Food Brings Home Wherever You Are – Daoud Basha

Growing up in the Middle East we didn’t often eat spaghetti and meatballs, or meatball subs. It was just spaghetti Bolognese if you are wondering what meat-based tomato sauce we could have possibly used instead of meatballs. Nevertheless we did have a meatball dish; Daoud bash. This is a middle eastern meatball dish that brings together and combines many different flavors together. It is delicious and one of my favorites!

*Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

1/2 pound of beef, 96% lean
1 small onion + 2 large onions
1 egg yolk (optional)
1/3 cup of pine nuts
3 tbsp. of tomato paste
2 cups of beef stock or chicken stock
1/2 lemon, juiced
Spices: 1 1/2 tsp. of salt, 1 tsp of cinnamon and 1/2 tsp. of allspice or 1 1/2 tsp. of seven-spice

Preparation:

Chop the small onion and douse it in salt and let it spit out its water for a few minutes.
Place the meat in the food processor, add the spices, egg yolk, drained onion and process until smooth.
Form marble-sized balls and either bake them in the oven for 5 minutes at 350F or pan-fry them.
Slice the large onions in rings and pan-fry them in some olive oil until translucent and golden.
Add the meatballs and 2 cups of beef stock along with the tomato paste.
Let the mixture simmer gently for 25 minutes until the liquid is reduced and thickened and the meatballs are thoroughly cooked.
Pan-fry some pine nuts in a little butter and add to the meatballs at the end.