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greek creamy lemon meatballs (aka avgolemono)

★★★★★ 11
didicoffeegirl avatar
By Didi Dalaba
from Greece, NY

Avgolemono = Avgo (egg), lemono (with lemon) This is the best down home food comfort... I'm constantly looking for creamy and delicious without the added "fat", are you like that too? I'm trying to keep it real and waist/heart healthy!! More often than not, I revert back to my Greek roots. Hey they say the Mediterrean diet is the best in the world regarding heart health right? I guess they know what their talking about!!! ;-)

Blue Ribbon Recipe

Yum, yum, yum! Such a refreshing take on a classic comfort food. Sign us up for seconds!

— The Test Kitchen @kitchencrew
►
★★★★★ 11
serves 6
prep time 15 Min
cook time 30 Min
method Stove Top

Ingredients For greek creamy lemon meatballs (aka avgolemono)

  • 1 lb
    ground beef (i used turkey)
  • 1 sm
    onion diced fine (or 3 green onions diced fine, i used the latter)
  • 1 1/4 c
    uncooked long grain rice (or whatever you have on hand)
  • 1 tsp
    dried dill
  • 1/2 tsp
    black pepper
  • 1/4 tsp
    granulated garlic (garlic powder)
  • 1
    egg
  • LEMON SAUCE
  • 1
    egg separated (yolk from egg white)
  • juice of 1 lemon or 1/3 cup bottled
  • pinch of salt
  • ADDITIONAL INGREDIENTS
  • 3 1/2 c
    water
  • 1/4 c
    fresh parsley chopped fine *optional*
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp
    chicken base (stock)
  • 2 Tbsp
    extra virgin olive oil

How To Make greek creamy lemon meatballs (aka avgolemono)

  • 1
    a small bowl, add your meatball ingredients. Mix well till rice is incorporated thoroughly with the meat mixture and spices. Using your melon ball scooper. Scoop out meat balls and set on a plate, set aside! When you have finished making your meatballs, in a large non stick skillet, add your olive oil, let heat and add your meatballs.
  • 2
    Let them brown on one side, turn over... and let them brown on the other side.
  • 3
    Lower heat to as low as it can go... add your stock (chicken base). Add your water and cover the meatballs thoroughly!! Increase your heat to medium.
  • 4
    Let the meatballs come to a boil/simmer. Lower the heat to low, cover and time them for approximately 15-18 minutes. Turn off heat when timer is done.
  • 5
    This is what they will look like when the 18 minutes or so are over... See how perfectly cooked the rice is... love it!!
  • 6
    Okay, let's get busy with that amazing lemon sauce shall we???? Gather your very simple ingredients! Juice your lemon, separate your egg. How simple can that be??? Now that you have separated your egg white from yolk, I want you take a whisk and beat the living daylights out of the eggwhite... till it's nice and frothy and creamy looking!! I don't want you to make it "meringue", we need it frothy....
  • 7
    Take about 1/3 cup of the chicken broth from the now cooked meatballs and pour directly into the beaten egg white mixture. Easy right? Now we need to add the lemon into this... beat well with the whisk. Finally add your egg yolk and the pinch of salt. Beat just a smidgen more, like 10 whisks is all I'm saying. What you are doing is literally "tempering" the eggs. In other words, you are introducing a very hot mixture into a "neutral atmosphere". So the mixture will not "curdle" when brought back into the hot.
  • 8
    Let the meatballs and now creamy lemon mixture come to a full boil. Turn off heat and your ready to serve!! Look at how creamy and low fat this sauce is... and did I mention AMAZINGLY DELICIOUS??? Our favorite way of eating this is over mashed potatoes... so darn good... just DELICIOUS!!!!!
  • Last Step: Don't forget to share! Make all your friends drool by posting a picture of your finished recipe on your favorite social network. And don't forget to tag Just A Pinch and include #justapinchrecipes so we can see it too!
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