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Five items: Porcupine Meatballs
By Ann | December 7, 2007
Hail to thee, humble meatball, beloved by all! According to The Penguin Companion to Food, “no author has succeeded, or could succeed in treating the subject [of meatballs] comprehensively. There are too many manifestations, around the world…” This is good news for meatball lovers (ahem, Chris Klein), who simply need to learn the following vocabulary words to ensure good eating anywhere:
Spanish – albondiga
Greek – keftedes
Swedish – kotbulle
German - klopse
Danish – frikdeller
Chinese – rou wan’r
And also kofta, which is used from India to Central Asia, the Middle East, Balkans and North Africa.
As much as I love meatballs, I often find them time consuming to prepare. The recipe below is not my favorite, but it is fast and satisying. Actually, these are called Porcupine Meatballs (the rice creates the “spines,” I suppose), and they are good with a little steamed broccoli.
1. 1 1/2 lb ground turkey or beef
2. 3/4 cup uncooked rice
3. 2 egg whites
4. 1/2 onion, finely chopped
5. 1 28 oz can whole tomatoes, crushed
Mix together the meat, rice, egg whites, and onion, adding salt and pepper. Form into large meatballs, about 3 inches in diameter. In a large saucepan heat the crushed tomatoes and 2 cups water until boiling, add the meatballs, bring to a boil, and lower to a simmer. Cover and cook for 1 1/2 hours. Taste the sauce and season before serving.
I sometimes add crushed red pepper to the sauce for an extra kick!
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One Response to “Five items: Porcupine Meatballs”
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December 8th, 2007 at 4:49 pm
Do you have a recipe for a meatball that is not so meat-textured … that is smooth and moist and not so coarse … maybe something with more bread crumbs or some kind of starch or veggies in it? I love meatballs but I don’t love the hard, tough, meaty ones.