Baked Swordfish Meatballs
Makes about 30 meatballs
Fish meatballs might seem like a misnomer, but they are really delicious and filling, just like regular meatballs.
I first tried this appetizer at Cookshop in Manhattan. The restaurant’s website explains its name: “In the 1800s a cookshop was a private home where cooks served simply prepared food. It welcomed guests into an environment where the menu was prepared using the product available to the chef, often nurtured on their own land.” This recipe comes from Rachael Ray.
2 pounds swordfish, skin removed, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 teaspoon salt 1⁄2 teaspoon pepper 1 egg 3⁄4 cup panko crumbs 1⁄2 cup flat-leaf parsley
Zest of 1 large lemon 2 large cloves garlic, minced
1 small plum tomato, seeded and finely chopped
3 tablespoons grated red onion
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Lemon wedges
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
In a food processor, pulse swordfish until coarsely ground. (See note.) Transfer to a medium bowl; add salt and pepper. Using your hands, mix in the egg and panko.
On a cutting board, make a gremolata by chopping together the parsley, lemon zest and garlic. Gently mix the gremolata, tomato, red onion and olive oil into the swordfish mixture.
Roll the swordfish mixture into walnut-size balls (about 2 tablespoons each) and arrange on a large rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment. Bake in preheated oven until meatballs are cooked through and lightly browned in spots, about 15 minutes.
Squeeze lemon wedges over meatballs and serve hot.
Note: Another recipe I found at divinacucina.com suggests cutting the swordfish into cubes, then mincing instead of grinding it. The chef wrote: “You don’t want to really make a puree, you do want some texture, just tiny cubes.” I found that grinding half the swordfish and cutting the rest worked well to keep the texture more fishlike and a bit looser.