A16 which made a 28
May. 17th, 2015 08:31 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
madbakerThis week's Resolution Recipe: A16's Meatballs.
10 oz boneless pork shoulder, cut in 1" cubes and then ground
10 oz beef chuck, ditto
6 oz day-old country bread, ditto ditto
2 oz pork fat, likewise ditto ditto
2 oz proscuitto, similarly likewise ditto ditto (I used house-cured paletta cruda, which is a proscuitto-style ham.)
1 cup loosely packed flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped (Ha! You thought it was going to be cubed and ground, didn't you? Admit it.)
1 Tbsp + 2 tsp salt
2 tsp oregano
1 1/2 tsp fennel seeds (I used 1 tsp)
1 tsp dried chile flakes
2/3 cup fresh ricotta, drained if necessary
3 eggses, lightly beaten
1/4 cup whole milk
1 28-oz can San Marzano tomatoes with juices
handful of fresh basil leaves
parmesan for grating
Heat the oven to 400 and coat 2 rimmed baking sheets with olive oil.
In a large bowl, combine the pork, beef, bread, pork fat, proscuitto, parsley, 1 Tbsp of the salt, oregano, fennel, and chile flakes. Mix with your hands just until the ingredients are evenly distributed and set aside.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the ricotta, eggses, and milk just enough to break up any large curds of ricotta. Add to the ground meat mixture and mix lightly with your hands just until incorporated - the mixture should feel wet and tacky. Pinch off a small nugget, flatten into a disk, and cook to taste and adjust the seasoning if needed. Form into about 30 1 1/2" meatballs, each weighing about 2 ounces, and place on the prepared baking sheets. (I got 28, roughly 1 1/2 oz each.)
Bake, rotating the sheets once from front to back, for 15-20 minutes until the meatballs are browned. Remove from oven and lower the temperature to 300.
Sprinkle the tomatoes with the remaining 2 tsp salt, then pass the tomatoes and juices through a food mill fitted with the medium plate. (I ground them in a drink blender instead.) Pack the meatballs into a large roasting pan and pour the tomato sauce over them. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and braise for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until the meatballs are tender and have absorbed some of the sauce.
Pull the pan out and uncover. Distribute the basil leaves throughout the sauce. For each serving, ladle meatballs with some of the sauce into a warmed bowl. Grate parmesan over the top, drizzle with olive oil to finish, and serve immediately.
What worked: These were excellent. Light and airy rather than a leaden meatball (that would be the ricotta). The fuzzy upstairs neighbor thought they were veal. Delicate flavor and it went very well over orzo, even with forgetting the cheese and oil over the top.
What didn't: It was a fair amount of work and a lot of dishes. I strained my Kitchenaid grinding the bread - it seized up. Next time I'll just use bread crumbs, thanks.
Will I make it again? Probably. What I'll do though is make the meatballs ahead of time and vac-seal so it's less work the day of. I might even use pre-ground beef and pork (the horror!)
10 oz boneless pork shoulder, cut in 1" cubes and then ground
10 oz beef chuck, ditto
6 oz day-old country bread, ditto ditto
2 oz pork fat, likewise ditto ditto
2 oz proscuitto, similarly likewise ditto ditto (I used house-cured paletta cruda, which is a proscuitto-style ham.)
1 cup loosely packed flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped (Ha! You thought it was going to be cubed and ground, didn't you? Admit it.)
1 Tbsp + 2 tsp salt
2 tsp oregano
1 1/2 tsp fennel seeds (I used 1 tsp)
1 tsp dried chile flakes
2/3 cup fresh ricotta, drained if necessary
3 eggses, lightly beaten
1/4 cup whole milk
1 28-oz can San Marzano tomatoes with juices
handful of fresh basil leaves
parmesan for grating
Heat the oven to 400 and coat 2 rimmed baking sheets with olive oil.
In a large bowl, combine the pork, beef, bread, pork fat, proscuitto, parsley, 1 Tbsp of the salt, oregano, fennel, and chile flakes. Mix with your hands just until the ingredients are evenly distributed and set aside.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the ricotta, eggses, and milk just enough to break up any large curds of ricotta. Add to the ground meat mixture and mix lightly with your hands just until incorporated - the mixture should feel wet and tacky. Pinch off a small nugget, flatten into a disk, and cook to taste and adjust the seasoning if needed. Form into about 30 1 1/2" meatballs, each weighing about 2 ounces, and place on the prepared baking sheets. (I got 28, roughly 1 1/2 oz each.)
Bake, rotating the sheets once from front to back, for 15-20 minutes until the meatballs are browned. Remove from oven and lower the temperature to 300.
Sprinkle the tomatoes with the remaining 2 tsp salt, then pass the tomatoes and juices through a food mill fitted with the medium plate. (I ground them in a drink blender instead.) Pack the meatballs into a large roasting pan and pour the tomato sauce over them. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and braise for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until the meatballs are tender and have absorbed some of the sauce.
Pull the pan out and uncover. Distribute the basil leaves throughout the sauce. For each serving, ladle meatballs with some of the sauce into a warmed bowl. Grate parmesan over the top, drizzle with olive oil to finish, and serve immediately.
What worked: These were excellent. Light and airy rather than a leaden meatball (that would be the ricotta). The fuzzy upstairs neighbor thought they were veal. Delicate flavor and it went very well over orzo, even with forgetting the cheese and oil over the top.
What didn't: It was a fair amount of work and a lot of dishes. I strained my Kitchenaid grinding the bread - it seized up. Next time I'll just use bread crumbs, thanks.
Will I make it again? Probably. What I'll do though is make the meatballs ahead of time and vac-seal so it's less work the day of. I might even use pre-ground beef and pork (the horror!)
