Meatball methods

Seomra Mushie

I've just bought a 1lb of steak mince and a 1lb of pork mince, with which I am going to make meatballs. I have often found meatballs to be a bit disappointing in flavour, so am determined to find a good method for making them.

Firstly, I think I might be underseasoning, having read the really interesting recent thread on salt. I was also considering maybe sweating the onions and garlic a little before adding.

What do people think about this and does anyone have good tips for making tasty meatballs?

Dinkie

Add in some breadcrumbs, grated parmeasan and lots of herbs - basil, oregano, parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme. Lots of flavour there.

(and the onions and garlic you have sweated).

I also cook them in the slow cooker.

kylith

This is my meatball recipe, it's eggless because of my OH's allergies. I usually vastly increase the herbs and I think they can't be beaten.

1 lb ground beef
½ cup breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon Italian spices
¼ cup parmesan cheese
¼ cup milk
1⁄8; teaspoon salt
1⁄8; teaspoon pepper

Eglinton

Dinkie wrote: »

Add in some breadcrumbs, grated parmeasan and lots of herbs - basil, oregano, parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme. Lots of flavour there.

(and the onions and garlic you have sweated).

I also cook them in the slow cooker.

Can't go wrong with some paprika or chilli flakes if you like a bit of a kick. However, I also find meatballs a bit bland generally so you could go down the meatloaf route. Much more tender.

BailMeOut

the Italian "milky bread" trick is worth trying. Instead of using dry bread crumbs use a bread/milk mixture. It helps keep them moist.

I find that most people mix up their meatball ingredients, roll them into balls, brown in a pan, or bake, or throw into sauce raw and then cook. Problem is at no stage were the meat balls ever tasted so you have no idea if they are good or if seasoned properly. So simple and very obvious tip is to flatten a small disk shape of the raw meat mixture and cook quickly in small frying pan with little olive oil before proceeding. This way you can taste, re-season and add more of whatever might be missing before you commit to the sauce. This way you know they will be good.

Seomra Mushie

BailMeOut wrote: »

the Italian "milky bread" trick is worth trying. Instead of using dry bread crumbs use a bread/milk mixture. It helps keep them moist.

Yes, I've done this in the mix I made tonight. (see below)

BailMeOut wrote: »

I find that most people mix up their meatball ingredients, roll them into balls, brown in a pan, or bake, or throw into sauce raw and then cook. Problem is at no stage were the meat balls ever tasted so you have no idea if they are good or if seasoned properly. So simple and very obvious tip is to flatten a small disk shape of the raw meat mixture and cook quickly in small frying pan with little olive oil before proceeding. This way you can taste, re-season and add more of whatever might be missing before you commit to the sauce. This way you know they will be good.

Good point, Rachel Allen always recommends doing this on her shows.


I made a meatball mix tonight using this recipe and changing the seasoning to suit a tomato-based sauce:

http://uktv.co.uk/food/recipe/aid/594659

I've decided that I want to make it into meatloaf instead of meatballs.

Last week I made meatloaf using this recipe:

http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/2938/hot-or-cold-meatloaf

So, that was 500g of meat, whereas tonight I have 900g. How should I adjust the oven temperature? (my oven is fan-assisted)

Thanks!

dyer

ive made this recipe quite a few times in the past was always very happy with it

http://notjunkfood.net/2010/02/02/recipe-italian-meatballs/

The Black Oil

This recipe from the Cooking Club might interest you.

The Sweeper

If you don't have breadcrumbs handy, try soaking two slices of bread in a half a cup of milk (or milk whisked with egg for richness). You'll then have a soggy mass you can easily mix with the meat and seasoning.

For seasoning, I'd use salt and pepper and dried oregano. I'd add garlic, grated or crushed, to the meatball mix, but no onion.

For the sauce I'd sweat onion but no garlic, in butter, add tins of tomatoes, a glass of white wine (this is important, white not red - totally different, and marvellous, flavour), tomato puree, taste for acidity and if it's very acidic add a sweetener, but I prefer honey to plain white sugar (and if it's a red wine sauce, black treacle instead of sugar to balance the acidity). Lots of shredded basil in the tomato sauce.

Make and shape the meatballs, roll them in a little seasoned flour and pan fry on all sides to seal, then drop in the tomato sauce and finish in the oven.

GastroBoy

The Sweeper wrote: »

If you don't have breadcrumbs handy, try soaking two slices of bread in a half a cup of milk (or milk whisked with egg for richness). You'll then have a soggy mass you can easily mix with the meat and seasoning.

