Greek Meatballs in Lemon Sauce
Greek Meatballs in Lemon Sauce is the ideal spring supper --- the herbed meatballs are satisfying but light in texture, and the pale yellow sauce is tangy, silky, and utterly luxurious without any cream or butter whatsoever.
Servings: 4 servings
Ingredients
meatballs
- 1/2 lb ground lamb
- 1/2 lb ground pork
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1/2 cup cooked rice
- 1/2 yellow onion, minced
- 1 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh dill
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh mint leaves, 1 small 2/3 ounce plastic package
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp fresh cracked black pepper
- 1/2 tsp onion salt
lemon sauce
- 3 eggs
- juice of 2 1/2 - 3 lemons
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Put all the meatball ingredients into a large mixing bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix everything thoroughly, but gently. Don't over mix or compact the meat.
- Cover and refrigerate for 1-2 hours.
- Scoop the meat mixture out into 1 1/2 inch sized balls, and roll smooth with your hands. Set on a platter.
- Put about 4 1/2 cups of water in a stock pot with a wide bottom. Bring the water to a boil, then set the meatballs in the water, one by one. Do this carefully, they can be fragile. The water should almost cover the meatballs, but not quite. Turn the heat down and simmer, covered, for about 15 minutes. Don't let the water boil furiously. Do this in stages if your pot is not large enough.
- Remove the cooked meatballs to a fresh platter and keep warm.
- While the meatballs are cooking whisk the eggs well in a medium sized bowl, whisk in the lemon juice and salt.
- Remove 2 cups of the meatball cooking liquid and strain. While whisking the egg and lemon mixture, ladle about 1/2 cup of the hot liquid into the eggs to temper them. Then slowly add the rest of the liquid, stirring as you add. Pour the sauce into a clean saucepan and gently cook for a few more minutes, but don't let the sauce come to a boil, or even a simmer.
- Serve the meatballs in shallow bowls on top of the sauce. Garnish with fresh parsley.
Notes
- My store was inexplicably out of fresh dill so I used (gasp) dried, and it was fine. I used a heaping tablespoon, maybe a little more.
- Make sure your onions and herbs are nice and finely chopped, I used a small food processor.
- If you by any chance get a few curdled eggs bits in your sauce, don't panic, just strain it through a fine mesh strainer and you'll be good to go.
- Leftovers can be reheated gently. The sauce should not come to a boil.
Nutrition
Calories: 455 kcal · Carbohydrates: 5 g · Protein: 26 g · Fat: 37 g · Saturated Fat: 13 g · Trans Fat: 1 g · Cholesterol: 246 mg · Sodium: 724 mg · Potassium: 547 mg · Fiber: 1 g · Sugar: 1 g · Vitamin A: 2200 IU · Vitamin C: 34 mg · Calcium: 94 mg · Iron: 4 mg
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although The View from Great Island attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.
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