You Italians, give me the best authentic meatball recipe

[MrLair]

Like your mamma made from back in the day, Godfather style. Had a family friend pass away that made the best meatballs I have ever had. Refused to give anyone the real recipe. Unfortunately his kids never really cared to find out so it might be lost.

The one thing I do know is he used more veal, than pork and beef. Which I'm not sure is conventional or not.

 

[Dig Dirkler]

"You Italians"? Mods please delete thread and ban OP for being racist. TIA.

 

[funKYcat75]

Maybe they just didn't like you and that's why they didn't give the recipe up.

 

[BlueThruAndThru_rivals115784]

Aaaa, yo. You gotta take-a da meats an ball 'em uppa like-a da snowballs I usta tro at da "undesireables" ah da neighbahood, know whatum sayin'?

Den you gotta cook 'em, capice?

Be sure to stirra da sauce. Always stirra da sauce.

 

[Free_Salato_Blue]

 

[Kooky Kats]

1-1/2# ground round (90% lean)
1-1/2 cups freshly grated Romano cheese
1-1/4 cup Progresso Italian style breadcrumbs
3/4 cup chopped Italian parsley
6-8 large cloves garlic, chopped finely
2 large eggs
Salt
Pepper


Pro tip: most recipes call for prebaking balls prior to setting in sauce. Don't. Place raw racquetball-sized meatballs in simmering sauce to steep for at least 2 hours.

Fat and flavor renders in sauce.

 

[anthonys735]

^they will suck the **** out of the sauce though, gotta be prepared for that.

2# Ground Beef
1# Italian Sausage
1C Parm chese
1C Italian bread crumbs
1/2C Parsley, Basil, Oregano fresh chopped herbs, none of that dried ****.
2 eggs
6-8 cloves of roasted garlic(chop top of garlic head off, coat in EVOO roast for 20 minutes in oven use extra for garlic bread)
Kosher salt
Fresh cracked pepper

How you cook them is up to you. If you're going to add them to sauce don't drop them in already done. I personally brown them in hot oil, then place in a glass dish and cover in sauce(this prevents them from eating up all my sauce in my pot), sprinkle some parm on top for good measure and cook until 150ish.

 

[anthonys735]

^I don't always use sausage. Sometimes just beef. Depends on my mood.

 

[80 Proof]

I'm not Italian, but we always cook our meatballs in the sauce. Recipe is pretty close to the one kooky listed, and they don't soak up the sauce. If anything the sauce absorbs some of the fat.

 

[starchief]

Aaaa, yo. You gotta take-a da meats an ball 'em uppa like-a da snowballs I usta tro at da "undesireables" ah da neighbahood, know whatum sayin'?

Den you gotta cook 'em, capice?

Be sure to stirra da sauce. Always stirra da sauce.

Fuggidaboudit.

 

[MrLair]

^they will suck the **** out of the sauce though, gotta be prepared for that.

2# Ground Beef
1# Italian Sausage
1C Parm chese
1C Italian bread crumbs
1/2C Parsley, Basil, Oregano fresh chopped herbs, none of that dried ****.
2 eggs
6-8 cloves of roasted garlic(chop top of garlic head off, coat in EVOO roast for 20 minutes in oven use extra for garlic bread)
Kosher salt
Fresh cracked pepper

How you cook them is up to you. If you're going to add them to sauce don't drop them in already done. I personally brown them in hot oil, then place in a glass dish and cover in sauce(this prevents them from eating up all my sauce in my pot), sprinkle some parm on top for good measure and cook until 150ish.

Thanks. This is what most of the searches on food network came up with, in general. I forgot I did find out that he always used day/2 day bread soaked in milk instead of bread crumbs. I love spaghetti and meatballs so I will play around with a bunch of stuff.

And maybe his kids do hate me, I dunno. They are both like 15 years older than me.

 

[TruBluCatFan]

If you had made them an offer they couldn't refuse you would have gotten the recipe.

 

[WayneDougan_rivals170043]

Ina Garten's recipe is money.

 

[BBdK]

Frozen Meat Balls
Grape Jelly
Crackpat

-WodieSloot

 

[HossCat73_rivals]

1/2 lb ground beef
1/4 lb ground pork
1/4 lb ground veal
1 egg
1 clove minced garlic
1 cup Locatelli Cheese (Pecorino-Romano)
1 cup unseasoned bread crumbs
1 cup water
1 teaspoon parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
Pinch of pepper

Mix all ingredients together. Form meatballs about size of golf balls, no bigger than tennis balls.

Fry meatballs in 2 cups of olive oil with 2 cloves of garlic turning only once.

Finish off meatballs simmering low-medium in your marinara sauce for only 30 minutes.

 

[anthonys735]

I've certainly use veal before I just don't always have it around. Excellent addition. My actual written recipe calls for 2-1-1 for Beef-Sausage-Veal. A lot of people scoff at the sausage, I think it tastes better.

 

[PuffyNips]

^they will suck the **** out of the sauce though, gotta be prepared for that.

