Turkey Meatball & Orzo Soup

Ingredients

• 250 g turkey mince
• 30 g breadcrumbs
• salt and pepper
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 500 ml chicken stock
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes
• 1 carrot, finely diced
• 2 handfuls baby spinach
• 1 onion, finely diced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 100 g orzo
• 20 g parmesan, grated
• Natural yoghurt, to serve
• Fresh parsley, to serve

Method

1. Cook the red lentils in plenty of simmering water for 12–15 minutes until completely soft and collapsing. Drain well and spread on a plate to cool — they need to be properly cold before they go into the mince, or they'll turn the mixture to slurry.
2. In a bowl, combine the turkey mince, cooled lentils, breadcrumbs, half the oregano, and a generous pinch of salt and pepper — season the mince properly now, because you can't fix a bland meatball later. Mix thoroughly with your hands until evenly bound, then roll into walnut-sized meatballs. You should get about 12.
3. Heat the olive oil in a large deep pan over medium-high heat. Brown the meatballs in two batches — all at once and the pan crowds, water comes out, and you've poached the meat instead of browning it. Give each batch 3–4 minutes, turning so they catch deep colour on most sides. They don't need to cook through here. Lift out and set aside.
4. Drop the heat to medium. Add the onion and carrot to the same pan with all those sticky brown bits on the base, and fry for 3 minutes until softening and glossy. Stir in the garlic and the remaining oregano and cook for 30 seconds, just until fragrant and pale gold — don't let it burn, or the whole broth turns bitter.
5. Pour in the chicken stock and tinned tomatoes, scraping up the fond from the base — the stock breaks the tomatoes down so they taste of summer fruit, not tin. Bring to a steady simmer.
6. Tip in the orzo and return the meatballs to the pan. The orzo seasons itself in the broth, but the broth needs to taste like a properly salted soup — so check the salt now and adjust. Simmer for 10–12 minutes, stirring once or twice so the orzo doesn't catch on the base, until the pasta is tender and the meatballs are cooked through.
7. Stir through the baby spinach and let it wilt for 30 seconds. Taste one last time — adjust salt and pepper now, at the pan, not at the table.
8. Ladle into deep bowls, shower each with the grated parmesan so it melts into the broth, and finish with a generous crack of black pepper.