Best Meatballs Italiano Recipes

BONNIE'S SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS (ITALIANO)

Steps:

• 1. MAKE THE SPAGHETTI SAUCE: In a large pot, saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil until onion is light brown. Add the tomato puree, tomato sauce, water, parsley, salt, pepper, oregano, Italian herbs, marjoram and bay leaf. Stir with a wooden spoon, and bring to a boil, then turn to simmer, cover the pot and simmer 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, prepare the meatballs.
• 2. MAKE THE MEATBALLS: Note: do not brown the meatballs! In a small bowl, place the wheat bread and the 1/4 cup of water, let it soak while you combine the rest of the ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add the ground beef, 2 eggs, parmesan cheese, parsley, wine, garlic, minced onion flakes, salt and pepper, basil, oregano, and the baking soda, then add the wet bread to the meat, tearing it into tiny pieces. Mix very gently with your hands; DO NOT over mix, as it makes the meatballs tough. Dampen your hands to form the meatballs. Make balls about the size of a golf ball. The recipe should make 20 to 24 meatballs. Put them on a plate, cover and refrigerate while the sauce simmers.
• 3. COOK THE SPAGHETTI: Put on a large pot to boil water, add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil, and salt. Cook it the way you like it. Some people like it al dente, others like it more done. When the spaghetti is cooked, drain, don't rinse, cover and keep hot until the meatballs have finished cooking.
• 4. COOKING THE MEATBALLS: When the sauce has simmered for one and one-half hours, then take a long handled spoon and carefully drop one meat ball at a time into the sauce. Do not disturb the meatballs or the sauce while it simmers uncovered for 10 minutes. Stir very gently to make sure they are not sticking to the bottom of the pot, and continue to simmer, stirring occasionally for 20 minutes more.
• 5. Cook's Tip: You can serve the spaghetti and meatballs in a pasta dish as my photo depicts. Sprinkle with fresh grated parmesan cheese. We like red pepper flakes with ours. Keep out a few meatballs and sauce for great meatball sandwiches the next day! Enjoy!
• 6. Slow Cooker: I have also prepared this dish successfully in the slow cooker which runs a little hotter than a crockpot.

MEATBALLS ITALIANO

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil and place a wire rack on top. Spray with cooking spray.
• Combine all ingredients in a large bowl, mixing well with your hands.
• Using a scale, weigh out 1.5oz portions of meat and form into meatballs.
• Place meatballs on the wire rack.
• Bake for 20 minutes or until cooked through. If you make larger or smaller meatballs than the 1.5oz suggested, you will need to adjust your cooking time accordingly.
• These freeze very well! To reheat, take the desired portion from the freezer and drop into a saucepan of your favorite pasta sauce, then simmer until heated through.

MI NONI'S ITALIANO MEATBALLS

Steps:

• Place your preferred meat into a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl beat eggs until smooth. Add half measured seasoned bread crumbs and half of beaten eggs to meat and mix thoroughly. Add the remainder of all measured ingredients including the eggs and bread crumbs. You may need to mix everything with your hands to make sure that all ingredients are well incorporated into the meat. The consistency of the meat should be wet, not sticky or pasty. If the meat wants to stick to your hands while rolling a meatball then you should add another egg, one extra egg won't hurt the end result no matter the amount of meat being used.
• Once you have a wet consistency of meat cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours(overnight is best).
• To prepare meatballs have a small bowl of lukewarm water handy to keep the meatballs from sticking to your hands while rolling. Scoop meat with a tablespoon to keep size consistent and timing for frying. When rolled into a ball the meat should be about the size of a golf ball. Fry meatballs in a 12 inch skillet in olive oil. Cook on medium heat for 2 minutes per side or until browned on both sides. Please note that the fry time is one quarter the time of being fully cooked since these meatballs finish cooking in a 2 hour tomato sauce. When all meatballs fried drop into your tomato sauce.
• Note: If you prefer you may bake the meatballs as well. Place on a lightly oiled cookie sheet in a preheated 350°F oven for 10 to 15 minutes or until nicely browned. Again the cook time is for meatballs that are halfway cooked since they again go into a tomato sauce for final cooking. Also ground turkey will cook faster than pork and or beef so be sure to test the doneness of the ground turkey. Any over cooking before dropping your meatballs into your sauce will result in dry over cooked meatballs.

MEATBALLS ITALIANO

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
• Combine onion, garlic & parsley.
• In large bowl, mix all ingredients until smooth.
• Form into 2" balls.
• Place meatballs on a jelly roll pan (or use a cookie sheet with a "lip").
• Place tray in oven and pour about 1/2 cup of water into pan.
• Bake for 20 minutes.
• Remove tray from oven and pour off liquid.
• Serve with your favorite Italian sauce and pasta.