Meatballs can be made any size, from teeny-tiny to large, added to soups, served on their own with almost any roasted vegetable, added to sandwiches, crumbled onto pizza, served on top of a bowl full of mashed potatoes or sliced on a pita spread with hummus. Marianne Sundquist/For The New Mexican
Meatballs can be made any size, from teeny-tiny to large, added to soups, served on their own with almost any roasted vegetable, added to sandwiches, crumbled onto pizza, served on top of a bowl full of mashed potatoes or sliced on a pita spread with hummus. Marianne Sundquist/For The New Mexican
This year my New Year’s resolution includes making more meatballs, so it seemed like a perfect time to share my go-to recipe. You might be asking yourself, why such a lofty goal to start the new year? It starts with my childhood. Meatballs simmered in tomato gravy were generally reserved for holidays and birthdays, I think mostly because that’s when my extended family would all gather under the same roof. For some reason, I unknowingly have followed this tradition, even though meatballs are versatile enough to surely be enjoyed throughout the year. So here’s to new beginnings and many more Sunday dinners with meatballs on the menu.
While they’re mostly known to accompany pasta and served with tomato sauce, that is just the tip of the iceberg lettuce when it comes to their culinary potential. They can be made any size, from teeny-tiny to large, added to soups, served on their own with almost any roasted vegetable, added to sandwiches, crumbled onto pizza, served on top of a bowl full of mashed potatoes or sliced on a pita spread with hummus, etc.
While this recipe stands on its own, and with the addition of red chile flakes and fennel seed is a classic Italian version, this is just one iteration of what is possible. For instance, if I was planning on serving the meatballs with a warm pita and hummus, I might skip the fennel and add toasted coriander and some freshly grated lemon zest to the mixture instead. If I wanted to add the meatballs to a brothy ginger soup, I might use coconut milk to soak the bread and add fresh red chile and curry powder. The point is, follow what tastes good to you while you consider how the meatballs will be served.
When serving with a sauce, I like to cook the meatballs almost all the way in the oven and then transfer them to simmer in sauce for the last half-hour over very low heat. The time allowing the meatballs to take a swim not only relaxes them from a textural perspective, in the process they absorb all the flavor goodness from the sauce. So while it’s certainly not required or suitable for every situation, in general, meatballs love to swim in a broth or sauce.
Preparation: Line a large sheet tray with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a medium bowl, mash together the bread and milk. Reserve.
In a large bowl, add the bread and milk mixture, ground pork, beef, eggs, garlic powder, fennel seeds, red chile flakes, salt, pepper and Parmesan. Now add the caramelized onion mixture, and mix thoroughly with clean hands until all ingredients are distributed evenly.
With your hand, make a line down the center and make another line diving each half into quarters. Make 5 meatballs out of each quarter. Really, you can make any size of meatball you want, but this is one way to help you make evenly sized meatballs. This helps them take the same amount of time to cook through.
Place meatballs on the sheet tray, making sure they have enough room so they don’t touch. Transfer them to the oven for 30 minutes, or until they read 160 degrees on a thermometer.
Marianne Sundquist is a chef and writer who in 2020 co-founded Stokli, an online general store. Email her at marianne@stokli.com.