Surely you would end up with a slushy mess using that technique?
The point of adding breadcrumbs is to make it lighter, yes, but also to bind the meat mixture and hold it together. That amount of additional liquid wouldn't work imo

Seomra Mushie

GastroBoy wrote: »

Surely you would end up with a slushy mess using that technique?
The point of adding breadcrumbs is to make it lighter, yes, but also to bind the meat mixture and hold it together. That amount of additional liquid wouldn't work imo

Nope, it works really well. The breadcrumbs absorb the liquid. I don't think the Italians would use the technique if it didn't work!

Alun

Seomra Mushie wrote: »

Nope, it works really well. The breadcrumbs absorb the liquid. I don't think the Italians would use the technique if it didn't work!

The Swedes do the same thing, although in most recipes I've seen, they usually say to squeeze out any excess liquid before adding it to the meat mixture.

Seomra Mushie

Alun wrote: »

The Swedes do the same thing, although in most recipes I've seen, they usually say to squeeze out any excess liquid before adding it to the meat mixture.

Yeah, I've seen it in Swedish meatballs recipes. Must try the removal of excess liquid!

GastroBoy

Alun wrote: »

The Swedes do the same thing, although in most recipes I've seen, they usually say to squeeze out any excess liquid before adding it to the meat mixture.

Yeah that would make more sense indeed

Seomra Mushie

GastroBoy wrote: »

Yeah that would make more sense indeed

I didn't drain excess liquid yesterday, and the recipe made no mention of doing so, and there was no problems whatsoever.

BailMeOut

Seomra Mushie wrote: »

I didn't drain excess liquid yesterday, and the recipe made no mention of doing so, and there was no problems whatsoever.

I only use enough milk to make the white bread into a moist paste. The process works brilliantly in hamburgers too. Allows to you cook your meat well but keep moist at same time.

One other nice meatball tip is to sneak in a small cube of mozzarella cheese in the centre of the ball when rolling.

Also keep your hands moist with some water when rolling them - stops meat sticking to you.

Alun

If you use just the right amount of milk then, of course, there's not going to be a problem, but if you add a little too much, or the bread or breadcrumbs are a bit too fresh then you may well end up with some excess liquid.

GastroBoy

BailMeOut wrote: »

I only use enough milk to make the white bread into a moist paste. The process works brilliantly in hamburgers too. Allows to you cook your meat well but keep moist at same time.

One other nice meatball tip is to sneak in a small cube of mozzarella cheese in the centre of the ball when rolling.

Also keep your hands moist with some water when rolling them - stops meat sticking to you.

Think I'll have a go at this then, sounds interesting, cheers.

morgana

Traditional German meatballs (Frikadellen) also use soaked old bread / dinner rolls with the excess liquid squeezed out (tipe: if you don't like bits of soggy bread oozing between your fingers when squeezing, try squeezing them between 2 small cutting boards). Also, try adding a very generous dollop of mustard (any type) and a tiny bit of ketchup.

After some experimentation and taking in some eastern European influences (Cevapcici), I now make meatballs - based on 800 g mince - with 1 large onion and 1 pepper (both diced very finely, best done in small electric chopper), mustard, salt, pepper, bit of ketchup, some chili for a bit of heat, either dried breadcrumbs or soaked and squeezed bread (sometimes I also add about half a crumbed pack of feta cheese). MIx and knead to homogenous consitency (to check taste, I put a tiny bit for 30 sec in Microwave).

Form balls and place in roaster dish. This can actually sit in the fridge for up to a day (covered) and will allow all flavours to mingle nicely.
Then put into oven and bake for 30 to 35 mins at 200 deg c .
No egg or added fat, depending on the quality of the meat the meat balls may give off quite a bit of liquid, so check half-way through the cooking time and drain off if needed.

I find those meat balls the best I've come up with, IMHO they are very flavourful and juicy !

Rosy Posy

Just a note on seasoning- if you want to put in herbs be sure and use dry herbs. If you use fresh herbs they will release moisture when they are cooked and make your meatballs fall apart, where as the dry herbs will absorb the moisture from the meat and both taste great and help keep the shape of the meatballs. Fresh herbs are a good addition to the accompanying sauce.

The Sweeper

Never noticed the earlier horror over the liquid. A half cup of milk is 120mls. Put over two slices of bread and then mixed with 900g of meat, that won't turn anything into a slushy mess.

Brian?

I find the optimal meat balance is 2 parts beef to 1 part pork. I'd add pepper, minced garlic and dried basil to this. Season the outside of each meatball with salt before browning. Not sure why salting the outside works better than salting the mix but I do the same for burgers.

Never tried the bread soaked in milk before, sounds like a plan.

vibe666

another good tip re: garlic and onion is to grate it with a cheese grater instead of finely chopping it.

you'll end up with slightly smellier fingers, but you won't compromise the structural integrity of the meatballs with pieces of garlic and onion.