I first had this dish at Café Medina in Vancouver and wanted to replicate it. The soft poached eggs on top can be mixed with the meat and tomato as you dip into the dish with a piece of naan or crusty bread. I always recommend using fresh whole spices and toasting them before grinding them but I got a little lazy here and used ground spices.
Serves 4-5
Ingredients
Meatballs
800g ground lamb
1 yellow onion very finely diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp red chili flakes
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp Ras al Hanout*
1 tsp smoked paprika
2 Tblsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
2 Tblsp chopped cilantro
salt and pepper
2 Tblsp olive oil for frying
Sauce
2 Tblsp olive oil
1 yellow onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp ground cumin
1 cinnamon stick
1 tsp ground smoked paprika
2 tsp Harissa** or chili flakes
2 x 14oz cans diced tomatoes
3 cups fresh spinach, stems chopped off
2 Tblsp chopped cilantro
4 eggs
* Ras al Hanout is a traditional aromatic Moroccan spice blend. It can be found at most Middle Eastern or Mediterranean food shops. Here in Victoria I buy mine from Fig Deli.
** Harissa is a garlic chili paste but any chili paste or chili will work well here
Instructions
1. Combine the onions, garlic, herbs and spices for the meatballs in a large bowl. Stir to combine.
2. Add the ground lamb to the mixture and mix thoroughly. Form the mixture into golf ball sized meatballs.
3. Heat the olive oil in either a large skillet or a tagine. If using a ceramic tagine be very very careful to not heat it to too high of a temp and don’t heat it quickly. The sudden heat can cause it to expand too rapidly then crack (RIP red Emile Henry tagine….and red stew pot). Add the meatballs to the pot and brown on all sides. If using a tagine a medium heat and a light brown sear will do just fine.
4. Once browned remove the meatballs from the skillet/tagine and set aside.
5. Heat olive oil in the same skillet/tagine on medium heat and add the diced onions. Let cook until they start to become translucent.
6. Add the garlic, harissa and spices and stir. Then add the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper.
7. Simmer this mixture with the lid off for about 15 minutes or until the sauce starts to thicken and a lot of the liquid has evaporated.
8. Preheat your oven to 200ºC
9. Add the meatballs into the tomato mixture and cover and let cook at a low simmer for about 10 mins or until the meatballs are cooked through.
10. Add the spinach and cilantro. Give everything a good stir and cover again and cook until the spinach has wilted.
11. Then crack the eggs and gently put them on top of the meatballs trying not to break the yolks
12. Here you can cover and let the eggs cook by simmering on the stovetop but because my tagine can go in the oven I prefer the oven method as the eggs cook faster and more evenly. So if you’re using an oven proof dish transfer it to the oven uncovered until the egg white are cooked but the yolk is still runny.
13. Serve with bread or naan
Suggestion
This is also a fun dish to make into individual servings. Cook the meatballs and tomatoes as it says above then dish into individual oven proof dishes. Crack an egg atop each one and put in the oven. Perfect for a dinner party or a dinner for one.
For more Moroccan goodness check out our Moroccan Pantry post:
https://fancyfrites.com/moroccan-pantry/
