The lemoned anchovy meatballs are a tasty second course made with fresh anchovies seasoned with lemon and lemon thyme, then fried and golden. It’s a very simple recipe to make if you find the cleaned anchovies at the fish counter, otherwise, it will take a little more time to clean them one by one.
Also great as an appetizer, at an outdoor dinner buffet, tasty and flavorful both hot and cold.
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Very cheap
- Preparation time: 1 Hour
- Portions: 30Pieces
- Cooking methods: Frying
- Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients
- 1.1 lbs fresh anchovies (weight already cleaned, headless, and boneless)
- 1 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup water (or milk)
- 1.8 oz pecorino cheese (grated)
- 0.7 oz grated Parmesan
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp fine salt
- 1 lemon (juice and grated zest)
- chopped parsley (1 bunch)
- to taste ground pepper + fresh lemon thyme
- to taste sunflower oil (for frying)
Steps
If you buy fresh anchovies to clean, you will need 1 kg to obtain 500 g for the recipe. Clean them by removing the head, bone, and guts. Rinse them under running water, drain well, and place them in a bowl. If you find them already cleaned, move directly to the next step.
At this point, you can chop them by hand or blend them briefly to reduce them to small pieces.In a blender, chop the parsley and a handful of lemon thyme. Then add the Parmesan and pecorino, breadcrumbs, water or milk, and blend briefly. Add the obtained mixture to the chopped anchovies and in the bowl add the eggs, lemon juice, grated lemon zest, salt, and pepper.
Mix the compound well and form the meatballs, using a small teaspoon to scoop out the portion, forming into small balls. With this amount, you will get 25, if you make them smaller, 30.
In a frying pan, heat the oil and fry the lemoned anchovy meatballs for 1 minute, until they are lightly golden.
Drain the meatballs and place them on a sheet of absorbent paper to remove the excess oil.
Serve them hot or cold, accompanied with a side dish or sauces of your choice.
