Corned Beef Meatballs 

My mum would make these meatballs for us when we lived in Cyprus. They were always served with Cyprus potato chips fried in olive oil.

You couldn’t get fresh or minced meat in the 50s and 60s in Cyprus; the butchers only opened on Saturdays so she had to mince the pork herself using a small mincer that she attached to the end of the table.

We loved these corned beef keftedes (meatballs) – they made a delicious midweek meal!

Ingredients:

2 x 340 cans of British corned beef

1 large medium onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

680g -700g Cypriot or Egyptian potatoes (or any other potatoes if not available), peeled, grated and strained (placed on a cloth and squeeze dry)

3 small eggs

50g (2oz) fresh white breadcrumbs

A small bunch of chopped flat parsley

2 tbsp chopped fresh mint

1 tsp dried mint

1 tsp ground cinnamon

A pinch of chilli flakes

1 tsp salt

Freshly ground black pepper

2 tbsp olive oil

Vegetable oil for frying

Method:

Break the corn beef into small pieces, mash it with a fork and place in a large bowl.

Put onion, garlic and herbs in a small food blender and blend until finely chopped.

Place all the ingredients in the corn beef, except the vegetable oil, season with freshly ground black pepper, chilli flakes, and mix and knead really well by hand until well combined.

Cover the bowl and refrigerate for 1 hour.

With wet hands, take small amounts of the mixture and form into short oval finger shapes, Cypriot style.

Heat the vegetable oil in a deep fryer or wok and fry a few keftedes at a time over a medium heat until nicely browned – about 8 minutes, turning to cook the other side until golden brown. I tend to deep fry them.

Remove from the oil and drain on kitchen paper.

Serve the meatballs warm with chips and tomato ketchup. They are delicious cold too for picnics and children’s lunch boxes.