Boulèt (Haitian Meatballs) (2024)

What are boulèt?

Boulèt (or Haitian meatballs) are made of ground beef, aromatic herbs such as thyme and parsley, onion, bell pepper, garlic and chili spices.

These meatballs are cooked in frying oil and simmered in a sauce made with onions, garlic and tomatoes, also seasoned with chili pepper. Boulèt are eaten with white rice or rice with beans. The dish is generally quite spicy, which makes a good contrast with plain rice.

What is the origin of boulèt?

It is difficult to trace the history of the meatball because every culture in the world has its own recipe, varying from meatballs to fish balls to vegetable dumplings.

It must be said that making meatballs is both fun and economical. With the addition of eggs, onions and bread, the initial amount of meat is greatly increased and large quantities of food can be made from cheap ingredients.

Meatballs are usually fried in oil but can also be breaded and fried.

Haitian cuisine is at the crossroads of African,French, Spanish and indigenous cultures.

It is characterized by the frequent use of peppers and chili and a large consumption of rice. It is nevertheless close to the Caribbean cuisine where meatballs are also consumed and appreciated.

How to make boulèt

To make tasty boulèt, the best thing to do is to prepare them in advance. For this, soak bread in milk. The bread will be full of milk and when incorporated into the meatballs, it will bring a lot of softness to the preparation.
Separately, ground beef is mixed with onions, garlic, green bell pepper, parsley, thyme, salt, pepper and a little vinegar.

The vinegar brings a light touch of acidity which always counterbalances very well the fat side of the meatballs.
Finally, the bread is incorporated and this preparation is worked until the whole is well blended. The ideal is to work with the hands. The preparation is rested and kneaded regularly.

After six hours of rest, a beaten egg is added as a binder. The balls can then be formed by lightly moistening the hands. The meatballs are rolled in flour and fried in hot oil.

Once well browned, they are drained and transferred to a sauce made with onions, garlic, tomato paste and a bouquet garni. Simmered in this sauce, the dumplings will finish cooking and become impregnated with the flavors of the sauce.

The dish is served with red bean rice or white rice. The dumplings can be served on the side or on top of the rice so that the rice can gorge itself on the sauce.

What are the variants of boulèt?

To make Haitian boulèt, beef is sometimes replaced by turkey meat. The meatballs can also be made with rehydrated and desalted cod meat.

Some cheaper versions are made from a mixture of boiled and mashed potatoes and minced meat. In some cases, there is no meat at all.

Other meats frequently consumed in Haiti can be used. Among them, the most appreciated are chicken or goat meat.
The result will be more or less tender depending on the lean or fatty meats used. To balance the result, the lack of fat can be replaced by adding a larger amount of soft bread.

This recipe is validated by our experts in Haitian cuisine, Chef Stephan Berrouet Durand and Chef Alain Lemaire. Chef Stephan is the creator of Gout et Saveurs Lakay – Haiti Food & Spirits Festival and Taste of Haiti in Miami. Chef Alain is the co-owner and Executive Chef of Sensory Delights, in South Florida.