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Meatballs, 3 Ways

BY The Editors

PUBLISHED December 5, 2019

Here meatballs get three cocktail-party treatments, none of them Swedish. The main recipe — an Italian version, polpette are made with a load of fresh parmesan and milk-soaked bread. The second adds almonds for a tapas-style meatball. The third is Vietnamese influenced, with rice and pork. All three can be mixed and rolled in advance, then simmered, baked, pan-roasted, or grilled, and take just minutes to cook.

Other meat you can use: ground pork, lamb, veal, turkey, chicken, or duck (or a combination).

 

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Meatballs, 3 Ways

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Makes 4 servings 1x

Units Scale

Ingredients

  • 1 thick slice or 2 thin slices white bread
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 pound ground sirloin or your own ground beef
  • 1/2 cup chopped onion
  • 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Instructions

  1. Soak the bread in the milk until soggy, about 5 minutes. Squeeze the milk from the bread and combine the bread gently with the meat, onion, parmesan, parsley, and some salt and pepper. Shape into 1-inch meatballs, pressing no more than is necessary.
  2. Cook the meatballs one of three ways: Gently drop into a large pot of simmering stock or water for 10 minutes; put on a lightly greased baking sheet and bake in a 350°F oven for 7 to 8 minutes; or sauté in a tablespoon of olive oil (working in batches) in a pan for about 8 minutes, turning every couple of minutes. Serve immediately or warm with aïoli or tomato sauce as a dip, if you like.

— Recipe from How to Cook Everything

Recipe variations

Spanish-Style Almond Meatballs

Serve with saffron mayonnaise or tomato sauce: Omit the bread and the milk. Substitute breadcrumbs for the parmesan. In Step 1, whisk together 1/4 cup roughly chopped almonds and 1 egg in a large bowl, then proceed with the recipe.

Meatballs, Vietnamese Style

Serve with Thai chile Sauce or basil-soy dipping sauce : Omit the bread and the milk. Use ground pork instead of beef; scallion instead of onion; cooked white rice (preferably short-grain or sticky) instead of the parmesan, and cilantro instead of parsley. In Step 1, beat 1 egg in a large bowl and stir in the rice. Carefully combine the remaining ingredients along with 1 tablespoon minced ginger or garlic if you like.

Skewered and Grilled Meatballs, Three Ways

Add other vegetables or shrimp to the skewers too: Heat a gas or charcoal grill to medium-high heat and put the rack about 4 inches from the heat source. Put 1 to 3 meatballs on a skewer, depending on whether you’re adding anything else to the skewer, brush with oil, and seton the grill. Cook, rotating carefully to cook and brown all sides, about 4 minutes.

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