Moroccan Meatballs with Couscous Salad and Spiced Sour Cream
These Moroccan Meatballs are so tasty, and are perfect for a family weeknight meal!
Ingredients
Moroccan meatballs
- 600 g beef mince
- ¾ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1½ tablespoons Moroccan spice mix* see in method
- 1 cup cheese eg. tasty colby, edam or mild, grated
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 egg
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon tomato sauce
Couscous salad
- 1½ cups boiling water
- 1½ cups couscous
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 head broccoli cut into small florets and stalk diced 1cm
- 1 Lebanese cucumber quartered length-ways, thinly sliced
- 1 carrot grated
- 1 tablespoon vinegar eg. red wine white wine or cider
To serve
- ½ cup sour cream
- ½ teaspoon Moroccan spice mix* see in method
Instructions
- PREHEAT oven to 220°C and position oven rack in centre of oven. Lightly grease a large casserole dish and place in oven to preheat. Bring a full kettle to the boil.
- Place all Moroccan meatball ingredients into a large bowl and mix well using clean hands. Roll into golf ball-sized balls. Carefully place into pre-heated baking dish, in a single layer and bake for 13–15 minutes, until cooked through. Turn oven to high grill (leaving placement of oven rack halfway up oven) and grill meatballs for 2–3 minutes, until golden.
- While meatballs cook, prepare the rest of the meal. In a large, heat-proof bowl, combine boiling water, couscous and salt. Stir, cover and leave to swell for 5 minutes, then fluff up grains with a fork.
- Cook broccoli in pot of boiling water for 3–4 minutes, until bright green and tender. Drain, place under cold, running water to cool and drain again. Stir all veggies through cooked couscous, along with vinegar and a little olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- In a small bowl, mix sour cream with second measure of Moroccan spice mix.
- TO SERVE divide couscous salad between plates and top with a few Moroccan meatballs. Spoon over sour cream.
- To make Moroccan spice mix combine 1 teaspoon each of ground coriander, ground cumin and smoked paprika, ½ teaspoon garlic powder and ¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
Notes
It’s easy enough to make up the spice mix for these Moroccan Meatballs. You could certainly buy a Moroccan spice mix if you wanted though. There’s no chilli in the spice mix, so it’s suitable for kids.
If broccoli isn’t in season or if your kids don’t like it you can substitute it for 60g of roughly chopped spinach. Add it to the couscous at the same time that you add the other veggies.
This meal was featured in Bargain Box recently, and got great feedback. Customers said it was easy enough for kids to help with the preparation (some older kids even did the whole thing themselves), and tasted delicious! If you’re interested in Bargain Box, you can find out more here.