Spiced Green Meatballs with Pickle Rice and Salty Yogurt

Serves 4

These meatballs can be made with any and all types of ground meat, or a mixture of a few, so do your thang and play around with different combos. You’ll roast the meatballs on a baking sheet set on the oven floor to maximize browning without overcooking the meat–it’s a great hands off alternative to searing them in a skillet, which allows you to spend your time elsewhere in the recipe.

Ingredients

Produce

• 2-3 bunches mixed tender herbs (cilantro, dill, parsley, and/or mint)
• 1 English cucumber
• 4 scallions
• 1 garlic clove

Pantry

• 8 baby dill pickles, plus 3 tablespoons pickle brine
• ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• Kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper
• 1 tablespoon coriander seeds (or 2 tsp ground coriander)
• 1 tablespoon fennel seeds
• 1 cup panko
• ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 cups long grain white rice

Dairy

• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup whole milk yogurt

Meat

• 1 ½ pounds ground meat, such as chicken, turkey, pork, lamb, and/or beef

Preparation

1) Preheat the oven to 450 degrees

2) Make the cucumber pickle salsa

• Finely chop enough herbs to yield 1½ cups chopped when lightly packed into measuring cups. Measure out ½ cup and transfer to a medium bowl. Reserve remaining 1 cup chopped herbs for the meatballs.

• Dice 1 English cucumber and 8 baby dill pickles into ½-inch cubes. Transfer to the medium bowl with the herbs. Thinly slice 4 scallions and add half of them to the bowl, reserving the rest for the meatballs.

• Grate one clove of garlic and add to the bowl along with ½ cup olive oil, 3 tablespoons pickle brine, ¾ teaspoon red pepper flakes, and ½ teaspoon salt. Stir to combine, check for seasoning, and adjust to your liking with a touch more salt or pickle brine, if desired. Transfer to the refrigerator until ready to serve.

3) Cook the rice

• Place 2 cups long grain white basmati rice in a fine-mesh strainer and set it under cold running water. Using your hands, swoosh the rice around in a circular motion while the water runs through it, until the water runs clear.

• Shake the strainer to allow the excess water to drain off the rice. Place the rice in a medium (3-quart) saucepan that has a tight-fitting lid. Stir in 2 ½ cups cold water and 2 teaspoons salt.

• Set the rice over medium-high heat. As soon as the water comes to a boil, cover the pot with the lid and reduce the heat to very low. Set a timer for 16 minutes.

• Turn off the heat and let the rice steam, covered, for at least 10 minutes. Remove the lid, and fluff the rice with a fork. Keep the rice covered in the pot until ready to serve.

4) Make the balls

• Coarsely chop 1 tablespoon coriander seeds and 1 tablespoon fennel seeds (or use a mortar and pestle).

• In a large bowl, lightly beat 2 eggs with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add 1 cup panko, the chopped fennel seed and coriander seed, ¾ teaspoon cinnamon, 2 ¼ teaspoons salt, and ¾ teaspoon pepper. Add about one-third of the ground meat, the reserved 1 cup mixed chopped herbs, and the 2 reserved chopped scallions. Use your hands to gently mix the panko mixture into the meat and herbs until it is evenly distributed and no pockets of panko remain. Mix in the remaining two-thirds ground meat until fully combined.

• Roll the meatball mixture into 8 equal-sized balls, (about heaping ⅓ cup meatball mix per ball). Arrange meatballs evenly spaced on a lightly greased baking sheet.

• Transfer to the oven and place directly on the oven floor. Roast, turning once halfway through, until meatballs are deeply golden on the sides making contact with the baking sheet, about 16-18 minutes. The meatballs should be firm, but with some bounce when you press on them gently.

5) Serve it up

• Season 1 cup plain whole milk yogurt with salt.

• Stir about 2 cups of the cucumber-pickle salsa into the fluffed rice. Season to taste with salt.

• Divide the rice among bowls. Top with meatballs, a drizzle of salty yogurt, and more salsa.