Keftedakia (Greek Mini Meatballs)
Greece's defining meze meatball: walnut-sized fried balls seasoned heavily with mint, oregano and grated onion. Eaten with tzatziki and lemon.
Overview
A grated onion (juice squeezed out) folds into beef-or-pork-and-beef mince with bread soaked in milk and squeezed dry, an egg, a generous amount of dried mint and oregano, parsley, garlic, salt and pepper. A tablespoon of ouzo or red wine adds depth. Mixture rests for 30 minutes (the flavours mingle, the bread fully absorbs). Rolls into walnut-sized balls, dusts in flour, pan-fries in olive oil 6-8 minutes turning often until deep brown and cooked through. Serves with tzatziki and lemon wedges.
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 500 g beef mince (or 50/50 beef and pork)
- 1 onion (large, grated, then squeezed dry through a tea towel - keep the juice for the pan)
- 60 g day-old white bread (crusts off, soaked in 100 ml milk, then squeezed dry)
- 1 egg (large)
- 3 garlic cloves (finely minced)
- 2 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley (chopped)
- 1 tablespoon dried Greek oregano
- 2 teaspoons dried mint (or 1 tablespoon fresh)
- 1 tablespoon ouzo (or red wine)
- 1 tablespoon red-wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Coating and frying
- 80 g plain flour (for dredging)
- 6 tablespoons olive oil
- 30 g butter
To serve
- Lemon wedges
- Tzatziki (or yogurt-and-lemon dip)
Method
Stage 1 - Squeeze the onion
- Grate the onion on the fine side of a box grater into a bowl.
- Tip into a clean tea towel; squeeze hard over a small bowl to capture the juice (reserve for the meat) and leave the pulp.
Stage 2 - Soak the bread
- Tear the bread into chunks; soak in 100 ml milk for 5 minutes.
- Squeeze hard to remove excess milk.
Stage 3 - Mix
- In a wide bowl, combine the mince, squeezed onion pulp, onion juice, soaked-and-squeezed bread, egg, minced garlic, parsley, oregano, mint, ouzo, vinegar, salt, pepper, allspice and cinnamon.
- Knead with clean hands 2-3 minutes until uniform and slightly tacky.
Stage 4 - Rest
- Cover; refrigerate 30 minutes minimum (1 hour is better).
Stage 5 - Roll
- With slightly damp hands, roll the mixture into balls the size of a large walnut (about 25 g each).
- Spread the flour on a plate; roll each ball through the flour to coat lightly; shake off excess.
Stage 6 - Fry
- Heat the olive oil and butter together in a wide frying pan over medium-high heat.
- Add the meatballs in a single layer (don't overcrowd - fry in 2-3 batches).
- Cook 6-8 minutes, turning every 2 minutes, until deep brown on all sides and cooked through.
- Lift onto a wire rack lined with kitchen paper.
Stage 7 - Serve
- Pile onto a warm platter.
- Surround with lemon wedges.
- Serve with tzatziki for dipping and warm pita on the side.
Notes
- Dry the onion, save the juice: undrained onion makes the meat slippery and the keftedakia fall apart in the pan. The juice goes back into the meat for flavour.
- Dried mint is correct: Greek keftedakia use dried mint and dried oregano, not fresh. The dried herbs have a punchier flavour that survives the cooking.
- Allspice and cinnamon, just a little: these warm spices are the Greek signature. Skip them and you've made any other Mediterranean meatball.
- Flour dredge for crust: light flour coating gives the seared brown crust. Skip and the meatballs steam in their own juices instead of frying.
Storage
- Keep 2 days refrigerated; reheat in a 160°C oven covered 12 minutes.
- Freeze cooked, 2 months; thaw overnight and reheat as above.
- The raw mixture keeps 1 day refrigerated; fry from cold.
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