Keftedakia tis Giagias

The most tasty & nutritious meatballs you have ever tasted!!!

A recipe developed by “greek foodtales” based on our Grandma’s stories from early post-war Greece. A nutritional treasure with fresh vegetables & raw bulgur. The bulgur offers a lot of fibers but also withholds the juices from the vegetables & the meat during cooking, minimizing the nutrient loss. Enjoy the whole “foodtale” before, during or after cooking, here!

Start by coarsely chopping the red onions, carrots, parsley & garlic cloves. Place them all in a blender (tip: add the parsley at the bottom) & add the sea salt & the herb mix, the red wine & the extra virgin olive oil & grind some pepper. Blend to taste from slightly coarse to completely fine. In a big bowl add the beef minced meat, the bulgur, the vegetable blend & the eggs & start mixing well with your hands. Cover the mix with cling film & let it rest in a cool place for about 1-2 hours. The bulgur will start soaking all the valuable juices & expanding so after cooking it will give an amazing “fluffy” texture to the meatballs.

Take a big casserole & start shaping even meatballs of “generous” size with a diameter of around 4-5cm. We estimate a portion of 4 pieces so the mix should give you around 30-35 pieces in total. While placing the meatballs in the tray leave space in between & place the potatoes that you have cut in half-moon shapes (tip: wash the potatoes well & leave their skin on). Sprinkle evenly the chopped tomatoes with their juice, the extra virgin olive oil, the sea salt & the herb mix.

Place the casserole in a preheated oven at 180^oC for about 30mins. Take the tray out & turn around the meatballs, mix the potatoes & check if you need to add a bit of water for the cooking. Place back in the oven for 20-30mins more.

Enjoy them with good friends & nice stories!