Italian Meatballs
Why I Love This Recipe
This recipe is adapted from frankie pellegrino(Rao's new york fame)Rao's was founded in 1896 and i love places that have passed the true test TIME! you can make these meat balls any size you want but,i make em' about the size of a ping pong ball to fit in sandwiches but it's your choice frankie makes them bigger.My base red sauce is the one i'm using to go with this too.
Ingredients You'll Need
1 lb ground beef
1/2 lb ground veal
1/2 lb ground pork
2 large eggs
1/2 cup pecorino romano cheese(microplaned)
1/2 cup parmigiano reggiano cheese(microplaned)
2 tbls italian flat leaf parsley(finely chopped)
4 cloves garlic(minced fine as posssible)
1/4 tsp red pepper flake(leave this out if you don't like em spicy add more if you do)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 cups lukewarm water
2 cups bread crumbs
for the bread crumbs use the highest quality italian bread you can get your hands on,let dry out for a few days,using a food processor or blender,work until really fine,pass crumbs through fine mesh strainer to achieve an even texture.you could use store bought but fresh is always better in my mind
Directions
Combine all meats in a bowl,add eggs,cheese,garlic,salt pepper,red flake and parsley,using your hands mix everything together really well,add about half the bread crumbs,mix,add the rest,work until well combined(it will look a little sandy at this point)slowly add water 1 cup at a time until moist and all water is combined(at this point it might look to wet but don't worry you want moisture)shape balls to your desired size,let them sit in the fridge for an hour at least this helps to hold em together better,heat oil in a pan until almost smoking,add meatballs slowly to oil and fry until dark brown,drain on paper towels,drop em into my base sauce or your own and go from there
