Spaghetti and Meatballs
Flavorful Italian meatballs cooked from scratch and simmered in spaghetti sauce. Italian comfort food at it's finest.
Servings 8
Calories 423
Ingredients
- 1 cup bread crumbs about 3.5 oz
- ¼ cup milk or water - plus more if needed
- teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon water
- 2 lb ground beef 80-85% lean
- 2 large eggs
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- fresh parsley a good handful, finely chopped
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese fresh grated
- Salt to taste (I ise at least a tablespoon of salt)
- olive oil if frying
- freshly ground black pepper about 15 turns of the grinder
- 24 oz Tomato Sauce homemade or a 24oz/680g jar of store-bought.
- 1 lb Spaghetti
Instructions
Stovetop
- In a small bowl mix the baking soda with the water until well combined. Set aside.
- In another mixing bowl, Add the milk and stir together while adding more milk 1 tablespoon at a time to moisten the breadcrumbs fully. Let rest while you prep the rest of the ingredients (or at least 5 minutes).
- In a large mixing bowl add the beef, garlic, parsley, and parmesan cheese and season with about a teaspoon of salt and freshly grated pepper (if using jarred sauce, it may be salty so season to taste).
- Add the baking soda and breadcrumb mixtures and mix well with your hands, squeezing the mixture through your fingers until combined.
- Shape mixture with greased hands into even size meatballs, about 1 ½-inches each (making about 16 meatballs).
- Heat about ½ cup of vegetable oil into a large skillet. You’ll want about ½-inch of oil in the pan.Add the meatballs to the heated oil about 2 inches apart and brown them until crisp, turning with a pair of tongs so that they are evenly browned. Do this in batches rather than crowding the pan.Once browned, transfer to paper towels to blot.
- Stir the cooked meatballs into warmed tomato sauce. Simmer on low heat if desired for even more tender meatballs (on a Sunday mine simmers all day) stirring often to keep the sauce from sticking to the pan.
- Taste for seasoning, season with salt as needed, and serve over freshly cooked Spaghetti.
Slow Cooker
- Follow the stovetop instructions through step 6. Then transfer to a slow cooker, stir the cooked meatballs. cover, and cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 3 to 4 hours, stirring occasionally.
- Taste for seasoning, season with salt as needed, and serve over freshly cooked Spaghetti.
Notes
For detailed information on pan-fried meatballs, see my recipe for Italian Meatballs
Adding baking soda to the beef keeps it moist by enhancing its PH levels and stopping the proteins from binding too quickly (which dries out the meat).
- Use fresh ingredients whenever possible. Fresh meat, herbs, and aromatic have the best flavor.
- Avoid low-fat meats Fat helps make the meatballs tender. I recommend 80 or 85% lean beef.
- Don't skip the baking soda or moistening the breadcrumbs, these steps help keep the meatballs tender and moist.
- Be sure to use the egg. If you skip the eggs the meatballs will fall apart in the sauce.
- After mixing your meatball mixture, it's worth taking the extra time to taste test it by making a mini hamburger patty and pan-frying it in some olive oil until fully cooked. Then give it a taste. It should taste delicious! If it doesn't, it probably needs salt. Season the raw mixture and repeat if you want to be 100% sure.
- Stir often when Simmering the meatballs in the sauce. Tomato sauce sticks easily to the bottom of the pan which can ruin your sauce if burned.
Nutrition
Calories: 423 | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 25g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 62mg | Sodium: 697mg | Potassium: 646mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 459IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 143mg | Iron: 4mg