Spaghetti and Meatballs
These meatballs can be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated for several hours ahead of time. Fry the meatballs and make the sauce at the last minute.
Cost: $15
Equipment
- 10 or 11 inch sauté pan
- Medium small ice cream scoop
- Large pot
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 2 slices good-quality white sandwich bread, crusts removed and slices torn or cut into small pieces
- ½ cup cup buttermilk or 6 tablespoons plain yogurt thinned with 2 tablespoons whole milk
- 1 pound ground meat, preferably ¾ pound ground chuck and ¼ pound ground pork
- ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese the stuff in the green bottle works just fine
- 2 tbsp minced fresh parsley leaves
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 small garlic clove, minced fine or pressed through a garlic press
- ¾ tsp salt
- Ground black pepper
- 1 - 1½ cups vegetable oil for pan frying
Smooth Tomato Sauce
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small garlic clove, minced fine or pressed through a garlic press
- 1 28 - oz can crushed tomatoes
- 1 tbsp minced fresh basil leaves In a pinch, the basil in a tube works fine, but fresh is definitely better.
- Salt and ground black pepper
- 1 lb spaghetti noodles
- freshly grated Parmesan cheese for serving
Instructions
Meatballs
- Combine the bread and buttermilk in a small bowl. Let sit for 10 minutes, mashing occasionally with a fork, until a smooth paste forms.
- Place the ground meat, cheese, parsley, egg yolk, garlic, salt, and pepper to taste in a medium bowl. Add the bread-milk mixture and combine until evenly mixed.
- Shape 3 tablespoons of the mixture into a 1 ½-inch round meatball, or use the ice cream scoop to form the balls. (When forming meatballs, use a light touch. if you compact the meatballs too much, they can become dense and hard.). This should get you about 14 meatballs.
- Pour the vegetable oil into a 10 or 11 inch sate pan to a depth of ¼ inch. Turn the heat to medium-high. After several minutes, test the oil with the edge of a meatball. When the oil sizzles, add the meatballs in a single layer.
- Fry, turning several times, until nicely browned on all sides, about 10 minutes. Regulate the heat as needed to keep the oil sizzling but not smoking. Transfer the browned meatballs to a plate lined with paper towels and set aside.
- Meanwhile, bring 4 quarts water to a rolling boil in a large pot.
Tomato sauce
- Discard the oil in the pan, but leave behind any browned bits. Add the olive oil and garlic and sauté, scraping up the browned bits, just until the garlic is golden, about 30 seconds. Add the tomatoes, bring to a simmer, and cook until the sauce thickens, about 10 minutes.
- Stir in the basil and salt and pepper to taste. Add the meatballs and simmer, turning them occasionally, until heated through, about 5 minutes. Keep warm over low heat.
- Add 1 tbsp salt and the pasta to the boiling water and stir to separate the noodles. Cook until al denote, drain (do not rinse!), and return to the pot. Ladle several large spoonfuls of the sauce (without meatballs) over the spaghetti and toss until the noodles are well coated. Divide the pasta among individual bowls and top each with a little more tomato sauce and 2 or 3 meatballs. Serve immediately, passing the cheese separately.