Meatballs With Egg Lemon Sauce Youverlakie Me Avgolemono Recipes

TRADITIONAL GREEK MEATBALL SOUP (GIOUVARLAKIA/ YOUVARLAKIA) IN EGG-LEMON SAUCE RECIPE

Steps:

• To prepare this Greek meatball soup, start by making the meatballs (youvarlakia). Place all the meatball ingredients into a large bowl, knead the mixture squeezing the ingredients with your hand until smooth. Leave the mixture to rest in the fridge for 15 minutes. This will prevent the youvarlakia to break up when boiled. Form the meatballs (youvarlakia) and set them aside.
• Pour into a large pan 2 ½ cups of water and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down and gently add the meatballs (youvarlakia) in the water, put the lid back on and cook for 20-25 minutes. (The water should be enough to cover the meatballs, so add some more warm water if needed)
• To prepare the egg lemon sauce for the Greek meatball soup, crack the eggs into a bowl and whisk. Add the lemon juice and whisk well. Add into the bowl a ladle of hot soup and whisk quickly. Add one more ladle and whisk again until combined.
• Stir in the egg lemon sauce into the youvarlakia soup and cook for 2-3 minutes over medium heat, until warm but not boiling.
• Serve this extra warming Greek meatball soup, while still hot with a sprinkle of chopped parsley.
• Make sure that you do not cover any left overs until they have cooled; the sauce may curdle otherwise!!

GREEK MEATBALLS IN EGG-LEMON SAUCE: (YOUVARLAKIA ME AVGOLEMONO)

Steps:

• Combine the ground beef, rice, onion, garlic, parsley, mint, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Add an egg and mix well.
• Pour some flour in a shallow pan. With floured hands, shape the meat into walnut-sized balls. Lightly roll the meatballs in the flour and shake off the excess.
• Heat 2 cups of the chicken broth in a Dutch oven, or large pot, until boiling.
• Carefully place the meatballs in a layer on the bottom of the pot. If the broth does not cover the meatballs, add a bit more broth until they are covered.
• Simmer, covered, on low for 45 minutes, adding more broth if there is less than 1 cup remaining.
• To make the sauce, beat the eggs in a medium sized bowl until frothy.
• Slowly whisk in the lemon juice. Ladle one cup of the pot liquid, little by little, into the egg mixture to temper the eggs.
• Remove the pot from the heat and add in the lemon/egg mixture, stirring gently.
• Heat over very low heat until sauce thickens and is heated through, making sure the sauce does not boil (which will result in the eggs curdling).

MEATBALLS WITH EGG-LEMON SAUCE (YOUVERLAKIE ME AVGOLEMONO)

Steps:

• Mix beef, onion, mint, parsley, salt, pepper, and rice. Add 1/4 cup beef stock, and mix ingredients together. Form into walnut-sized meat balls.
• In a large pot, bring the remaining stock and water to a boil. Drop the meatballs into the boiling liquid, and lower the heat. Simmer on low for 45 minutes.
• In a bowl, beat the egg yolks and add the lemon juice. While beating, add a few spoons of the hot stock into the yolks to temper them. Then add the yolk mixture to the pot of meatballs, and stir constantly until incorporated. Cover the pot and remove from the heat. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

YOUVARLAKIA AVGOLEMONO (LEMONY GREEK MEATBALL SOUP)

Steps:

• In a large mixing bowl, combine ground chicken, 1/4 cup dill, onion, carrot, rice, garlic, salt, pepper and lemon zest. Gently mix with your hands until well combined.
• Gently form the mixture into 24 meatballs, each about 1 1/4 inches in diameter, placing them on a plate or baking pan. Cover and chill for at least 20 minutes or up to 24 hours. This helps the meatballs keep their shape while cooking.
• In a large pot, bring stock to a boil over high heat. Reduce to medium and use a slotted spoon to carefully add meatballs to the pot. The broth should cover the tops of the meatballs by about 1/2 inch. If not, add a little water. Simmer gently, adjusting the heat so the broth doesn't boil, until meatballs are cooked through and rice is tender, 25 to 35 minutes. (Break open a meatball to test it.) Remove pot from heat.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs and lemon juice until just mixed. Slowly add a ladle of warm broth to egg-lemon mixture, whisking constantly. Whisk in another two ladles of broth to temper the egg mixture.
• Slowly drizzle the egg-lemon mixture back into the pot with the meatballs, stirring gently so you don't break apart the meatballs. Return the pot to medium-low heat until it just starts to simmer. (Wait for a bubble or two to appear, but don't let the pot boil.) The broth should be silky. Remove from heat, stir in remaining 1/2 cup dill. Taste and add salt and pepper, if needed. (It may need quite a bit of salt if you are starting with unsalted broth.) Garnish with nutmeg, if you like, and dill, and serve.

MEAT BALLS AVGOLEMONO (VEAL BALLS WITH LEMON AND EGG SAUCE)

Steps:

• Put the veal in a mixing bowl.
• Heat one tablespoon of the butter in a skillet and add one-half cup of the onions. Cook, stirring, until wilted. Add this to the veal.
• Add the bread crumbs, half of the dill, the nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste. Blend well. Shape the mixture into 28 balls of equal size, each about two inches in diameter or slightly less.
• Heat two tablespoons of butter in a casserole and add the remaining onions. Cook briefly until wilted. Add the veal balls and cook, turning gently to brown lightly. Add the broth and bring to the boil. Cover and let simmer about 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, beat the eggs with a wire whisk in a bowl until well blended. Add the cornstarch and continue beating until thoroughly smooth and blended. Beat in the lemon juice.
• Pour one cup of the liquid from the meatballs into the egg mixture. Beat to blend.
• Pour this blend into the meatballs with their liquid and stir. Cook over gentle heat until thickened. Sprinkle with the remaining dill and serve.