Pressure Cooker Lamb Meatballs Recipe (2024)

Made it in the Instant Pot I would recommend going 10-12 mins. Initially it was a bit gummy on 7mins and not very flavorful. I would probably adding all the seasoning they recommend at the end at the beginning in the pressure cooker. Overall it was meh.

I had ground lamb and feta but no pressure cooker. This recipe sounded so good, though, that I had to try anyway. And I'm glad I did! I used all listed ingredients and followed instructions as written except I used a Dutch oven instead, covering the pot and simmering on medium high to start, then finishing on low. The results -- moist, tender, flavorful meatballs and fabulous sauce. Definitely a do-over! One thing though -- it took much longer than 30 minutes just to prep the dish.

This was indescribably bad. The 5 minutes at high pressure resulted in a gamey tartare. Simmering for 45 minutes did nothing. Finally we stuck the meatballs in the oven. Even with the exterior at a crispy consistency, the taste was bland and gamey. Nothing in the recipe counteracts the weak points of lamb or brings out its strong points. And after the razzle-dazzle of the recipe (chop olives! pour but don't stir tomatoes!) it was a waste of time and effort.

I made this in the slow cooker and it was really good.

Can't understand the negative comments. Great recipe. Brown the meatballs in a saucepan before adding to the pressure cooker. Sauté onions and gr pepper in the cooker . Add the wine don't reduce (no water or milk ) and then the meat balls
Mix sauce separately - tomatoes, garlic powder, olives, parsley, (hold the feta and save as garnish. Hold the tomato paste which could be added after cooking. Add to cooker and cook for 8 mins
Serve on a bed of bow tie pasta

To me, the purpose of the instant pot is to simplify and speed up the production of meals without using processed foods. This recipe is a bad fit for that....a long long list of ingredients, too much prep work. The instant pot really adds nothing all that helpful to the process.

Followed the recipe but let it simmer for 10 minutes, left on the stove covered another 10 minutes. It came out delicious.

Lorna Sass is the Queen of Pressure Cooking, IMO. And although this recipe doesn't showcase the best features the PC, it does save lots of time. How else could you cook 1.5 lbs of meatballs in 5 minutes? To those who found it bland, try punching up the seasoning in the meat mixture. The sauce can be doctored to your taste after pressure cooking. And be sure to add the oregano at the end. More delicate herbs don't do well under pressure.

The photo seems off if it's a dinner plate.For mine I scoop out 1/8 cup to make them uniform and 5 minutes at pressure is perfect. If yours are larger, add a minute or two. The cooker has to bring the contents to a boil to build pressure, so that time is heating/cooking the meatballs too, so doubling the size does not equal doubling the time; test one to be sure. I add sauce first and stir then drop in meatballs-no sticking. I use an Instant Pot.I dice everything-my preference.

Would use real garlic next time instead of garlic powder in the meatballs and would add a ton of pepper to the meat mixture.

I have made this recipe dozens of times. i omit green pepper because i find it over powering. this recipe is excellent. i don't understand all the negative comments. it's foolproof. and so tasty. the meatballs turn out perfectly. and saves soooo much time. i love it over pearl cous cous.

I made it in the Instant Pot tonight and went with 15 minutes of pressure, just to make sure. I added the additional flavor aromatics at the end as in the recipe. The meatball texture was firm, the sauce rich and flavorful (yes, I used the optional olive oil at the end). It turned out delicious! I agree that with prep it was longer than 30 minutes but worth it.

I made this in a slow cooker on low for about 2.5 hours. It turned out great. The only issue was getting the meat balls out from under the tomato sauce and keeping them together.

Although I’m not usually one to adhere religiously to a recipe, I decided, based on the wide range of reviews, that I should this time. The flavor was great, but the sauce was too watery even after simmering. My meatballs looked nothing like those in the photo. The sauce did not cling to the meatballs at all. I’m wondering if the pressure cooker is the wrong method for this recipe. The key to good flavor is probably using a good sheep’s milk feta in brine — I crumbled my own.

