Ingredients:

1 small onion

3 garlic cloves

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons butter

1 ½ cup hot chicken stock

1 ¼ cup hot water

¾ teaspoon fine sea salt

¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1 ½ cup long grain rice

meatballs

550 g ground meat

1 small onion

2 large garlic cloves

1/3 cup dried breadcrumbs

2 eggs

3 tablespoons milk

2 tablespoons chopped dill

1 teaspoon ground paprika

1 teaspoon dried thyme

2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon fine sea salt

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

2 tablespoons vegetable oil for frying the meatballs

some parsley for sprinkling on top

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius/ 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Rice: Finely chop the onion and grate the garlic cloves. Place them in a casserole dish of about 30x20 cm/ 12x8 inches. Add the oil, butter, salt, pepper, hot chicken stock, and hot water. Mix well until the butter is melted. Add the washed rice and dried thyme and combine it well. Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil. Bake for 30 minutes.

3. Meatballs: In the meantime, make the meatballs. In a large bowl, combine ground meat, grated onion and grated garlic, breadcrumbs, lightly beaten eggs, milk, chopped dill, paprika, thyme, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper. Mix well. Form meatballs. Take a heaped tablespoon of meat (or about 1/8 cup) and form meatballs with wet hands. Fry in a little oil, in batches, for about 5 minutes per batch or until brown all over, they should only be browned and not completely cooked through.

4. Bake: Remove and discard the aluminum foil. Nestle the meatballs into the rice and bake for 25 minutes until the rice and the meatballs are cooked through. Sprinkle with parsley before serving.

Bon Appetit!