Hunting The Perfect Meatball

Making perfect tender juicy meatballs is an art. There are a thousand different opinions out there on how to create that elusively tasty creation. Common wisdom says a good meatball must have egg or milk, bread crumbs, be fried, baked or simmered in sauce. I've tried just about every variation of meatballs on this planet, and have discovered a few things along the way.

First the meat itself. To make truly flavorful meatballs, a combination of meats works best. Turkey is fine, but it tends to toughen up when cooked. Good ground pork or veal lend excellent flavor and succulence to these meaty little orbs. The ground beef shouldn't be so lean it has little fat to it. 80% lean seems to work best. You can experiment with different sausages to add to the mix-chorizo or Italian sausage add a new dimension to this homely little dish.

I don't use egg or milk in my meatball mixture. It also tends to create a tougher drier product. I add my breadcrumbs dry, to aid in absorbing water and fats. You don't need to be too picky about what your breadcrumbs are made of. I use Italian flavored crumbs to enhance the sauce I'm using. If I'm making my firecracker meatballs, plain crumbs will do just fine.

Baking seems again to create a tougher meatball. Alton Brown recommends baking in mini muffin tins to aid in removing grease. I, on the other hand, want to retain all the moisture I can in my recipe, so I simmer my meatballs in a sauce or gravy.

Size has much to do with how the finished product turns out. Through trial and error I have discovered that medium to small meatballs produce the best flavor and texture. After shaping your meatballs, allow them an overnight trip in the refrigerator. This allows all the seasonings to meld and for moisture to begin really penetrating the breadcrumbs.

The next day, I warm up my refrigerated sauce I created the day before and bring it to a strong simmer. I add my meatballs, allow it to simmer for 15 minutes then lower the heat to low. Allow about an hour or two to let all the spicy magic to fuse, then serve over pasta or rice. This has produced for me the perfectly tender and flavorful meatball.

Copyright 2008 The Mad Housewife's Kitchen