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SOUJOUKAKIA SMIRNEYIKA – SPICY MEATBALLS IN TOMATO SAUCE
Taking their name from the area of Smirni, in Mikrasia – Asia Minor, these small sausage-like meatballs contain the distinct cumin for flavour.
Ingredients: – for approx 8 portions
1 kilo mince meat
Ι use beef but lamb can also be used
6 cloves of garlic, grated or crushed through garlic press 2
50 grammes – approx – stale bread, without crust
2 tsps ground cumin – or to taste
1 wineglass red wine
salt pepper
Zakynthian olive oil for frying.
Tomato sauce: I use my own tomatoes but you will need a 500g packet of thickened tomato juice
1/2 wineglass olive oil
1 wineglass red wine
1/2 teaspoon sugar salt pepper
Method: Soak bread in wine – ‘village’ bread is the best to use, white bread becomes too soft and mushy. Squeeze.
Add to bowl with mince, garlic, cumin, salt and pepper (to your taste). Mix through well. If stiffish add some of the wine the bread was soaking in.
If possible, leave in fridge for 30 minutes or up to a couple of hours – gets the flavours mixing through. Using approx an amount the size of a walnut, shape into a small sausage, with pointed ends – during the frying process these points go round.
Heat oil, lightly fry the sausages – they don’t need to be cooked through, because they will be put in a tomato sauce to cook some more. Drain on kitchen paper.
Make the tomato sauce by putting tomatoe juice, olive oil, 1 wineglass of water and sugar in a pan. Bring to boil, add wine and leave to boil, without lid, for a few minutes before reducing heat to a simmering point, then simmer with lid on 20 minutes.
Add the sausages and with lid on, simmer for a further 20 minutes – if tomato sauce is watery leave lid off, though i do find that as the pan cools the soujoukakia soak up some of the sauce. Taste the sauce and if necessary add salt and pepper.
Serve with plain boiled rice, traditionally. Otherwise mashed potatoes, chips, pasta.
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