I have made this 3 times now and served it to friends. It has been unanimously well-received - it is a fun, flavorful, and hearty meal to share with friends. Lamb meatballs with polenta is delicious and a fun change from the usual pasta & meatballs. So easy in the instant pot.

Did not cook in a pressure cooker. And I added cumin for an additional kick. Cooked the meatballs separately so that there wouldn’t be too much fat. Simmered the sauce on the stove top adding the meatballs to just heat up. Great with some good bread and a salad.

I've made this multiple times, for up to 30 people. I've done it with lamb, beef, ground turkey, or a combo of those. I've made it in my stove-top pressure cooker several times, and in homes where there was no pressure cooker, in a pot on the stove (simmer the sauce - bake the meatballs in the oven at 400, then add to the pot). It's always great, so easy, and always a hit.

Cooked almost exactly per recipe except I used a 4Q braiser and pre-cooked meatballs in oven 400 for ~13 min, ~1” diameter. Thew in pot with can of tomatoes. Added 1/4 of cumin which I just like. Paired with the coconut tumeric rice and taziki sauce. Good.

Red wine not water or milk

Why did this come up in a search for cookies?

I actually made just the meatballs and cooked them separately and didn’t do the tomato-pressure cooker step. Ate the meatballs with tzatziki in soft pitas. So delicious and easy!

Fantastic! I was really wanting to have lamb in a gyro so instead of making the full recipe I made only the meatballs in a skillet on the stove top. They were perfect in a pita with tzatziki sauce (also NYT recipe) and cucumber tomato salad! Very quick and easy to make, comes together fast for a great weeknight meal.

This recipe turned out great for me. Substitutions: dried parsley, no green peppers.Adaptations:-- folks should remember that Bittman pressure cooker recipes are for stove-top pressure cookers. Instant Pots need 15% more cooking time. I did 6 min and then simmered a few min. thereafter.-- added upwards of .5 cups of chopped olives for briny flavor.This recipe actually can come together quickly if you just "eyeball" the dry ingredients rather than measure everything out meticulously.

I have made this numerous times and it came out perfectly every time. If you are concerned about lamb fat, you can always pre-cook the meatballs on a baking sheet to render some of the fat away. That said, chilling enables scraping most of the fat away, and I usually make this for freezing for future meals. I put all the feta in, and don't worry about garnish. It is far from bland.

I won't repeat this recipe. My bf is lactose intolerant so we skipped the feta, so that may be the reason it was so bland. I added feta cheese to the finished meatballs and it was "okay." We also cooked it the meatballs in the InstaPot on the meat setting for 1 hour.

Used 1 lb gr. lamb. Added oregano to balls. No bellpeppers so omitted. Substituted asiago ( grated) for feta at beginning and end.used fresh garlic minced 1/2 clove in balls and also in sauce. Used whole Italian canned tomatoes with basil. Served on large couscous, very good.

Made this yesterday for something different during lockdown. Used half lamb, half pork (because that's what I had). It turned out perfect, following exact cooking times listed. I didn't have issues with gumminess or gaminess at all.

I mixed 1 lb of ground lamb with 1/2 lb of ground elk. Worked well. Increased herbs per earlier comment.

Made this recipe with a few changes. Put the feta into the meatball mix to keep meat moist and emphasize the sweetness of the lamb. Actually doubled the amount of herbs (why are we so afraid herbs?) and simmered the sauce for an additional ten minutes to get the taste correct. Meatballs were beautifully done without the need for browning cooked in my Instant Pot under high pressure in five minutes as promised. My husband thought I had browned them separately but that is not needed. A success

I'd like to try this, and have some questions. The instructions say to make the meatballs about one inch in diameter, so the plate in the photo must be a tiny one, like a small salad plate? Will the timing be different if I make them the size of normal meatballs? Also, if the ones in the photo are an inch, then the onion and pepper must be diced, not coarsely chopped, because they look to be about a quarter of the width of the meatballs, yes?