Bifteki, Djuvec rice and homemade tzatziki

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 500 g minced meat, mixed
• 200 g breadcrumbs
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 large onion(s)
• 1 egg(s)
• 150 g feta cheese
• 250 g yogurt
• 1 small cucumber(s)
• some lemon zest
• 1 cup rice
• 4 large tomatoes
• 4 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 tbsp oregano
• 1 tbsp cumin
• n. B. Salt
• n. B. Pfeffer
• Olive oil for frying

Instructions

Working time approx. 40 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 30 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour 10 minutes

Greek meatballs with tomato rice and fresh tzatziki

First, cook the rice in enough water (1 cup rice – 3 cups water). Rinse the rice thoroughly in a sieve under running water so that the starch doesn’t stick together during cooking. Cooking time: approx. 10 minutes. Drain the rice and let it rest in the sieve with a few knobs of butter. While the rice is cooking, grate the cucumber onto a clean kitchen towel using the coarse side of a grater and then wring it out. Pour the yogurt into a bowl, add the chopped or pressed garlic and a little lemon zest or the juice of half a lemon. Stir in the squeezed, grated cucumber and season with salt and pepper. Chill the tzatziki. Meanwhile, dice the feta cheese for the filling, season with oregano, salt and pepper, a little lemon zest and olive oil, and chill. Sauté the diced onion and chopped garlic in a pan with olive oil over low to medium heat. Place the sautéed onions in a bowl, mix the minced meat with the egg and breadcrumbs, add ground cumin and a little salt and pepper to taste, and knead everything well again. Take a good handful of minced meat, make an indentation with your thumb and add about 1/2 – 1 tbsp of feta filling, carefully close the minced meat around the feta filling and press down firmly. This takes a little practice, but you’ll get the hang of it after a short time. Once all the bifteki are formed, fry them thoroughly on both sides and let them rest in the oven at 160°C for about 10 minutes. In a pan, sauté the diced tomatoes (from which the seeds have been removed) with the tomato paste in plenty of olive oil. Now simply add the rice to the sautéed tomatoes, mix well, and season with a little salt and pepper. Alternatively, you can also add peas that have been sautéed and boiled beforehand. Many also add peppers or diced eggplant.