Tender meatballs studded with rice, browned and then simmered in a velvety tomato and sour cream sauce until they drink up the gravy. The ultimate Soviet and Russian comfort food, the dish that says home and weeknight supper.
A staple of Russian and Soviet home cooking, also nicknamed porcupine meatballs for the rice that pokes through; rice was added to stretch the meat and lend texture, and the meatballs are simmered in tomato or smetana sauce (Russia Beyond; GastroSenses).
Each meatball is soft and yielding, the grains of rice giving a gentle nubbly bite among the savory meat. The sauce is creamy, tangy, and faintly sweet, soaking into everything beneath it. It is warm, nostalgic, and endlessly spoonable.
Browning the floured meatballs first builds flavor and a coating that thickens the sauce as it simmers. Cooking the rice only halfway beforehand lets the grains finish swelling inside the gravy, absorbing flavor while keeping the meatballs moist.
Variations
Pure tomato-sauce version, all-smetana white-sauce version, oven-baked tefteli, chicken or turkey tefteli, kindergarten-style mild version
On the Palate
Where Tefteli sits in the Russian flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 4
How it's made
8 steps · 25 min
- 110 min
Mix ground beef and pork with grated onion, half-cooked rice, an egg, salt, and pepper.
- 25 min
Work the mixture briefly until cohesive, then roll into walnut-sized balls.
Watch outMix only until it just holds together — overworking the meat makes the tefteli dense and rubbery instead of tender.
- 38 min
Dredge the balls lightly in flour and brown them in oil on all sides.
Watch outGet a real brown crust on the balls before turning — that seared coating is what thickens and flavors the sauce later.
- 46 min
Lift out the meatballs and soften more onion and grated carrot in the same pan.
- 54 min
Stir in tomato paste, then a little flour, and cook off the raw taste.
Watch outCook the tomato paste and flour a minute until it smells toasty, not raw — this kills the tinny sharpness.
- 63 min
Whisk in water and sour cream to make a smooth, pourable sauce.
- 730 min
Return the meatballs, cover, and simmer gently until the rice is fully tender.
Watch outKeep it at a bare simmer, lid on, until a split ball shows the rice fully tender — a hard boil breaks the meatballs apart.
- 84 min
Rest off the heat a few minutes and serve over mashed potatoes or pasta.
