Our Mother’s Meatballs with Chaimen

INGREDIENTS: recipe can easily be halved

  • 5 lbs. ground beef

  • 5 small onions, chopped

  • 1 cup chopped fresh parsley, or ½ cup dried

  • 2 eggs

  • ¼ to ½ cup chaimen (see recipe below)

  • 3 to 4 tsp. salt

  • 1 teaspoon. pepper

  • 2/3 cup plain or seasoned breadcrumbs

  • 2 to 3 small cans tomato sauce

DIRECTIONS:

Mix all ingredients well, except for tomato sauce. Shape into balls. Either line in a tray and broil, turning them as they brown, or cook them in a large frying pan until they are browned all around. Save the juices. (At this point, you can divide into smaller portions and freeze after they have cooled.) Put the meat and its juices into a large pot. Add the tomato sauce. Cook together on low heat for 30-45 minutes, allowing the taste of the meatballs to go into the sauce. This actually tastes better the next day.

Serve with bulghur or rice pilaf, putting the sauce over the pilaf if desired.

Chaimen Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

  • 3 T ground fenugreek

  • 3 T paprika

  • ½ T salt

  • ½ T black pepper

  • ½ T cumin

  • ¼ T cayenne or red pepper

  • ¼ T allspice

  • 3 cloves crushed garlic or 3/8 teaspoon of garlic powder

DIRECTIONS:

Combine all ingredients. Add water, a little at a time, to make a thick mixture, blending well so there are no lumps. You can freeze whatever you do not use for your next batch of meatballs.

Recipe submitted by Siran and Adreena Tamakian
Recipe credit: Madeleine Aram Tamakian

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