Romanian sour meatball soup (Ciorbă de perișoare)

1. Work the minced pork with the washed rice, the egg, one grated onion, half the salt, pepper and half the parsley; with wet hands shape into walnut-sized balls.

2. In a large pot, soften the other, finely chopped onion in the oil, add the diced carrots, parsley root, celeriac and pepper and fry for 5 minutes.

3. Pour in about 2.5 litres of water, bring to the boil and cook for 15 minutes; then slip the meatballs one by one into the gently boiling soup.

4. Stir in the tomato purée and the remaining salt and simmer for 30 minutes until the meatballs and rice are cooked.

5. Bring the borș to the boil in a separate pan, skim it and add it to the soup; bring back to the boil once, then take off the heat and stir in the chopped lovage and the remaining parsley.

6. Serve with soured cream and hot peppers, the Romanian way.

Tip: Borș is a souring liquid fermented from wheat bran; if you can't find it, sour the soup with 3-4 tablespoons of lemon juice at the end. Fresh lovage gives ciorbă its characteristic celery-like, spicy flavour – don't leave it out!