meatballs (secret ingredients?)

laurenbastug
laurenbastug Posts: 307 Member
edited November 18 in Recipes
hi everyone - do you have a secret ingredient you put in meatballs that are your claim to fame to make them moist/delicious? i'm trying to recreate the meatballs i get at the italian restaurants by me and i can't seem to pinpoint what it is that makes them so compact (?) - i don't know the right word, but they're not crumbly or anything and just taste so moist.

Replies

  • laurenbastug
    laurenbastug Posts: 307 Member
    ooh tha
    kmsoucy457 wrote: »
    I think that half of the texture you're trying for is in the mixing. I prefer a "fluffier" Italian style meatball, so keep my mixing to a minimum, and use a claw-handed approach to gently fold in my breadcrumbs and egg or egg yolk, and a light pressure when forming the balls. The other half is adding that egg and breadcrumb to make the meatball mix more moist and dense. Yolk-only will up the density, too.
    With my Swedish style meatballs i prefer a dense texture, so mix the ingredients in a food processor, then use heavier pressure when rolling the meatballs. Also, instead of breadcrumbs i use milk-soaked white bread; that definitely ups the density.
    Pan frying instead of baking "seals" in the moisture, but baking them in a muffin tin saves calories and simulates that effect.
    If you're trying to lighten up the recipe, use a lean beef and turkey mix, 50/50, omit the breadcrumbs and use egg whites as a binder. It won't taste as good, obviously, but it's the closest i've come to the real thing.
    Happy ballin'!

    ooh that sounds delicious - thanks so much! haha yea, i'm thinking i'll stick to lean beef for this one. how long to bake them in the oven for?
  • ValeriePlz
    ValeriePlz Posts: 517 Member
    Bread crumbs, eggs, and even heavy cream.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    Guessing they use higher fat meat than you do at home too.
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,342 Member
    I learned in sausage making that you get a much more dense filling by emulsifying the meat. Basically, you mix in all your seasonings and additions to the ground meat, then pop it in the bowl of a stand mixer, or into a food processor and give it a good mix while trickling a little water into it. It makes the meat a lot stickier and makes it form together better. I found once I started doing this, my sausage links were nice and dense and when cut formed a flat cut side, rather than being crumbly. I assume it would apply to meatballs.

    I also use tomato sauce/ketchup as a binder, in addition to eggs.
  • camrybourg79
    camrybourg79 Posts: 1 Member
    I grate an onion into my mix. Keeps it moist! :)
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,423 Member
    This is the recipe my family likes.
    http://www.food.com/recipe/kittencals-italian-melt-in-your-mouth-meatballs-69173
  • laurenbastug
    laurenbastug Posts: 307 Member
    Alatariel75 wrote: »
    I learned in sausage making that you get a much more dense filling by emulsifying the meat. Basically, you mix in all your seasonings and additions to the ground meat, then pop it in the bowl of a stand mixer, or into a food processor and give it a good mix while trickling a little water into it. It makes the meat a lot stickier and makes it form together better. I found once I started doing this, my sausage links were nice and dense and when cut formed a flat cut side, rather than being crumbly. I assume it would apply to meatballs.

    I also use tomato sauce/ketchup as a binder, in addition to eggs.

    ooh that sounds like a good idea! - thanks!
  • laurenbastug
    laurenbastug Posts: 307 Member
    camrybourg79 wrote: »
    I grate an onion into my mix. Keeps it moist! :)

    yes, i was reading that. will definitely give it a try, thanks!
  • laurenbastug
    laurenbastug Posts: 307 Member
    Lounmoun wrote: »
    This is the recipe my family likes.
    http://www.food.com/recipe/kittencals-italian-melt-in-your-mouth-meatballs-69173

