Weeknight Meatballs
Yield: 22 to 24 small (about 1.5-inch or 1.5 tablespoon) meatballs. ย To ensure the meatballs are all an equal size, I first portion them out using a small ice-cream scoop and then roll them.
Donโt let the photo fool you, these meatballs can be used for a lot more than justย spaghetti & meatballsย (although, thatโs a very good option!). You can also use this recipe as a starting point for Asian inspiredย Sweet & Sour Meatballsย โ but in that case, you can hold the parmesan cheese and supplement the milk with coconut milk.
Weeknight Meatballs
Ingredients
1ย pound Leppโs ground beef (You can use a mix of beef and pork)
2/3 cupย fresh bread crumbs orย 1/2 cupย panko
1/3 cupย milk or water
2 tablespoonsย finely chopped parsley
2 tablespoonsย finely grated Parmesan or Romano cheese (optional)
1 teaspoonย coarse or kosher salt
A pinch of red pepper flakes or few grinds of black pepper
1/2 teaspoonย onion powder
2ย large eggs
1ย garlic clove, minced
Instructions
Place meat, crumbs, milk or water, parsley, cheese (if using), 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, onion powder, eggs and minced garlic in a large bowl. Mix all of this together with a fork, which does a good job of breaking up the eggs and chunks of meat or use your hands. Form mixture into 1 1/2 to 2-inch meatballs, and arrange on a plate. Set in fridge for 30 minutes, which helps them hold their shape.
To help form meatballs into a smooth ball, lightly oil your hands, adding another drop or two half-way, or rinse them in between a few times with cold water.
If youโre planning toย use these in a marinara sauceย for spaghetti, or an open meatball sandwich on garlic bread, then thereโs no need to bake them โ theyโll cook right in the sauce. Go ahead andย skip over to this recipeย now.
Place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.
