Italian Trilogy Ends with Meatballs.

I like trilogies; the beginning which sets the stage; middle expanding the story; the ending which completes.  I also believe in the number 3; in math it is classified as a real number; in faith, it is a power number.  The Grecian 3 Fates deciding when life will end; The Triple Crossroads of birth, life, death; The Holy Trinity; The 9 Levels of Hell, and the square root of 9 is 3…a perfect number.  I am ending my trilogy with an all-time favorite at any Italian dinner table, meatballs; let me set the stage.

A favorite show on the Food Network Channel is Guy Fieri's "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives"; I find new places to try, but also recipes to try out in my own kitchen.  I like Guy too; he's funny, ridiculous at times, and knows how to draw you in to enjoy the show.  Many of the places he features does Italian food, so I pay particular attention to those, since Italian is one of my favorite cuisines.  One diner owner prepared meatballs, using fresh sliced, white bread soaked in milk as the binder for the meat.    

Growing up in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn; I learned in my family, and other families, to use bread crumbs, mainly from loaves of Italian bread that had gone stale, ground into fine crumbs and then added to the meat mixture.  In my first marriage, I learned that was the way his family, who were Italian, also did it, so who was I to question the norm?  Then again, I've become a lot more adventurous in the kitchen since those days, and was going to try this other method of bread soaked in milk.  Another reason, where I live now, you cannot find real, authentic Italian bread made with Semolina flour; it's all made with "enriched white flour" which, to me, is basically plain, old white bread.

Instead of the dried Italian seasoned crumbs, I broke up slices of white bread, about 6, and soaked them in 1 cup of milk instead of the 3/4 cup called for in my recipe.  I also increased my Italian seasoning mixture to 1/4 cup.  Adding this to the rest of the ingredients, I found that you had to work the soaked bread into the meat more, making sure to break up any large clumps. Baking time was the same, but I only got 18 meatballs instead of the usual 20; not a big deal though.

After cooking these in sauce came the taste testing; besides hubby and myself, I asked a couple of other folks to try them out against my regularly made meatballs, without telling them which was which.  The conclusion: While the bread soaked in milk meatball had a firmer texture, the overall taste was the same as my original style meatball. Everyone liked both types and would willingly eat both without a problem; they were delicious, they were authentically homemade; not those rubber ones sold in the freezer department of the grocery.  One comment I especially liked was, “These are the most tender meatballs I have ever eaten!” so there you go.

Overall conclusion: it comes down to basically what you grew up on, are comfortable making, and eating.  However, by trying a new idea, I know now, that if I'm out of dried bread crumbs, I can use the milk soaked bread, still get a decent result, and not a disaster.

Here’s my Original Meatball Recipe:

 

Lean ground beef (90% or more) is best for meatballs, since they are finished off cooking in sauce.  If a lesser lean meat is used, the fat would seep into the sauce, making it oily and unappetizing.  The meatballs are first baked in an oven to remove any excess grease.  These meatballs are the typical New York Italian style, about the size of a tennis ball, and while great with a pasta dish, they can also be used for meatball sandwiches (subs, heroes, grinders, or whatever they are called in an area).

Ingredients:

4 lbs. lean ground beef (90% or more)

2 lbs. ground pork (NOT ground breakfast sausage!)
1 ½ cups Italian seasoned dry bread crumbs
1/8 cup Italian seasoning mix
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp. minced garlic
1 cup diced onion
¾ cup milk
2 eggs, beaten

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350F.  Spray jelly roll pans with nonstick spray.

In a large bowl, mix all ingredients together thoroughly; making sure all dry ingredients are mixed well with wet ingredients.  Form the meat mixture into balls, about 2 ¾” (size of a tennis ball); place on jelly roll pans.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bake meatballs for 20 minutes; dab on paper towels to remove any grease and immerse into sauce.  Allow meatballs to cook in sauce until sauce is ready; 4-6 hours depending on cooking technique (crock pot or stove top) being used. 

 

 

 

 

 

Serve with pasta, or use meatballs for a sandwich.

Makes about 20 meatballs.

 

Mary Cokenour

 

 

I Can't Believe it's not Lobster.

