The beloved meatball employs the same strategy as the maligned chicken nugget does: If it's small and roundish, the kids will come. Better yet, its basic formula—dump all (or most) of your ingredients into one bowl, shape, brown, and serve—doesn't require fancy footwork in the kitchen. Here, we start with an iconic recipe for Swedish meatballs, then move onto a chicken-barbecue version, a rice-and-shrimp riff, and finally a mildly spicy lamb meatball as our "reach." Once you grasp the fundamentals, you can swap in any combination of protein, starch, and spices you wish. And if you don't have meatball tongs, little hands make a remarkably good substitute.
The Safe Tweak
Swedish Meatballs
Serves 6 | 30 minutes total time
This classic goes best with a tart berry sauce.
- 1 pound ground beef
- 3/4 cup bread crumbs, soaked in 1/2 cup milk
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 small onion, grated and drained
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 1 1/2 tablespoons flour (any kind)
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1/2 cup sour cream
- Lingonberry or cranberry sauce (optional)
- Combine the first 8 ingredients. Form the mixture into 1-inch balls.
- Place 3/4 of the butter in a skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the meatballs for about 10 minutes.
- Remove them and most of the fat. Stir the flour and the remaining butter into the pan.
- Add the broth. Simmer until it thickens, about 2 minutes.
- Strain it with a sieve to remove clumps. Return it to the pan.
- Reduce heat to low; stir in the sour cream.
- Return the meatballs to the pan for 1 minute. Serve with the berry sauce.
Next Page: Barbecue Chicken Meatballs
