black pepper. Mix together with your hands, then shape your lamb mixture into balls (four per person).
Add the rest of your onion along with your tomato and courgette to a deep baking dish, drizzle over a glug of oil, your oregano, a pinch of salt and a grind of black pepper and give everything a good shake. Add your meatballs to the dish as well and then put it on the top shelf of your oven for 25 mins. Tip: The meatballs are cooked when they are no longer pink in the middle.
In the meantime, bring a pot of water to the boil with the chicken stock pot. 10 mins before your veggies and meatballs are done, add the orzo to your boiling water and cook for 8-9 mins until your orzo is ‘al dente’. Tip: ‘Al dente’ simply means the pasta is cooked through but has a slight hint of firmness left in the middle. When your orzo is cooked, drain.
When your veggies and meatballs are cooked, get them out of your oven. Add your orzo and stir through, then scatter over your remaining mint and crumble the feta on top.
Serve in bowls and enjoy!