Meatballs and tzatziki- Meze time!

In Greek cuisine, there is a special category of dishes, that we call ‘meze’ or ‘mezedes’ in the plural.

Mezedes  are an endless list of ‘little somethings’’ you want to eat with your beer, ouzo, or wine.

A Meze is not a main course but the great variety usually offered in a house or tavern, ends up being a full meal.

To make meatballs many people use half pork-half beef ground meat; others use lamb ground meat. We always use only beef at the tavern and everyone seems to like this version. It is also the kids’ favorite; I remember when I was a kid whenever I didn’t like lunch my grandmother would always make meatballs especially for me.

Meatballs are ideally matched with fried potatoes and tzatziki.

Meatballs (Keftedákia)

Serves 4

500gr ground beef

70gr olive oil

120gr water

90gr dried bread crumbs

1-2 garlic cloves

1 medium onion

2 Tsp chopped parsley

1 egg beaten

salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix with your hands. Form bite-size meat balls with your hands and dredge in flour. Heat 1 cup of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat and cook the meatballs in batches. Then remove and drain on paper towels before transferring to a platter.

Tzatziki

Serves 2 (but is actually enough for 4 as a side dish)

200gr full fat yogurt  (stragismeno in Greek)

120gr cucumber grated and strained of liquid

2 Tsp olive oil

2 crushed garlic cloves

1 tsp vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

Stir all the ingredients in a bowl and let them rest for half an hour in the fridge before serving so flavors will have time to combine.