Bring the lentils to a boil and cook for 20 minutes or until soft but don’t overboil it. Drain the water well and put the lentils in a large bowl.

Add salt, pepper and cumin to taste. Mix well the mixture with your hands like you’re kneading dough. The idea is to crush the lentils, but not mash them – that’s why you'll achieve best consistency by mixing them with hands...

Peel and finely chop the onion. You can also chop it using food processor. Add the lentils along with the oatmeal and mix well. Leave the mixture to rest for 5 minutes. The oatmeal will absorb the moisture from the mixture and will make it ready for shaping.

In the meantime, finely chop the garlic. In a small pot add olive oil and cook the garlic until fragrant. Add the tomatoes and let them simmer on low heat for about 15 minutes.

Shape into small meatballs and fry in some frying oil on high heat. I use only a few spoons of oil, it’s not necessary to use tons of it. Fry the meatballs until golden and rotate them on all sides to become crunchy.

Serve the meatballs in a deep dish with tomato sauce. If desired, you can sprinkle with fresh parsley or basil.