Porcupine Meatballs "Yorsheki"

A dish from Sergey's childhood. My mother in law taught us how to make them at home. We haven't practiced enough to be confident, but we have it down for when we're ready to try.

Recipe still in trial & error period.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup short (or medium) grain white rice
• 1.5 cups water
• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 lb ground pork
• 2 tsp salt
• 2-3 tsp red pepper
• 3-4 tsp 21 seasoning salute
• Oil

Directions:

1. Put rice and water in a small pot.
2. Bring the rice to a boil, then turn the heat down low for 7 minutes.
3. After 7 minutes, turn off the heat. There should be no water left, and the rice should be only partially cooked and slick.
4. In a separate bowl, mix the ground beef, pork, rice, salt, and spices.
5. Make small-medium, round balls. Because rice is the only binding agent, larger meatballs tend to fall apart.

If cooking on the stove:

1. Pour a little oil in a skillet, add the balls, and turn the stove on medium-high heat. Cover the skillet.
2. Fry the yorsheki for 10 minutes. (optional, flip them halfway through to sear both sides)

If cooking in the oven:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Place yorsheki balls on baking tray lined with foil. Optional: set a wire cookie rack on top of the foil and put the yorsheki on the cookie rack to allow more fat to drip out.
3. Bake for 30 minutes.

Recipe given by Tamara.