Spiced goat meatballs with yoghurt and tahini sauce

Number of serves: Serves 4

Preparation time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

Meatballls

• 500g goat mince
• 1 brown onion, peeled and diced
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon ground cumin
• 1 tablespoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ cup fresh coriander, roughly chopped
• 100g whole spinach leaves
• 400g cooked chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• Salt and pepper to taste

Yoghurt and tahini sauce

• ¾ cup Greek yoghurt
• ¼ cup tahini
• 30mL lemon juice
• Salt and pepper to taste

To serve

• 4 serves of wholemeal flatbread or crusty sourdough
• Gluten-free option: 4 serves of cooked rice or gluten-free pasta

Method

Meatballs

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C.
2. Fry the onion and garlic in the olive oil over a medium heat until soft.
3. Add the ground cumin and coriander and stir over the heat for 1 minute.
4. Cool the mixture slightly before mixing through the goat mince with the turmeric, paprika, cinnamon and fresh coriander.
5. Shape tablespoon-sized amounts of the mince mixture into balls and line them up side by side on a baking tray lined with baking paper.
6. Bake the meatballs in the oven for 10 minutes or until just cooked through.
7. In a large frypan or wok, quickly fry the meatballs for 2 minutes, then add the spinach and chickpeas and cook just long enough to wilt the spinach and warm the chickpeas.
8. Season with salt and pepper.

Yoghurt and tahini sauce

1. Whisk together the yoghurt, tahini and lemon juice.
2. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

To serve

1. Spoon the warm spinach and chickpea mixture onto a serving platter. Arrange the goat meatballs over the top.
2. Drizzle with the yoghurt and tahini sauce, or serve with the sauce on the side.
3. Serve with warm wholemeal flatbread or crusty sourdough. (Gluten-free option: Serve with warm rice or gluten-free pasta.)

Leftover ideas

• For easy school lunches, fill wholemeal wraps with sliced meatballs, spinach, chickpeas and yoghurt and tahini sauce.
• Serve leftover meatballs over brown rice or quinoa for a quick lunch.
• Crumble leftover meatballs into a tomato-based pasta sauce for a second family meal.
• Freeze cooked meatballs in single-serve portions for an easy weeknight dinner.