Lamb Meatballs with Tahini-Yoghurt-Harissa Swirl

It’s often said that you’ll never forget your first: first love, first job, first paycheque etc. When it comes to Mediterranean cuisine, I shall never forget my first real love towards Mediterranean food from a cafe called Little Salama. Before moving to Orange, I have spent a couple of years in Hobart, Tasmania and in those times that I were there, I didn’t really make an effort to try out the food until the final year of my stay.

The reason? Risking to sound like a superficial foodie, I used to find the place very small (as I think it can only fit about 5-6 patrons at a time tops), the exterior looks a little run down and it only opens from 11.30am to 2.30pm from Monday to Friday. For a person who tends to eat at odd times, it’s pretty tight “window of opportunity” don’t you think?

{How many meatball sticks can you have?}

Anyway, I was scrapping for new places for lunch and decided to give Little Salama a try. While the majority of patrons prefer the grilled meat/falafel with wraps, I fell in love with the lunch box which consists of rice, tabouli, spiced chickpeas, bean sprouts, onions, grilled lamb with hummus, tahini sauce and harissa. Pretty scrumptious and healthy, huh? Since bidding goodbye to Little Salama, I was missing my favourite dish badly. Attempting to relive my delightful memories of Little Salama, I have tried to recreate it as close as I can remember. 🙂

Lamb Meatballs Recipe

(A fuss free cooking recipe)

Serves 2 people

Ingredients:

500g lamb mince

1 tsp garlic paste (about 3 garlic cloves, pounded)

A handful of mint leaves, finely chopped

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp cumin powder

2 tbsps instant mashed potatoes

Juice of 1/3 lemon

Salt & pepper

Some olive oil

About 12 satay sticks, soaked in water

Methods:

1. Combine all the ingredients into a bowl, mix well.

2. Knead the mince mixture until pliable and form about tablespoons full of mixture into balls. Then skewer 3 meatballs onto the satay sticks if you like.

3. You can either pan fry the meatballs or you can grill them under a broiler for about 8-10 minutes each side.

Tahini-Yoghurt & Harissa Swirl

(A fuss free cooking recipe)

Emily’s note: It’s my “fancy” way to conceal my laziness of using one dipping bowl instead of two! 😛

Ingredients:

2 tbsps yoghurt

1 1/2 tbsp tahini

1-2 tbsps of olive oil

A pinch of salt

Some cracked pepper

2 tbsps crushed chilli/sambal oelek

1/2 tsp cumin powder

1/2 tsp coriander powder

1/2 garlic clove, grated

Some water

Methods:

1. Combine to mix the first 5 ingredients.

2. Add some water to achieve your desired consistency. Set aside.

3. Add chilli, cumin & coriander powder, garlic and some olive oil into a small pot and let them simmer on low heat. Set aside

4. Dot some of the chilli paste on top of the yoghurt mixture and use a satay stick/uncooked spaghetti to make the swirl.

Lamb Meatballs With Tahini-Yoghurt-Harissa Swirl