Getting to Cooked
In my view, meatballs are always worth the effort. Kids are pleased to eat them, but they bring a true flutter of nostalgic delight to the grown people at the table. This is not a second-meal recipe per se, but you’ll notice it leans on one of my favorite no-waste ingredients, breadcrumbs, which give meatballs a tenderer bite.
Time: 1 hour 15 minutes (30 minutes active)
Makes 24 meatballs, or 4 servings with extra meatballs
¼ cup milk
½ cup unseasoned breadcrumbs, preferably homemade
1 medium onion, roughly chopped
1 medium carrot, peeled and roughly chopped
3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons chopped pancetta or unsmoked bacon
2 eggs, lightly whisked
1 teaspoon fennel seeds, ground
½ teaspoon Aleppo pepper, plus more to taste
1 teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more to taste
⅛ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste
1 pound ground beef, preferably grass-fed and around 80% lean
½ pound ground pork
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup chicken stock, homemade or low-sodium canned
One 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes and their liquid, cores removed and tomatoes crushed by hand
½ teaspoon dried oregano
1 pound spaghetti, cooked al dente, to serve
1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. In a large bowl, pour the milk onto the breadcrumbs and mix well. Let sit for at least 10 minutes.
2. Place the onion, carrot, garlic, and pancetta in a food processor and process, scraping down the bowl occasionally, until the ingredients are minced, about 1 minute. Add the eggs and pulse until combined. Stir the onion mixture into the breadcrumb mixture.
3. Add the fennel seeds, Aleppo pepper, salt, black pepper, and ground meats to the bowl. Mix by hand until evenly combined. Check the seasoning by pinching off a little bit of the meat mixture and frying it up in a pan; add more salt, Aleppo pepper, or black pepper if needed.
4. Place a sheet pan on the counter and tip the meat mixture onto it. Pat the meat into a rectangle about 1 inch thick and use a butter knife to cut it into 24 roughly even squares. Roll each square into a ball.
5. In a heavy, ovenproof 12-inch skillet or braising pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Place a single layer of meatballs into the oil and cook until mahogany brown on the bottom side, about 2 minutes. Flip the meatballs, brown again for about 2 minutes, and remove to a plate. Brown the rest of the meatballs, and remove to the plate as well. Carefully pour off the accumulated grease from the browning process and then pour chicken stock into the pan, scraping the browned bits off the bottom of the pan. Gently stir in the tomatoes, their liquid, and the oregano and finally slip the meatballs back into the pan. Cover the pan with a lid or aluminum foil, and place in the oven for 20 minutes; remove the lid and continue cooking for another 25 minutes. Taste the sauce, and adjust seasoning with salt, Aleppo pepper, or black pepper.
6. Eat right away with the spaghetti or store in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
VARIATIONS
- Mix in some greens. If you have cooked greens in the fridge, squeeze them thoroughly and chop them finely before adding to the meat mixture.
- Play with the meats. I like to keep a little beef in my meatballs but often mix in other ground meats, such as lamb, veal, or elk.
- Play with the seasoning. If you want a little Mexican flavor, try subbing cumin for the fennel and mixing some chopped cilantro into the meatball mixture. Cook with a crushed tomato or in a well-seasoned chicken broth, or in a combination of broth and tomatoes as above.
HOW TO USE YOUR EXTRA MEATBALLS
Eggily, in a very hearty frittata
Cheesily, sliced in half as a pizza topping
Soupily, floated in a well-seasoned chicken broth or a basic tomato soup
Breadily, in a hot hero sandwich with melty cheese