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Italian meatballs are the perfect meal to make for any age group and every occasion. In just 30 minutes, Multo® dices, mixes, and steams the ingredients into perfectly round balls without stirring, sticking, or lots of pans. This iconic Italian recipe can be eaten as a main dish, appetizer, or with your favorite pasta, lending itself to become a repeat dish in your cooking repertoire. With traditional Italian seasonings and added cheese on top, these meatballs are packed with so much flavor that you will want to make them every night.
The first step in making meatballs is to combine the ingredients together until they are well-incorporated.
Italian meatballs use beef as one of the main ingredients, and better quality of the beef (mostly lean with some fat) will result in more tender meatballs. Beef is a great source of protein, iron, and other key vitamins essential for a healthy diet. Its high-protein content will support muscle growth while iron helps to reduce tiredness and fatigue. Red meat should be eaten in moderation in your everyday diet.
Breadcrumbs are another key ingredient when making meatballs. They not only help to form the perfect consistency, but they also help in keeping the meat moist. The breadcrumbs absorb the natural juices from the beef during cooking, helping to prevent the meat from drying out.
Eggs are also used in this recipe and act as a binding agent to hold the meat mixture together. If looking to substitute the eggs for any reason, you can make a vegan flax-egg that can be used in its place. Mix one tablespoon of ground flax and 3 tablespoons of water as an equivalent to one real egg and add at the same time you would add the egg.
Once your meatballs are shaped into round balls, it is time to make the sauce. Italian recipes such as this are commonly made with tomato sauce or puréed tomatoes . These tomatoes have a smooth, light consistency without skin or seeds. Diced tomatoes are also an option for those who like chunkier pieces of tomatoes in their sauce.
Tomato paste, although full of delicious flavor, does not have enough liquid to cook a proper Italian sauce on its own. You can add 1-2 tablespoons of tomato paste into your sauce to thicken it and give it more tomato flavor.
The final step is to steam the meatballs in your tomato sauce.
Following the indicated cooking time in the instructions provided by Multo® is the best way to ensure that your meatballs are fully cooked, but there are also other clues to tell that they are done. You will notice they change color during cooking, and the end result should be a dark brown color on the outside. Also, you can use a meat thermometer to measure the heat of meatballs; they will be fully cooked at 165°F / 74°C.
Adding mozzarella cheese on top is the final step in the steaming process. A delicacy in Italian culture, mozzarella cheese has a soft consistency, mild flavor and melts easily. It adds a delicate flavor and beautiful pale white color to any dish it is used in. Mozzarella cheese is commonly used with Italian recipes that include red sauce (i.e. tomato sauce for pizza), so it pairs nicely with this recipe as well.
Meatballs are commonly served with pasta for the ultimate Italian dinner. Any type of pasta (spaghetti, linguine, rigatoni, penne) can be made with this recipe, or even upgrade your pasta selection to a cheese-stuffed ravioli or tortellini. Cook the pasta according to package directions and serve the meatballs and sauce over the pasta.
A garden salad or garlic bread are good options to make as accompaniments to this meatball recipe as well.
These meatballs can be made ahead of time and frozen until ready to cook. If you decide to do this, you must thaw the meatballs fully before cooking. Place the frozen meatballs in the fridge overnight as they can take 8-12 hours to thaw completely. Once fully thawed (they will be soft to the touch), you can cook the meatballs in the sauce as directed in this recipe.
Ground beef is commonly used for meatballs as it has a good percentage of fat to keep the meatballs juicy and flavorful. However, you can certainly use other meats in its place or in addition to the beef. Other options include ground veal and ground pork. You will want to keep the total amount of meat the same, but you can alter the proportions if you decide to mix ground meats, or you can substitute the ground beef with something else completely.
Make this Italian meatball recipe to satisfy even the pickiest eater’s palate. They are full of traditional seasonings and packed with great flavor. Cooked in zesty tomato sauce, top it with cheese, and this can be a delicious main dish or served as a course in an Italian dinner. Thanks to this easy Multo® recipe, you can prepare and cook this dish without any hassle. Be sure to also check out Multo’s other recipe ideas for inspiration and step-by-step directions for delicious meals!
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