Drop Meatballs
We wanted a streamlined route to tender, richly flavorful meatballs. The answer? Cooking them right in the sauce. These meatballs are inspired by the ones we tried at Villa di Roma in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; read about our visit here. Most meatball recipes call for roasting or pan-frying meatballs before simmering them in a hearty Italian red sauce. But we were on a quest for an easier, weeknight-friendly meatball, so we wanted to skip the browning step. Since we hadn’t seared a crust onto the meatballs, we had to rethink our usual method. Simmering the meatballs in the tomato sauce in the ambient heat of the oven cooked them evenly without requiring stirring all while infusing the sauce with great flavor. Using saltines in place of fresh bread got rid of some of the moisture, making the meatballs less gummy.
Nutrition Information
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 22 square saltine
- 1 cup milk
- 2 pounds 85 percent lean ground beef
- 2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated (1 cup)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
Sauce
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 10 garlic clove, peeled and smashed
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
- Salt and pepper
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
Instructions
- 1Note: You can use a #16 portion scoop to form the meatballs. To make shaping easier, wet your hands slightly. The recipe yields enough sauce for 2 pounds of pasta. To serve, toss the pasta with some sauce and top it with the meatballs. It's unnecessary to temp the meatballs because they will reach a food-safe temperature if cooked according to the recipe instructions. (For more information on food safety, check out this guide.)
- 2FOR THE MEATBALLS: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Place saltines in large zipper-lock bag, seal bag, and crush saltines fine with rolling pin (you should have 1 cup). Combine saltines and milk in large bowl and let sit for 5 minutes for saltines to soften. Mash with fork until smooth paste forms.
- 3Add beef, Parmesan, garlic powder, oregano, salt, and pepper to saltine mixture and mix with your hands until thoroughly combined. Divide meat mixture into 24 scant ¼-cup portions. Roll portions between your wet hands to form balls. Transfer to plate, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate until ready to use. (Meatballs can be refrigerated for up to 24 hours.)
- 4FOR THE SAUCE: Combine oil and garlic in large Dutch oven. Cook over low heat until garlic is soft and golden on all sides, 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in tomatoes and 1 teaspoon salt. Nestle meatballs into sauce. Bring to simmer over medium-high heat.
- 5Cover and bake until meatballs are cooked through and tender, about 40 minutes. Let cool, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Gently stir in basil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve.
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