2# Ground Beef
1# Italian Sausage
1C Parm chese
1C Italian bread crumbs
1/2C Parsley, Basil, Oregano fresh chopped herbs, none of that dried ****.
2 eggs
6-8 cloves of roasted garlic(chop top of garlic head off, coat in EVOO roast for 20 minutes in oven use extra for garlic bread)
Kosher salt
Fresh cracked pepper

How you cook them is up to you. If you're going to add them to sauce don't drop them in already done. I personally brown them in hot oil, then place in a glass dish and cover in sauce(this prevents them from eating up all my sauce in my pot), sprinkle some parm on top for good measure and cook until 150ish.

Anth, is that 1/2C each of Parsley, Basil and Oregano or 1/2C of the 3 combined?

TIA.

 

[HossCat73_rivals]

Little spot on East 114th Street has made a killing () with the above recipe for years..

One more:

1 lb extra lean ground beef
1 lb ground lamb
1 lb ground veal
10 oz ricotta cheese
3 eggs
2 elephant pieces of fresh garlic, minced
1/2 cup chopped fresh oregano
3 cups romano cheese, freshly grated
Salt and Pepper to season, mix meat thoroughly

1. Roll Meatballs to desired size.
2. Sautee meatballs in a large skillet with good extra virgin olive oil (we use Sasso) and fresh minced garlic until golden on the outside
3. On a greased olive oil cookie sheet, spread meatballs out and bake in the oven at 350 for 15 minutes
4. After you take meatballs out of the oven, drop them in your pot of sauce with the grease and any residual fat for flavor.

 

[anthonys735]

Anth, is that 1/2C each of Parsley, Basil and Oregano or 1/2C of the 3 combined?

TIA.

I do 1/2 cup of finely chopped herbs. Real herbs, fresh meat and real garlic are the big difference makers. Again, I also don't ever use measurements. These are all estimates. True to Grandpa Schem's form. Note: he would punch me if he knew I used sausage.

Trick I picked up a long the way is using a 1/4 measuring cup to get equal sized meat balls. Just scoop the concoction out of the mixing bowl with the measuring cup, clear the excess, plop out and roll.

 

[MrLair]

Frozen Meat Balls
Grape Jelly
Crackpat

-WodieSloot

Already got that recipe. I also add some spicy ketchup with the grape jelly. Gives it a nice little kick.

 

[MrLair]

1/2 lb ground beef
1/4 lb ground pork
1/4 lb ground veal
1 egg
1 clove minced garlic
1 cup Locatelli Cheese (Pecorino-Romano)
1 cup unseasoned bread crumbs
1 cup water
1 teaspoon parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
Pinch of pepper

Mix all ingredients together. Form meatballs about size of golf balls, no bigger than tennis balls.

Fry meatballs in 2 cups of olive oil with 2 cloves of garlic turning only once.

Finish off meatballs simmering low-medium in your marinara sauce for only 30 minutes.

Dam that sounds good. Going to try this tomorrow night.

 

[MrLair]

1/2 lb ground beef
1/4 lb ground pork
1/4 lb ground veal
1 egg
1 clove minced garlic
1 cup Locatelli Cheese (Pecorino-Romano)
1 cup unseasoned bread crumbs
1 cup water
1 teaspoon parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
Pinch of pepper

Mix all ingredients together. Form meatballs about size of golf balls, no bigger than tennis balls.

Fry meatballs in 2 cups of olive oil with 2 cloves of garlic turning only once.

Finish off meatballs simmering low-medium in your marinara sauce for only 30 minutes.

Made these tonight for the family. Everyone absolutely loved them. Great recipe. I used panko breadcrumbs because I had them already, and milk instead of water. I mixed the milk and breadcrumbs and let them sit while I combined everything else. But they turned out great. Way better than the ones I had been making.

 

[Kooky Kats]

@HossCat73 - Locatelli Romano means you live in the tristate area... Where you at?

 

[Kooky Kats]

Little spot on East 114th Street has made a killing () with the above recipe for years..

One more:

1 lb extra lean ground beef
1 lb ground lamb
1 lb ground veal
10 oz ricotta cheese
3 eggs
2 elephant pieces of fresh garlic, minced
1/2 cup chopped fresh oregano
3 cups romano cheese, freshly grated
Salt and Pepper to season, mix meat thoroughly

1. Roll Meatballs to desired size.
2. Sautee meatballs in a large skillet with good extra virgin olive oil (we use Sasso) and fresh minced garlic until golden on the outside
3. On a greased olive oil cookie sheet, spread meatballs out and bake in the oven at 350 for 15 minutes
4. After you take meatballs out of the oven, drop them in your pot of sauce with the grease and any residual fat for flavor.

Rao's recipe? Seems like with 3 eggs and 10oz of ricotta would be a wet mess without a binding bit of breadcrumbs.

 

[HossCat73_rivals]

Rao's recipe? Seems like with 3 eggs and 10oz of ricotta would be a wet mess without a binding bit of breadcrumbs.

Rao's is correct, but it's the one above this recipe. Why I noted one more and then listed the recipe with the lamb & ricotta cheese.

