Okay so, aside from Marinara Sauce (recipe below) a recipe that people always want to learn is a good meatball. Let’s talk about what makes a good meatball. Well, first it has to be soft, almost too soft. If you throw it against the wall, they should splat all over and not bounce back to you! Second, they should be small. A real Italian meatball isn’t what you find in “Italian” restaurants that look like baseballs. WRONG!! Third, it has to taste good, of course. Here’s a great recipe below that totally qualifies. Please be aware that pork is an essential ingredient. You don’t necessarily need beef (or veal for that matter). But you do need pork. Remember: It’s good to get beefed, but it’s better to get porked.
1 lb. Ground Beef (about 90% lean but no more)
1 lb. Ground Pork
2 Tblsp. Chopped Fresh Italian Flat-Leaf Parsley
½ tsp. Salt
¼ tsp. Fresh Ground Black Pepper
¼ tsp. Granulated Garlic
1 cup Plain Bread Crumbs-God knows what’s in the pre-seasoned ones. Schifo!
1 ¼ cup Grated Cheese (Parmigiano, Romano, etc…)
2 Eggs
1 1/3 cups Room-Temperature Water
Mix all the ingredients together thoroughly.
Fill a frying pan about 1” with Olive Oil. Add a healthy scoop of lard to the oil and melt it. Allow the oil about 3 minutes to get hot. With wet hands, roll the meatballs (about as big as a golf ball) one at a time and carefully drop them into the hot oil. Fry them until they are nice and brown on both sides. Place them onto a plate lined with paper towels.
At this point you can either freeze them or cook them in Marinara Sauce (recipe below) for about 30 minutes.
Makes about 30-35 meatballs.
Buon Appetito!
