Izmir-Style Baked Meatballs with Potatoes, Peppers and Tomato Sauce

What you need

• 500 g (1 lb) ground beef, 15-20% fat, or half beef and half lamb
• 1 medium onion, grated, squeezed dry
• 30 g (1/4 cup) breadcrumbs
• 1 egg
• 4 cloves garlic, minced, divided
• 4 tbsp flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped, divided
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp sweet paprika, or Aleppo pepper
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 2 tsp salt, divided
• 600 g (1 1/4 lb) potatoes, peeled
• 120 ml (1/2 cup) sunflower oil, for shallow frying
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 3 ripe tomatoes, grated on a box grater, skins discarded
• 2 firm tomatoes, sliced
• 3 long green peppers, or 1 green bell pepper, cut in strips

Method

Restated from the original video

1. 1

   Cut the potatoes into slices 1 cm (1/2 in) thick. Pat them dry with a towel.

2. 2

   In a large bowl, mix the onion, breadcrumbs, egg, half the garlic, 2 tbsp of the parsley, cumin, paprika, black pepper and 1 tsp of the salt.

3. 3

   Add the ground beef and knead by hand for 2 min until the mixture is sticky and evenly mixed.

4. 4

   With wet hands, shape into 16 small ovals about 5 cm (2 in) long. Chill for 15 min so they hold their shape.

5. 5

   Heat the sunflower oil in a large frying pan to 175 °C (350 °F). Fry the potato slices in batches until golden on both sides but not cooked through, 3-4 min per batch. Drain on paper towels.

6. 6

   Fry the meatballs in the same oil, 1-2 min per side, until browned outside and still raw inside. Do not crowd the pan. Drain on paper towels.

7. 7

   Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 1 min.

8. 8

   Add the remaining garlic, the ripe tomatoes and the remaining 1 tsp salt. Simmer for 5 min, stirring now and then.

9. 9

   Pour in 400 ml (1 2/3 cups) hot water and simmer for 5 min more.

10. 10

    Heat the oven to 200 °C (400 °F).

11. 11

    Arrange the potatoes and meatballs in a baking dish about 28 x 23 cm (11 x 9 in). Pour the sauce over them and top with the firm tomatoes and green peppers.

12. 12

    Bake uncovered for 25-30 min, until the sauce bubbles, the peppers are soft and the meatballs are cooked through, no pink inside and 71 °C (160 °F) in the center.

13. 13

    Rest for 5 min, then scatter with the remaining parsley and serve from the dish.

Imported from giverecipe.com. Recipe Grab pulled out what you need to cook it; the video stays where its author put it.