Prep: 30 – 40 minutes, including resting
Cook: 2 hours
Serves: 4- 6
Keftethes
200g stale bread, crusts removed soaked in milk or water
1kg beef mince
3 large onion, grated
2 Eggs
1 tbsp oregano
1 tsp cumin ground
1 tsp pepper
1 ½ tsp salt
1 cup mint, chopped
1 cup flat leaved parsley chopped
½ tsp cinnamon
1 tsp allspice ground
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
Saltsa
1/3 cup Greek extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 tbsp tomato paste
2 x 440 g tinned tomatoes
1 tsp sweet paprika
2 bay leaves
5 allspice berries ground
Sprig fresh basil
1 cup red wine
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
½ tsp sugar
1 tsp salt & ¼ tsp pepper
1 x tub of Aphrodite Galotyri for serving
Squeeze excess liquid from bread and place in large mixing bowl. Add the remaining keftethes ingredients and mix by hand. Cover and allow to rest in fridge for about 1 hour.
To make the saltsa, heat the oil in large deep frypan. Add the onions and cook gently until soft. Add the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute, then add remaining saltsa ingredients and simmer gently for about 20 minutes until it develops into a thick sauce.
Remove meat mixture from fridge and roll into balls a little larger than a golf ball. Flatten them gently and pan fry just enough to give a golden colour.
Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan forced.
Spoon some saltsa into the bottom of a baking dish. Lay the Keftethes in the saltsa and pour remaining saltsa over until well-covered. Drizzle with olive oil and add one cup water. Cover with foil and bake for about 30 minutes, removing foil for the last 10 minutes.
Serve with crusty bread, rice pilaf, salad and a large dollop of Galotyri.
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