In a household that consumes a lot of poultry, I am always looking for creative new ways to prepare chicken or turkey and this one is my new favorite.
These turkey meatballs do not use bread, breadcrumbs or egg as binder. Instead, I cooked a cup of white quinoa and added it to the mix of mince, herbs, and seasonings. The quinoa keeps the turkey meatballs nice and light.
This recipe is equally excellent with chicken and bulgur, or your own favorite variation.
The herbs are all from our garden – hooray for spring/summer! – and the fragrance of lightly charred lemons, mixed with the bouquet of herbes de provence, takes me right back to the South of France.
Turkey meatballs with quinoa and herbes de provence
Turkey meatballs with quinoa and herbes de provence
Author: Saffron & Honey
Recipe type: Main, Simple Suppers
Cuisine: Provencal
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: about 16
Light turkey meatballs roasted with quinoa, herbes de provence, lemon and garlic.
Ingredients
- 1.25 lb turkey mince
- 1 cup cooked white quinoa
- 1 Spanish onion, finely chopped
- ⅓ cup mixed chopped herbs (rosemary, thyme, basil, parsley)
- half a lemon, sliced
- 3 cloves garlic
- olive oil
- salt
- pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F.
- Cook the quinoa according to package instructions.
- In a bowl, combine turkey mince, cooked quinoa, onion and herbs. Mix well.
- Season with salt and pepper and add a drizzle of olive oil.
- Lightly oil a roasting dish. Form meatballs and place them in the dish next to each other snugly. Top with sliced lemon and whole cloves of garlic (crush them lightly with the back of a knife).
- Cook for about 30 minutes
Karen (Back Road Journal) says
May 14, 2016 at 1:14 pmThe meatballs roasted with the lemons and garlic sound quite good.
saffronandhoney says
May 16, 2016 at 6:59 pmThank you, Karen!
Teresa says
May 22, 2016 at 10:17 pmNice idea to use quinoa in place of bread crumbs. I think there is a lightness that comes from using grains (or grain-like seeds) as a binder. And how can you top garden-fresh herbs?
saffronandhoney says
May 23, 2016 at 6:37 amI very much agree, Teresa! I’m so glad you enjoyed this one.
Julie Yates says
June 25, 2016 at 12:48 pmI am currently trying to “eat right” and this looks just delicious! I’m excited to try it!
saffronandhoney says
June 25, 2016 at 6:39 pmThanks so much, Julie! Let me know what you think:)