Recently I went on a hunt for the elusive "fermented black bean" which is actually not a black bean as you would find in Mexican cuisine, but a soy bean. I say elusive because out here in the Southwest, you'll find Mexican black beans more readily than anything dealing with Asian cuisine. Luckily, I was able to purchase a jar at  Nature's Oasis located in Durango, Colorado, but then found out that they were also available at Moonflower Market in Moab, Utah. These are both what would be classified as "health food stores" with Nature's Oasis being much larger and with more variety. Whichever place I choose to be though, it's good knowing they either have what I need, or can get it ordered in for me.

So what does this have to do with lobster, you might be wondering. One of my favorite Chinese dishes is "Shrimp with Lobster Sauce" which comes with the age old question of, "Why is it called lobster sauce when there's no lobster in it?". The name “Lobster Sauce” is taken from the sauce used in a Cantonese dish containing real lobster, “Lobster Cantonese”. The sauce was used in stir fry dishes for its delicious flavor made savory by the use of ground pork and fermented black beans (soy beans). Hence why I was hunting the fermented black beans and my trek to the health food stores.

Enough about my traveling adventure and lets get to the food adventure. By the way, while white or brown rice is good with this dish, Fried Rice adds so much more in taste.

Shrimp with Lobster Sauce

Ingredients:

½ cup peas
½ cup diced carrots
¼ cup baby corn
¼ cup straw mushrooms
¼ cup sliced water chestnuts
1/8 cup sliced green onions
Water for steaming
1 lb large shrimp, peeled, deveined and butterflied
4 Tbsp stir fry oil, divided in half
1 tsp fermented black bean paste
1 tsp minced garlic
1 cup chicken broth
2 Tbsp Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
1 Tbsp soy sauce
¼ lb ground pork
1 and ½ Tbsp cornstarch
4 Tbsp water
1 tsp sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten

Preparation:

Fill a large saucepan halfway with water and bring to boiling; place colander on top of saucepan, fill with peas, carrots, baby corn, mushrooms, water chestnuts and green onions; steam until carrots begin to soften and remove colander from saucepan.

Stir fry shrimp in Wok or large skillet with 2 tablespoons of oil, on medium-high heat, until they turn pink; about 2 minutes. Remove and drain on paper towels. While shrimp are cooking, prepare the lobster sauce by whisking together the black bean paste, garlic, chicken broth, rice wine or sherry and soy sauce; set aside.

Add remaining oil to Wok or skillet and brown the pork; remove. Add the prepared lobster sauce and bring to a boil; whisk in the cornstarch and water to thicken and then mix in sugar. Begin to slowly stream in the beaten egg which will begin to make “egg flowers”; add in the shrimp, pork and steamed vegetables; mix together and let cook an additional 2 minutes before serving.

Makes 4 servings.

Mary Cokenour
January 18, 2013

Meatballs Revisited and Deconstructed....Part 2.

In Part One I discussed how to tell, for the most part, when you're being served frozen, phony meatballs when you go out to dine. I wonder how many of you took my writing to heart, went to a restaurant, ordered meatballs and tested them? Were you surprised by what you found out; was it a pleasant, satisfying surprise, or a disappointing one?

Now I'm off to Part Two of this saga and the making of a homemade meatball. The best way to get a ground meat product is to have the proper kitchen appliance in your home, and make it yourself. That way you pick and choose what cuts of meat you want in the final product, grind it yourself and know exactly what is in it. For many of us, that is not an option; however, you might be able to accomplish this task at a butcher or even local supermarket. The majority of us though just pick up a package of ground beef and hope for the best, and I am one of the majority. When I buy ground beef, I tend to look for the lowest fat content available, 90% lean or higher. Why? Depending on what I am preparing, the fat leeches out of the meat when cooking; so, if frying, you end up dumping it, or if left in a raw state to be cooked with other ingredients, the final creation comes out dripping in grease. But what about flavor you ask? As with other lean cuts of meat such as bison(buffalo), ostrich and elk, you need to provide the extra boost they need.

Here is a repeat of my basic meatball recipe; if you cannot find Italian seasoned bread crumbs, increase the Italian seasoning mix to a half cup.   Do not use ground breakfast sausage as a substitute for pure ground pork; it has seasonings and preservatives in it that will come out strongly in your completed meatballs.  Use a homemade pasta sauce when cooking your meatballs in sauce. Normally I use canned tomatoes, but when the season is right and I can get fresh by the box load; the taste is so incredibly amazing!