    yum those look so good, thanks!
  • laurens47
    laurens47 Posts: 117 Member
    I add feta or goat cheese and mint to mine when going for a more "greek" recipe, along with garlic and onion. I also use a higher fat ratio ground beef or use a combination of ground beef and sausage.
  • KMMRN
    KMMRN Posts: 104 Member
    Logically enough, adding water makes them moist.
  • Geocitiesuser
    Geocitiesuser Posts: 1,429 Member
    Garlic and a good quality grated cheese.... Mmmmmmmmmm
  • Gemini61454
    Gemini61454 Posts: 81 Member
    chopped mushrooms add moisture
  • lporter229
    lporter229 Posts: 4,907 Member
    I saute some onion and garlic and add it in. sometimes I also add finely chopped spinach or mushrooms. The liquid in the veggies releases and helps to keep them moist.
  • pinuplove
    pinuplove Posts: 12,871 Member
    Love.
  • vkr2q7
    vkr2q7 Posts: 68 Member
    edited April 2017
    I grate a small sweet potato into them and I also do that when I'm making bolognese! I just love the taste and texture it gives them.
  • dabearo
    dabearo Posts: 57 Member
    Use a chia egg as the binder. Increased fiber and you will not know it. http://detoxinista.com/how-to-make-flax-eggs-or-chia-eggs/
  • LovesDogsAndBooks
    LovesDogsAndBooks Posts: 190 Member
    I think they generally stay more tender if you simmer them in the tomato sauce right away instead of browning them first.

    My mom always used old stale bread/rolls soaked in warm milk instead of bread crumbs.
  • jrb158
    jrb158 Posts: 2 Member
    Boil 1/4 c raw cashews for 15 mins and rinse. saute an onion with several cloves of garlic. add oregano and pepper flakes to taste. process onions, cashews and fresh basil in food processor to form paste. mix with 1 lb ground beef salt and 1 egg. makes 12 meatballs.
  • JLASilver
    JLASilver Posts: 22 Member
    Veal / Pork / Beef blend. I don't use any breadcrumbs/bread in my meatballs but I do use an excessive amount of cheeses (ricotta, asiago, pecorino). But my trick is to roast the garlic before you incorporate into the meatballs. These meatballs are no where near healthy but using 2% Ricotta and roasted garlic would add a nice moisture to any meatballs.
  • GrinnyMae
    GrinnyMae Posts: 55 Member
    edited May 2017
    Last time I made meatballs I minced 1-2 tablespoons of giardiniera in the food processor and mixed it in. Added a lot of flavor and they stayed moist. I used 1 lb very lean ground beef, one slice of wheat bread crumbled and soaked in a scant 1/4 of milk, 1 tablespoon of tomato paste, 1 egg and some Italian seasoning blend and then the giardiniera. If you're not familiar, giardiniera is a spicy pickled vegetable mix that is usually found in the condiment aisle near the olives.

  • JustinAnimal
    JustinAnimal Posts: 1,335 Member
    You definitely need some amount of egg. I like a tbsp or two of dry red wine. A bit of parmesan to bind (not sure what kind of meatballs you're talking about, but mine are clearly Italian). Other than that, I find a blend of meats (not just beef) works really well. I prefer 1/3 bison / buffalo, 1/3 veal, and 1/3 pork. So good.
  • sixxpoint
    sixxpoint Posts: 3,529 Member
    Here are two approaches:

    http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2015/01/italian-american-beef-pork-meatballs-red-tomato-sauce-recipe.html

    http://thepastachannel.com/spaghetti-and-meatballs-recipe/
  • Silinde
    Silinde Posts: 44 Member
    Most important for meatballs here is to cook them before frying. That will make the inside ready to eat w/o having the outside carbonated. I put them in a pot of cooking water for about 10 mins, until they start floating in the water. I can put them in the deep-freeze once cooked too, so I make many but they don't get all eaten at once.

    Basic recipe is grounded meat (pig/beef mixture preferably but others will do), with 1 egg per kg meat, adding "chapelure" (can be replaced by breadcrumbs) until the meat doesn't stick to your hands too much anymore (how much depends on the fat in the meat mostly), you must however still be able to roll it together into balls that don't fall apart.
    Adding taste: onion, paprika powder, pepper and nutmeg, garlic, ... depending on what I have.
  • girlinahat
    girlinahat Posts: 2,956 Member
    red wine in the sauce.
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