Ingredients

The following ingredients have 7 Servings
  • 1 1/2 pounds tuna
  • 2/3 cup breadcrumbs
  • 1/3 cup shelled pistachios or almonds, (chopped)
  • 1 cup minced onion
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
  • Zest of a lemon
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 1 egg
  • Flour for dusting
  • Olive oil for frying
  • 1 recipe, (fennel-tomato sauce)

Instruction

  • Chop the tuna into 1/2 inch pieces. Put the tuna, mint, pistachios and the chopped onion in a food processor and pulse to combine. You want a rough mixture, not a smooth paste. Put the tuna mixture into a large bowl with the breadcrumbs, salt, lemon zest and egg and mix well with your clean hands for a minute or so. You want everything combined well and you want the proteins in the egg and tuna to bind the mixture.
  • Using an ice cream scoop or large spoon to scoop out the meat, roll into meatballs. You should be able to make about 20 golf ball-sized meatballs. Roll each meatball in flour and fry in enough olive oil to come half way up the sides of a large frying pan. You will probably need about 1/2 cup. Fry gently until browned over medium heat, about 15 to 20 minutes, and set each finished meatball on paper towels to drain.
  • To finish, stew the meatballs in the tomato sauce (you can use any tomato sauce you want, if you'd rather not make the tomato-fennel sauce ) until heated through, about 5 to 10 minutes, and serve alone or with pasta.