Homemade Meatballs

Today I went Italian and experimented with homemade meatballs! They were delish, to my surprise. I was half-expecting that raw beefy taste when you eat a chunk of meat but with the plethora of spices, my palate had no complaints. To save time and money, I decided not to home-make everything and instead relied heavily on the wonderful arrabiata sauce and seasoning by TJ's. Carb-free and hands-free, here's the end result.

Italian meatballs

1. 1 lb of ground beef, 80% lean/20% fat

2. 1 egg

3. Black & white pepper

4. Soy sauce, 2 tbsp

5. Sugar, 2 tbsp

6. Salt, 2 tbsp

7. 21 seasoning salute: black pepper, celery seed, cayenne pepper, parsley, basil, marjoram, bay leaf, oregano, thyme, savory, rosemary, cumin, mustard, coriander, garlic, carrot, orange peel, tomato, lemon juice and lemon oil

8. Arrabiata sauce: tomatoes, onions, roasted red peppers

9. Chicken stock, small amount

*The seasoning salute can be substituted for basic thyme, oregano, parsley

Directions

1. In a bowel, mix the meat with the seasoning, egg, soysauce, and 1 tbsp of arrabiata sauce together. I added the seasoning one-half at a time and mixed in-between. The consistency should turn soft and silky.

2. With 2 spoons, I made meatballs by transferring them from one spoon to the other. 

3. In your cookware of choice, heat olive oil to medium. Add some garlic and plop the balls onto the surface. 

4. Add a little bit of chicken stock (1/4 cup?) and some arrabiata sauce.

5. Cover with lid and let it simmer for 3-5 min. 

What I love about the arrabiata sauce is how flavorful and balanced the taste is. The roasted red peppers add a different dimension to the typical tomato marina sauce. Not too sweet, a tickle of spicy, it tastes fantastic. I simply spooned the sauce over the pasta and meatballs and in 5 minutes, Chado scarfed everything down.