Description

This is my Grandmother's meatball recipe, or as close as I can come to it. I made meatballs with my Grandmother many times and tried to estimate the amounts of everything she used. All the ingredients that she used are there with the exception of me using the freeze dried parsley.

Ingredients

2 lbs. Ground beef (See comments) 2 lbs. Ground pork (See comments) 8 slices Italian bread, broken into small pieces ½ cup whole milk 2 tablespoons freeze dried parsley or ½ cup chopped fresh parsley 2-4 teaspoon Kosher salt, or to taste (I use 4 teaspoons) 1-2 teaspoons black pepper, ot to taste (I use 1 teaspoons) ¼ cup dried Oregano 1 tablespoon dried Basil 1 ½ cups grated Romano or Parmigiano cheese (I always use Romano for meatballs). 4 large eggs, slightly beaten ¼ cup extra virgin Olive Oil You will also need 12-16 cups of red sauce.

Instructions

Add the red sauce to a large Dutch Oven or stock pan and bring to a simmer. Add the breadcrumbs into a medium size bowl, add the ½ cup milk, set aside for 10 minutes. In a large bowl add all the rest of the ingredients, add softened breadcrumbs and mix to combine (If I have time I will often make the meatball mix the day before and refrigerate overnight.). Roll meatballs into desired size (I use a standard ice cream scoop) drop into simmering red sauce. Once all meatballs are in the simmering red sauce, allow to cook for 10-15 minutes (You want the meatballs to slightly set) and gently stir. Simmer for an additional 2-2½ hours, gently stirring 3 or 4 times. The cooking time will depend upon how big or small you rolled the meatballs.

Makes

20-30 meatball (depends on the size you make them).

Additional Comments

You can use a meatball mix (Equal parts beef, pork and veal) all beef (I would use 80x20 fat ratio if using beef) or ½ beef and ½ pork as I used. If I have time I will often make the meatball mix the day before and refrigerate overnight.

Italian Meatballs