Sri Lanka Food Adventures

Passport & Plate - Peach Meatballs

Iran | Thursday, March 5, 2015 | flickr photos

Ingredients
1/2 cup dried golden plums (or about 12 plums)
750 g ground beef
3 cups of minced carrots
two large onions - diced
2/3 cup chickpea flour
2 tbsp dried mint
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 cardamom
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tbsp turmeric
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
2 tbsp cup sugar

 

How to prepare this recipe
1. put aside couple of tablespoon of the minced carrots
2. in a large mixing bowl, mix the beef and carrots. Add the chickpea flour, cumin, nutmeg, cardamom, salt and pepper
3. make meatballs the size of a peach or a tennis ball,inserting a plum in the center (should make about 12 meatballs)
4. in a large pot, on a medium low heat, fry the onions until they are caramelized and golden
5. add the remaining carrots, dried mint and turmeric; continue frying for only one more minute
6. add one liter of boiling water, sugar and the lime juice to the mix; this would make your base
7. once the base is brought back to boil, gently drop the meatballs in the pot
8. reduce the heat to medium-low and let it simmer for one hour

 

The story behind this recipe
I come from a family who used to own a small house with a rather big backyard in Tehran. We never bought apples, pears, plums, pomegranates, tomatoes, blackberries or herbs. Everything was grown right in our own backyard. But it was the plum tree that was truly care-free and provided us with abundance of fruits. It was a short tree that was never pruned, watered or sprayed with any pesticides. Its blossoms would even survive the occasional sudden snowfall in late March. It would produce so much fruit, most of our neighborhood would receive at least one full basket each summer. And by the end of the summer when we couldn't stand the sight of another plum, they would naturally dry up on the branches and since the rainy season didn't really begin until November, we would end up with sun dried golden plums which we would then store for winter. Not surprisingly, my mom would incorporate plums into her cooking a lot. One dish which was my childhood favorite was peach meatballs. There were no peaches in them, but mom’s perfect round shape balls did resemble peaches... and then there was the sweet and sour surprise inside the balls: a dried golden plum. My peach meatballs no matter how hard I try do not resemble the fruit but I must admit I enjoy them as much as I did my mom’s and now they are also my girl’s favorite dish. Maybe it is the misleading name, or the kid friendly sweet carrots which are responsible for giving the meat balls that peachy color, or maybe it is about that surprise in the middle.... whatever the reason, I have enjoyed this simple dish for many cold winters in my life. By the way, traditionally the plum is used with its pit so it is important to actually warn your guests and don't let it be a surprise, or be ready to get sued for dental repair costs!