From DN Recipes by David Nagy · Food & Beverage

Chef John's Italian Meatballs

Published

 

Ingredients
  • ⅓ cup plain bread crumbs
  • ½ cup milk or beef broth
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 onion, diced
  • 1 pound ground beef (80/20 or 85/15)
  • 1 pound ground pork
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
  • ¼ bunch fresh parsley, chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon dried Italian herb seasoning
  • ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes

Directions
  1. Gather all ingredients.
  2. Cover a baking sheet with foil and spray lightly with cooking spray. Soak bread crumbs in milk in a small bowl for 20 minutes.
  3. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onion; cook and stir until onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to low and continue cooking and stirring until onion is very tender, about 15 minutes more.
  4. Gently stir beef and pork together in a large bowl. Add onions, bread crumb mixture, eggs, Parmesan cheese, parsley, garlic, salt, black pepper, Italian herb seasoning, and red pepper flakes; mix together using a rubber spatula until combined. Cover and refrigerate for about one hour.
  5. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
  6. Form mixture into balls about 1 ½ inches in diameter; arrange in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet.
  7. Cook option A:
    1. Bake in the preheated oven until browned and cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes.
  8. Cook option B:
    1. Bake in the preheated oven just until lightly browned.
    2. Simmer in tomato sauce for around one hour, or until balls reach 160 degrees.
  9. Serve with your favorite tomato sauce. Enjoy!