As you read the preparation you'll notice I say to make the meatball at about a 2 and 3/4 inch diameter, but in part one I said they were 3 inches in diameter. As the meatballs cook in the sauce, not only will they become infused with more flavor, but also the the sauce itself. Remember, you're using dried bread crumbs which will grab onto that sauce and give you a slightly expanded meatball that is tender and juicy.

  Homemade Meatballs
Ingredients:

4 lbs lean ground beef (90% or more)
2 lbs ground pork
1 ½ cups Italian seasoned dry bread crumbs
1/8 cup Italian seasoning mix
¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp minced garlic
1 cup diced onion
¾ cup milk
2 eggs, beaten

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray jelly roll pans with nonstick spray.

In a large bowl, mix all ingredients together thoroughly; making sure all dry ingredients are mixed well with wet ingredients. Form the meat mixture into balls, about 2 ¾” (size of a tennis ball); place on jelly roll pans.

Bake meatballs for 20 minutes; dab on paper towels to remove any grease and immerse into sauce.

Allow meatballs to cook in sauce until sauce is ready; 4-6 hours depending on cooking technique being used. Serve with pasta, or use meatballs for a sandwich.

Makes about 20 meatballs.




Making a meatball sandwich, sub, hero, grinder or whatever you call it in your region, is quite easy; one good hint is to make sure and use a roll with a slightly harder exterior.  Those softer rolls have more moisture in them, so will not toast as quickly, giving the sauce more time to make the rolls soggy instead of crispy.

Use slices of mozzarella, provolone or combination of the two cheeses to help keep the roll from splitting apart, and make sure the meatballs and sauce don't try to make a break for it.

 

...and think of it this way, if you go someplace that won't take the time to make a fresh meatball, or a fresh pot of sauce; what else isn't fresh there?

Mary Cokenour

Meatballs Revisited and Deconstructed....Part 1.

Lets set the scene:  Restaurant, anywhere, any type, but it does offer Italian food on the menu.  You see the listing and your mouth begins to water: spaghetti, tortellini, fettuccine alfredo, lasagna, manicotti, meatballs, sausage, chicken parmigiana, garlic bread...oh yeah, you know what you want.  So you order a pasta dish which comes with 3 to 4 meatballs, and what do you get....rubberized golf balls.  Talk about your heart sinking in sheer disappointment.

You're asking now, "how do you know they're phony meatballs?"  First clue, the size is similar to that of a golf ball and they are all perfectly round; no lumps or bumps, no imperfections to see.  Second clue, when you try to slice them open with your simple fork, they resist; no meatball should be so firm as to require a knife.  Third clue, it is perfectly firm inside also and there is an oily sheen that looks unnatural to meat.  Fourth clue, it bounces; I've never tried this out myself, but I wouldn't be surprised if it actually worked.

I'm going to address each clue to help you create your own homemade meatballs, and to be more aware of what you get at a restaurant, especially when the wait staff says, "Oh yes, they're house made", but you cannot inspect the kitchen larder itself.

Clue #1: Real meatballs are typically on the large size; my own usually measure a three inch diameter. The meatballs are shaped by hand, so no two look exactly alike, nor are they perfectly round. When I serve them on top of a serving of pasta, they're the star, they take center stage. No one has to look through the pasta to find them.

Clue #2 and Clue #3: You can use a fork to slice them open, the meat has texture, but doesn't resist; a small amount of pressure can break them apart for distribution throughout the pasta. A single forkful, however, stays together and delightfully crumbles apart in the mouth when chewing. There is no unnatural sheen, just natural juices plus you can see the onion, garlic and herbs.

Clue #4: As much as I have been tempted to demonstrate this in a restaurant, no, I didn't embarrass myself. However, at home, I have dropped many a homemade meatball; the little buggers really can move on a saucy spoon. No bouncing, just a splat and a lot of restless movement as the dogs try to get a taste of the poor little meatball on the floor. Kind of remind's me of a childhood song concerning a meatball dropped from a dish of spaghetti which rolls out a door.  In my home, with my dogs, no such chance of escape for a lowly meatball.

There you have it, the knowledge to know phony meatballs from the real deal.  Next time you order them at a restaurant, you're told they're house made, you'll be able to figure it out and, most especially, call the owner to the carpet if you've been lied to.

This is only Part One of "Meatballs Revisited and Deconstructed"; look for Part Two when I give a recipe and preparation directions.

Mary Cokenour