by Susan Hanna
We love soup for supper and this delicious recipe from NYT Cooking combines chicken and feta meatballs with a warming broth flavoured with cumin and turmeric. Make the meatballs and brown them for a few minutes with onions and seasoning. Add the stock and simmer until the meatballs are cooked. Stir in lemon juice and baby spinach and cook until the spinach wilts. Serve garnished with dill.
Serves 4.
Avoiding Additives and Preservatives
I used Krinos feta and Better Than Bouillon chicken paste. Both are additive-free. Check the dry spices to make sure they don’t contain additives or preservatives. For more recipes using all-natural ingredients, visit Eye For a Recipe.
Ingredients:
- 1 pound (454 g) ground chicken or turkey, preferably dark meat
- ½ cup (125 ml) crumbled feta
- ¾ cup (187 ml) old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1 small red onion, halved (½ diced, and ½ grated, then squeezed with a paper towel to remove excess liquid)
- 1/3 packed cup (82.5 ml) fresh dill leaves and fine stems, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) plus 1 tablespoon (15 ml) ground turmeric
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- 3 tablespoons (45 ml) olive oil
- ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) red-pepper flakes, plus more for serving
- 4 cups (1 L) low-sodium chicken broth or water
- 4 packed cups (1 L) baby spinach
- 2 lemons (1 juiced and 1 cut into wedges for serving)
Preparation:
- In a medium bowl, add the chicken, feta, ¼ cup (60 ml) oats, the grated onion, most of the dill (reserve about 2 tablespoons/30 ml for garnish), the cumin, ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) turmeric and 1 teaspoon (5 ml) salt. Gently combine without squeezing too hard or overworking the meat. Lightly wet your palms and shape the meat into small balls, a little smaller than the size of a golf ball, about 1 ½ inches (3.8 cm). You will have approximately 25 balls.
- Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or wide pot over medium until shimmering. Add the diced onion, season with salt, and cook until it begins to soften, about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon (15 ml) turmeric and the red-pepper flakes, and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Push the onions to the sides as best you can, then add the meatballs. They will be close together, and that’s OK. Cook until browned on two sides, 5 to 7 minutes total.
- Pour in the broth and remaining ½ cup (125 ml) oats, then gently tilt the pot to the right and left to distribute the oats and broth without disturbing the meatballs. Bring to a gentle boil, then immediately reduce the heat to maintain an active simmer. Season with salt. Cook, gently stirring occasionally to make sure nothing is sticking to the bottom, until the oats have softened and the meatballs are cooked through, about 4 minutes more.
- Stir in the spinach and lemon juice until the spinach is wilted, about 2 minutes more. Adjust the seasoning to taste. Spoon into bowls, top with pepper and the remaining dill. Serve with lemon wedges.
From NYT Cooking
