coconut butter chickpea meatballs
When you need some balls and you need them fast.
Ingredients
meatballs
- 1 can chickpeas, drained
- 1 cup walnut halves
- 1/2 cup plain breadcrumbs
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 4 cloves garlic, smashed
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
- 1/2 large onion, quartered
- 1 tbsp turmeric
- 2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro
butter curry
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp fresh ginger, minced
- 1 tbsp curry powder
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp turmeric
- 1/2 tsp coriander
- 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- 4 tbsp butter
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 2 cups canned full-fat coconut milk
- steamed rice, warm naan, and fresh chopped cilantro, to serve
Instructions
- To make the meatballs: combine all ingredients under "meatballs" in the bowl of a food processor. Blitz until a coarse batter forms - it should still have texture, but not with humongous chunks. Oil your hands and roll into balls. You will get 12-16 meatballs from the batter depending on how big you like your balls.
- Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Fry the meatballs for 8-10 minutes, turning every 60-90 seconds, until golden and crisp on all sides. Move to a plate.
- Add a drizzle more olive if needed to the skillet. Saute the garlic, ginger, curry powder, cumin, turmeric, coriander, and cinnamon until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes. Add in the butter and heat, swirling with a wooden spoon, until melted and slightly browned. Stir in the tomato paste.
- Pour in the coconut milk and bring to a gentle simmer. Heat until slightly thickened, about 8-10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Slide in the meatballs and baste with the butter sauce for 2-3 minutes longer.
- Divide the meatballs over bowls of steamed rice. Serve with fresh naan and chopped cilantro, as desired.
Notes
*Meatball tip: I find the texture of the meatballs is best if you chop the onion in the food processor first before adding the other ingredients.
*Walnut substitute: Any kind of nut or seed can be used in place of the walnuts, with some textural differences expected. If using sunflower seeds, pepitas, or another seed, use half the amount called for in the recipe.