Moroccan Sardine Balls
Sardines does the heavy lifting here, with onion rounding it out. A Moroccan lunch that takes 45 minutes, start to finish.
✓ USDA-verified nutrition data
584 calories
47g protein
15g carbs
36g fat
2g fiber
Ingredients
- 1.5 lb Sardines
- 1 Onion
- 0.5 cup Parsley
- 0.25 cup Cilantro
- 1.5 tsp Cumin
- 1 tsp Paprika
- 1 Eggs
- 0.25 cup Breadcrumbs
- 3 Tomatoes
- 3 cloves Garlic
- 0.25 cup Olive oil
- 1.5 tsp Salt
Steps
- Clean the sardines — remove heads, backbones, and tails — and chop the fillets finely. Fresh sardines make this dish; frozen are a distant second.
- Mix the sardines with grated onion, herbs, cumin, paprika, egg, breadcrumbs, and salt. The mixture should hold together when squeezed.
- Roll into walnut-size balls with wet hands. They are delicate — handle them gently and chill 15 minutes to firm up.
- Simmer the chopped tomatoes with garlic and olive oil into a sauce, then nestle the sardine balls in gently.
- Cover and simmer 15 minutes, until the balls are cooked through and have absorbed the tomato flavor. Do not stir aggressively.
- Serve hot with bread and lemon wedges. Casablanca street vendors sell these by the dozen — now you know why.