Baharat lamb meatballs with crispy couscous

Arabic 20 Mins Prep · 30 Mins Cook

1. Finely chop one onion and finely grate three garlic cloves. Thinly slice and remove the seeds from the chillies. Roughly chop 10g parsley.
2. In a large bowl, combine the lamb mince with Baharat spice, eggs, breadcrumbs, half the salt and half the black peppercorns. Mix well and shape into 20 walnut-sized meatballs.
3. Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a saucepan and brown all of the meatballs stirring carefully. You may need to do this in batches to prevent overcrowding.
4. Remove the meatballs and set aside.
5. To make the sauce, finely slice another onion and grate the remaining garlic cloves.
6. In the same pan, sauté these until softened. Add the tomatoes, water, tomato paste and remaining seasoning. Simmer over a low heat for 20-30 minutes.
7. In the meantime, make the couscous. Combine the couscous and hot stock or water in a bowl. Cover with cling film and stand for 10 minutes then fluff with a fork.
8. Dice the last onion.
9. Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a 20cm-wide pan then add the onion and sauté until translucent and softened.
10. Finely chop 10g parsley, coriander and preserved lemon. Add the herbs and 2 tbsp of preserved lemon to the couscous and season well.
11. Wipe out the pan then heat the remaining olive oil over a medium heat. Add the couscous mixture and press firmly into the pan using the back of the spoon. Cover (even with a lid for a larger pot is fine) and leave for 10 minutes.
12. Remove from heat, loosen the edges slightly with a knife, put a plate on top, then flip quickly to invert the couscous pancake onto a plate with the crispy side up.
13. Serve warm while it is nice and crispy topped with the meatballs, sauce, yoghurt and torn parsley on the side.

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