How to make it
Finely chop the fresh herbs and garlic. Chop, don't hack like a caveman. This way the flavours are preserved ;-)
Add the minced meat, fresh herbs, garlic and dried herbs (keep 1 tbsp oregano aside for the sauce) and mix together nicely, with your bare hands of course! Let it sit for 20 minutes so all the flavours can soak into the meat.
Meanwhile light your BBQ and get ready to grill directly over the charcoal at 180 degrees. You can of course also light the BBQ first, whatever works for you.
Take the skillet or another small pan, put the peeled tomatoes in it and the tablespoon of oregano. Squeeze the tomatoes with your hands. Or mash with a fork, but that fork thing is really for amateurs.
Put your pan with sauce on the grate, sprinkle the smoking wood chips into the hot coals and close the lid of your BBQ. Now the smoke can nicely infuse your sauce. 1 or 2 handfuls of smoking wood is plenty.
Now start on the meatballs, make 5 balls of about 100 grams and flatten them slightly. A bit between a burger and a meatball, so to speak. That way they cook a bit faster.
By the time you're done with this, the sauce should already be bubbling nicely. Now you can place the meatballs on the grate over the coals. About 4 to 5 minutes per side. So you get some nice grill marks.
Sprinkle a bit more smoking wood into the coals in between for some extra smoky flavour.
Once both sides are nicely grilled, put the meatballs in the pan with the sauce for about 15 to 20 min. Turn the balls every 3/4 minutes.
After about 15 to 20 minutes your delicious Greek meatballs are done! Set aside to cool and rest for about 10 minutes.
Add some pepper and salt to taste. Taste first though!
Put the olive oil, white wine vinegar and honey in a roomy dish, and mix briefly.
Cut the cherry tomatoes into 4 pieces and put them in the dish and mix with the marinade. Let marinate for about 10 min.
Cut the cucumber into pieces, the green pepper into long strips and the red onion into half rings. And sprinkle on top of the tomatoes. Then add the capers and kalamata olives.
Place the feta on top of the vegetables, drizzle a good splash of olive oil over it, and then another teaspoon of dried oregano.
Once everything is on the table, whoever's been sitting around doing nothing but ball-shaping gets to break the feta into pieces with a fork and mix it all together. That's fair task division, right?
Finally season the salad with a pinch of salt, and for those who dare, some freshly ground black pepper.
Wash your basmati rice with cold water and put it in a small pan. Crumble a stock cube, and freshly ground black pepper over the rice. Add the cardamom (crack it open a bit) and star anise.
Add cold water. Remember, 1 part rice, 1.5 parts water. Always add the cold water only after seasoning.
Put your pan on high heat and let it come to temperature quickly. Once boiling, turn off the heat and let the pan sit with the lid on for about 10 minutes so the rice can steam through. Don't drain it.
No sneaky peeking, you rascal!
After 10 min your rice is cooked, then mix in the tin of Mutti tomato purée, mix well and you're done. Nothing more to it, except eating it.
Now it's time to serve everything, enjoy. Or 'Kalí órexi' in Greek.