Anywho, the second recipe is from a kitchen in Youngstown. Guy who sent it too me, his family came over from the old country in the '20's, so I'm guessing it's legit. Feel free to make any changes. Me personally..i'd sub in sausage for the lamb

 

[HossCat73_rivals]

@HossCat73 - Locatelli Romano means you live in the tristate area... Where you at?

Lexington, man..

Been posting on cosa nostra message boards for years, so after awhile you get to "know" other researchers, and using the Youngstown recipe as an example, I'll get some homemade recipes thrown my way.

Fun fact about Rao's... they never mention the co-owner, Ronnie Stracci. His father, Joseph "Joe Stretch" Stracci, was a pretty serious guy with the Genovese.

 

[Kooky Kats]

I went to high school with all the Gigante family...:uzi:

 

[HossCat73_rivals]

I went to high school with all the Gigante family...:uzi:

Well, we're all gonna get clipped, now.

I've got the transcript somewhere, but during one of the mini-Commission meetings held after the successful move on Castellano, Gotti mentioned to Chin who he'll be taking down as Captain, and who'll be upped in their place.

Supposedly, Gigante's reply was: We don't break our Captains, we kill them..

An extremely accurate statement. In '05, on federal trial with a couple others for extortion/bribery of a Jersey ILA local, acting-Captain Lawrence Ricci, wouldn't take a plea deal the Family insisted on him taking. So, against medical advice, he decided to take the stand in his defense.

Here's Ricci:

In the trunk of that white car is where they found him.

Poor bastard, they all were found not-guilty of the charges anyway.. [laughing]

 

[BBdK]

Lots of stories out there of people dropping into the bar, charming Frank, and getting sat after hours of waiting...we've considered it a few times, but the 99% probability of being humiliated and/or wasting an entire night there being pathetic always win, and we puss out.

Maybe Dennis will get me a seat at his table if I leave Teague alone.

 

[HossCat73_rivals]

Lots of stories out there of people dropping into the bar, charming Frank, and getting sat after hours...we've considered it a few times, but the 99% probability of being humiliated and/or wasting an entire night there being pathetic always win, and we puss out.

Maybe Dennis will get me a seat at his table if I leave Teague alone.

I believe there are a couple seats that are available around the bar in certain situations for walk-ins, but yeah, from what i gather, it's all about the timing and what day of the week it is.

 

[DSmith21]

I really enjoy the Veal Marsala Meatballs at Portofino in Lexington. It is just a more delicate take on pasta and meatballs than the standard version. These two recipes are about as close as I can find.

http://www.foodreference.com/html/fusilli-veal-111.html

http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/19313_marsala_meatballs/

 

[ThePhoenix_rivals211191]

Little spot on East 114th Street has made a killing () with the above recipe for years..

One more:

1 lb extra lean ground beef
1 lb ground lamb
1 lb ground veal
10 oz ricotta cheese
3 eggs
2 elephant pieces of fresh garlic, minced
1/2 cup chopped fresh oregano
3 cups romano cheese, freshly grated
Salt and Pepper to season, mix meat thoroughly

1. Roll Meatballs to desired size.
2. Sautee meatballs in a large skillet with good extra virgin olive oil (we use Sasso) and fresh minced garlic until golden on the outside
3. On a greased olive oil cookie sheet, spread meatballs out and bake in the oven at 350 for 15 minutes
4. After you take meatballs out of the oven, drop them in your pot of sauce with the grease and any residual fat for flavor.

Similar to how I do mine. Except I use italian sausage instead of lamb, and I add some prosciutto. Also, I use some fresh basil. I will also sometimes add some things like fennel seeds, but that varies on my mood.

 

[bluejohnson_rivals107240]

 

[Kooky Kats]

I really enjoy the Veal Marsala Meatballs at Portofino in Lexington. It is just a more delicate take on pasta and meatballs than the standard version. These two recipes are about as close as I can find.

http://www.foodreference.com/html/fusilli-veal-111.html

http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/19313_marsala_meatballs/

Rachel Ray can DIAF.

 

[MrLair]

Rachel Ray can DIAF.

Rachel Ray is more dangerous than ISIS.

 

[rockhound24_rivals]

^they will suck the **** out of the sauce though, gotta be prepared for that.

2# Ground Beef
1# Italian Sausage
1C Parm chese
1C Italian bread crumbs
1/2C Parsley, Basil, Oregano fresh chopped herbs, none of that dried ****.
2 eggs
6-8 cloves of roasted garlic(chop top of garlic head off, coat in EVOO roast for 20 minutes in oven use extra for garlic bread)
Kosher salt
Fresh cracked pepper

How you cook them is up to you. If you're going to add them to sauce don't drop them in already done. I personally brown them in hot oil, then place in a glass dish and cover in sauce(this prevents them from eating up all my sauce in my pot), sprinkle some parm on top for good measure and cook until 150ish.

This is pretty the recipe that I use for meatballs. The comment about fresh herbs can't be stressed enough! This is some good eating!

 

[Supreme Lord Z]

 

[Get Buckets]

Z you rascal, I just spit my milk out. Lol.

 

[RacerX.ksr]

I like meatballs.

 

[Supreme Lord Z]

I like meat and balls.

Fixed.