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Lamb Meatballs

February 11, 2015 by Laura 14 Comments

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Meatballs are one of my mom’s favorite foods.  In her world, they are always Italian and on top of spaghetti. (Cue the camp song, “On top of Spaghetti, all covered with cheese …”) I love Italian-style meatballs too, especially when they’re made with a combination of ground beef, pork, and veal.

But when I can get ground lamb, I take my meatball inspiration from elsewhere – the Middle East, Turkey, Greece, and beyond. (Keftedes, kefta, or kofta as they are sometimes called) lamb meatballs, are popular throughout North Africa, the Middle East, the Balkans, and even in Central Asia.)  With tzatziki for dipping and rice with spinach as a side, these little delights are a great make-ahead meal.

Lamb meatballs with yogurt sauce

Although flavorful and herb/spice-scented, my lamb meatballs aren’t spicy hot. If you want to take them up a notch, add a dash of harissa or another hot sauce, a dash of cayenne pepper, or some crushed red pepper flakes.

Many lamb meatball recipes use straight meat with only an egg for “glue;” I prefer to add bread soaked in liquid. I don’t consider the bread filler; if you use good stuff, it lightens the meatballs and gives them a better consistency than if they are almost solid meat. (No Wonderbread here please!) As long as you don’t pack the ingredients with a heavy hand, these two bite morsels open easily with a fork.

The 3 Keys to Making Lamb Meatballs (and All Other Meatballs):

  1. Don’t over-mix because it toughens the meatballs. Once the ingredients are combined together, stop. Avoid the temptation to roll the delightfully squishy mixture over and over as you form the meatballs. 
  2. Use a light touch to form the meatballs in the palm of your hands. (Think of forming snowballs – don’t crush them!)
  3. As you’re cooking, leave the meatballs undisturbed for the first few minutes and be gentle when you turn them. If you attack them with a spatula like they were burgers, you’ll end up with pieces  of spiced, chopped lamb – still delicious, but not the look that we’re aiming for.

Lamb Meatballs

Servings – 24-28 meatballs serving 4 as a main course with sides  Cost – $10-12

Ingredients

Ingredients for lamb meatballs.

  • 1 cup of small pieces of good bread (preferably slightly stale) with the crust cut off
  • ½ cup liquid for soaking bread (I use milk – broth or even water works too)
  • 1 pound ground lamb
  • ¼ diced shallot or onion
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed or finely diced/minced
  • ¼ cup flat leaf parsley and/or fresh mint, finely diced or minced
  • 1 egg
  • 1½ teaspoons ground coriander
  • ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • Freshly ground pepper
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil

Equipment

  • Cutting board
  • Knife
  • Measuring cups
  • Measuring spoons
  • 2 bowls or 1 large measuring cup and 1 medium-large bowl
  • Large spoon
  • Large fork
  • 2 plates
  • 2 spoons
  • Heavy pan (preferably cast iron or similar), 10-inches in diameter (or larger) works best

Preparation

  • Tear up the bread and soak it in the liquid for 15 minutes. At the end, press out the liquid gently (about ⅓ cup), leaving the bread quite moist but with no additional liquid in the bowl or cup. 

Bread and milk for lamb meatballs

Soaking bread in milk for lamb meatballs.

Press the milk out of the bread, leaving it damp but not soaking.

  • Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in the pan. Sauté the diced shallot or onion for 3-5 minutes in the oil until the shallot/onion becomes tender (and transparent in the case of onion.) Add the garlic and continue cooking for 45 seconds – 1 minute. Add the spices and combine, then set the mixture aside.

Chopped shallots for lamb meatballs.

Cooking the shallots in spices for lamb meatballs.

The spice-scented chopped shallots after cooking.

  • Mix together the soaked bread, egg, salt and pepper, and the mixture of shallot/onion, garlic and spices. In the other bowl, gently break up the lamb with a fork, so that it is in small size chunks.

Ready to put lamb meatballs together.

Everything but the lamb ready to make meatballs.

Chopped lamb for meatballs.

  • Add all the other ingredients to the meat and gently form balls about 1 – 1¼ inches in diameter. You can do the initial mixing with a fork, but to form the balls you need to use your (clean) hands. Think of it as grown-up playtime – messy, but fun.
  • As you make the lamb meatballs, put them on one plate. If they seem too soft to move easily, refrigerate them covered in plastic wrap for 30 minutes – 1 hour. You can also refrigerate them overnight at this point, and cook them the next day.

Everything mixed for lamb meatballs.

Lamb meatballs formed and ready to be cooked.

