"There are no strict rules for meatballs, as my 15 years of professional cooking experience at various magazine test kitchens and cooking for food photography shoots have showed me. Meatballs, in essence, are just meat, seasonings and a binder. They can be mixed delicately or vigorously, made from a meat substitute, flavored with a variety of ingredients (herbs, spices, cheeses) and cooked any number of ways. But while there's no single formula, there are a few principles for ingredients and techniques that,"
"I was taught that a classic Italian American meatball should be a delicate one. So my recipe is a mix of fattier ground pork and beef, lightened with Pecorino Romano and ricotta, which adds milkiness without milk. If that sounds pretty rich, that's the point: Fat creates tenderness. Look for a ground beef that's has a high ratio of fat: 80 percent lean to 20 percent fat is good, but if you can find 70 percent meat to 30 percent fat, you should get it."
Meatballs consist of meat, seasonings and a binder, with wide variation in meats, flavorings and cooking methods. Fat content and binders like ricotta and Pecorino Romano influence texture and tenderness; higher fat ratios (80/20 or 70/30) create softer meatballs. Gentle mixing preserves tenderness for classic Italian American-style meatballs, while other styles tolerate more vigorous handling. Three distinct recipes demonstrate different ingredient combinations and techniques that each teach practical lessons about balance, handling and cooking. Attention to meat selection, binder choice, seasoning and mixing technique leads to consistently tender, flavorful meatballs suitable for weeknight meals.
Read at cooking.nytimes.com
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