Beef meatballs with lemon and celeriac from Ottolenghi Simple (page 220) by Yotam Ottolenghi

Ingredients

Where’s the full recipe - why can I only see the ingredients?

Accompaniments: Spring onion and herb salad

Always check the publication for a full list of ingredients. An Eat Your Books index lists the main ingredients and does not include 'store-cupboard ingredients' (salt, pepper, oil, flour, etc.) - unless called for in significant quantity.

Notes about this recipe

averythingcooks on September 18, 2025

I just made the meatballs & (based on the comments here) followed his ingredient amounts for everything EXCEPT the fresh breadcrumbs. Starting with 1/2, I needed just a little bit more until I got a texture I liked. A quick test fry confirmed that they were good (could we taste the allspice?? not sure) but needed a little something extra so in went minced garlic. My preference is to oven bake meatballs at 425 until just under, finishing them in whatever sauce I'm making. I would make these tender meatballs again.
Pandan on October 12, 2024

Easy to prepare and very flavourful. Perfect amount of beef because the organic variety gets sold in 400g packets instead of one pound in Germany. I weighed my ingredients and the meatballs and only got 14 instead of 20. I used a baguette with crust for the breadcrumbs. I could taste them but they weren’t too much for me. My husband who doesn’t like vegetables that much loved this and asked „mmh, what is this!?“
Anea25 on October 03, 2024

better the next day
MarciK on September 16, 2024

This was delicious. It was more lemony than I expected. I didn’t have a problem with the amount of breadcrumbs in the meatballs. I used fresh bread, put in food processor without drying or toasting. I kept the breadcrumbs on the larger side, and measured while still very fluffy. I also let the meat mixture set to moisten the bread before shaping and cooking. I used 2 tsps of allspice for extra flavor in the meatballs. All the prep and chopping on this was time consuming. Plan ahead.
Babycarrot on February 19, 2024

Very tasty. There was enough sauce for our taste but I scaled down on the breadcrumbs and used store bought to try to create less clean up. Celeriac is not a looker but is actually rather simple to prepare once you cut away the roots and skin. Subbed ground fennel for seeds. Served with pearl couscous, but would be nice with some crusty bread or pita
Delys77 on February 05, 2024

The celery root at the market was not very impressive so we went with parsnip and some rutabaga. Both worked well as a substitute. I agree the meatballs have too much breadcrumb and are actually a little under seasoned but the sauce is lovely and the combined components are quite nice. Might not repeat but interesting flavours for sure.
jenburkholder on May 07, 2023

Delicious. Subbed Impossible and served with yogurt and barley bread. Just wish there was more sauce - all got sucked up by the meatballs and celeriac.
rhb on October 24, 2022

We've made this several times and love it! We usually sautee the onions in some olive oil first and use more celeriac.
alapotre on October 17, 2021

Waupoos, David, used cumin, ground coriander, plain paprika, no fennel, no turmeric, pan fried the meatballs with very little oil, was worth it. Forgot to add the onions to the meatballs, added them to the celeriac.
FJT on November 12, 2020

Lovely depth of flavour. I used gluten free panko breadcrumbs instead of fresh breadcrumbs and I may have reduced it too much (I made this in advance and then reheated it) as we ended up with not quite enough sauce. The meatballs were quite delicate but they mostly held together. Would definitely repeat.
greedyrosie on June 28, 2020

I thought it was ok. My family really enjoyed it and I found it enjoyable to make but I wasn’t overwhelmed. Fine for a weeknight tea but I wouldn’t rush to make it again.
Lsblackburn1 on November 17, 2019

Loved this! Served it over couscous and topped it with some leftover lebheh we had.
katy1729 on September 05, 2019

1st Sept 2019. Made this with vegan (soya) mince. At first I thought it would be a disaster as the uncooked meatball mixture would not stick together, but I cooked it for a bit in a sauté pan and it got more sticky, so I was able to form the meatballs once the mixture had cooled a bit. The spiced celeriac and lemon mixture was more interesting than I had anticipated, but it wasn't a complete winner for us.
bwhip on October 19, 2018

We made this tonight and we really loved it. The meatballs were excellent, and the celery root was delicious and cooked perfectly. The broth had a perfect combination of flavors, with brightness from the lemon and a really interesting blend of spices. The dish was remarkably flavorful for something that came together pretty quickly.
jaelsne on October 19, 2018

I had been very excited about trying this recipe. I followed it to the letter, but I was disappointed with the result. The quantity of bread crumbs overwhelmed the meatballs and made them somewhat crumbly. I will make it again using fewer bread crumbs. I love celery root, and the spicing was interesting.