  • Wipe out the pan with a paper towel and heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil under medium high light until the oil shimmers, but before it begins to smoke. Cook the meatballs in 2 or even 3 batches, depending on the size of your pan.  (I did 2 batches in a 10-inch pan.) Gently place the meatballs in the pan, leaving them undisturbed for about 2 -3 minutes so that they can brown. Then turn them every few minutes with a spoon, cooking them on all sides. Not all will retain a perfectly round shape, but they are lovely and delicious even when they are slightly askew. When they are fully cooked, use the second (clean) spoon to gently remove them to the clean plate. (By using a clean spoon and a clean plate, you avoid touching the cooked meat with the utensil and plate that touched raw meat.
  • If you want to keep the first batch warm while you make the second, cover the plate of cooked meatballs. The cooking process takes 8-10 minutes per batch.

These meatballs get bonus points for being easy to reheat too, and I can attest that the meatballs tastes as good the second day as they did on the first. To reheat, simply heat a film of olive oil in a pan, add the meatballs, and cover the pan for a few minutes to let them heat at least part way through. Then remove the cover, shake the pan so the meatballs move around, and cover it again for another minute or two. Because they are small, even cold from the refrigerator they reheat in 5-10 minutes.

Filed Under: Archives, Beef & Lamb, Pork, Poultry, Recipes Tagged With: comfort food, Greek food, lamb, main dish, meatballs

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Comments

  1. Jameson Fink says

    February 12, 2015 at 4:15 pm

    Ground lamb is so underrated. So much flavor. I’d make a meatball sandwich with the leftovers…if I had any!

    Reply
  2. Jackie says

    February 13, 2015 at 12:57 am

    I love the step by step pictures!

    Reply
  3. Karen says

    February 13, 2015 at 3:03 am

    I love lamb, and these look amazing. I am definitely making them Laura!

    Reply
  4. Laura says

    February 25, 2015 at 4:31 am

    First of all, I could not agree with you more, I vastly prefer kofta, kefta, etc despite being raised on Italian meatballs. These look wonderful. Second, and I hope you take this as a compliment (it is much like telling someone they have lost weight–you don’t mean to imply anything about how they were previously) but your photography has really improved! These photos are gorgeous! REALLY good job! Pinned!

    Reply
    • motherwouldknow says

      February 26, 2015 at 8:29 pm

      Laura, I do take that as a compliment, from someone who has seen me go from photos as an afterthought to actually trying to take a good photo. Thanks. Haven’t seen you in too long. Hope our "real" paths cross soon.

      Reply
  5. Kirsten says

    April 8, 2015 at 3:18 pm

    Laura,
    My mom taught me the light hand while showing me how to make Swedish meatballs for our smorgasbord–it’s very cool how different cultures have similar foods.
    These lamb balls look delicious, and despite the fact that I’ve eaten breakfast I am all over the place in hunger because of seeing tasty recipes.
    I’m with Laura–wonderful photos!
    Thanks!

    Reply
  6. Rachael {La Fuji Mama} says

    April 8, 2015 at 4:18 pm

    I love all of your meatball making tips! Lamb is my favorite meat for meatballs—so much flavor!

    Reply
  7. Abigail Raines says

    April 8, 2015 at 4:21 pm

    I make African-style meatballs with coriander and cinnamon and they sure add a lot of flavor. These lamb meatballs look delicious! Thanks for the tip on handling meatballs, too. 🙂

    Reply
  8. Des @ Life's Ambrosia says

    April 9, 2015 at 3:38 am

    I am always looking for new ways to cook meatballs since they are always such a hit in our home. I am loving the use of lamb here. A great way to introduce a new protein to my little ones!

    Reply
    • motherwouldknow says

      April 14, 2015 at 1:31 pm

      Deseree, Definitely a great idea to introduce your kids to different flavors. If they like meatballs, I think they’ll love these.

      Reply
  9. Jenna says

    April 9, 2015 at 11:25 am

    I’ve never made meatballs with lamb meat before. I will definitely have to try this once, and with those spices it looks pretty tasty.

    Reply
    • motherwouldknow says

      April 14, 2015 at 1:29 pm

      Jenna, Meatballs with lamb are amazing and they were a revelation to me, too. I hope you try them.

      Reply
  10. Drew says

    April 28, 2018 at 9:32 am

    This would work with venison.

    Reply
    • Laura says

      April 29, 2018 at 4:54 pm

      Drew, What an interesting idea! I’ve never cooked venison; that’s good to know.

      Reply

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