’Surprise' Meatballs
The morrocan name for it is ‘kwari bilbeid’ but we just call it by the simple name of ‘Surprise Meatballs’.
Truth be told, when hearing about this traditional Moroccan dish for the first time I wasn’t really sure about the addition of an egg in my meatballs. But when something works, you just don’t ask any questions! Enjoy!
For 15 meatballs balls:
15 quail eggs
500g ground beef
1 slice of white bread
1 egg
2 tsp. Baharat
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. Signature Harissa
Tomato sauce:
4 garlic cloves, minced
6 tbsp. oil
3 tbsp Signature Harissa
8 large tomatoes, grated
Salt
1. Tomato sauce- sauté garlic with oil in a frying pan for 2-3 minutes, making sure you closely watch the garlic so it doesn’t burn. Add the Harissa while continuing to cook and mix for another minute. Add the tomatoes and season with salt. Bring to a boil and let simmer for 10 minutes.
2. Boil a pot of water and cook the quail eggs for 4 minutes. Peel them and set aside.
3. Meatballs- soak the white bread in water, squeeze the liquid out and grate. In a bowl knead well the meat, bread, egg, spices and Harissa. Gently roll meat mixture into 16 equal-sized balls. Place 1 quail egg in the center of each meat portion and gently shape into balls. Place in the tomato sauce and cook for 15 minutes until meatballs are fully cooked.
4. If you feel like going the extra mile, I like to serve it with thinly sliced fried garlic, a nice crunchy element. (it's just as tasty without). Serve over rice, couscous or just with a nice piece of fresh bread.
baharat recipes, signature harissa recipes, meat recipes, dinner recipes