Recipe for Greek Style Meatballs with Bulgur

Written by Greek Boston in Authentic Greek Food Recipes, Greek Style Minced Meat Recipes Comments Off on Recipe for Greek Style Meatballs with Bulgur

Named after voli, a type of toy marbles that have been popular amongst children in Greece, these meatballs have a unique ingredient – bulgur wheat. Popular in the island of Rhodes, these meatballs are rolled fairly small and the meatballs are simmered in a fresh tomato sauce. 

 Greek Style Meatballs with Bulgur (Voli Me Plyguri) Recipe Ingredients:

• 1 pound lean ground beef
• 1 cup finely chopped, fresh parsley
• 4 scallions, finally chopped
• 1/2 cup bulgur (uncooked)
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1/3 cup Greek olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• Salt, to taste
• Pepper, to taste
• 1 large onions, halved and sliced lengthwise
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 16 ounces canned, diced tomatoes
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1/2 cup water

Instructions to Make Greek Bulgur Meatballs:

Add meat, 2 tablespoons of the parsley, scallions, bulgur, egg, and 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 2 cloves of the minced garlic, cumin, salt, and pepper to a large bowl and stir with a wooden spoon until mixture is well combined. You can also use your fingers to mix it. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 – 4 hours to let the flavors set.

Remove bowl from the refrigerator and shape into balls of about 1-2 inches thick. Your goal is to make them a consistent size. Place the balls on a plate, cover with plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator.

Add the rest of the olive oil to a deep skillet and set the heat to medium. Saute the onion for about five minutes or until the onions are soft. Add the rest of the garlic and saute for about a minute until the flavor of the garlic releases. Add the wine and cook for one minute. Stir in the tomatoes with their juices as well as the cinnamon stick and water and stir the mixture with a wooden spoon. Slowly add the meatballs so they don’t fall apart. The sauce should be deep and the meatballs should be covered.

Cover the skillet and bring the mixture to a boil. Drop the heat to a simmer after it boils and cook for twenty minutes or until the meatballs are cooked all the way though. Sprinkle the meatballs with remaining parsley just before serving.

Categorized in: Authentic Greek Food Recipes, Greek Style Minced Meat Recipes

This post was written by Greek Boston