Thursday, December 1, 2011

Meatballs, pressure cooker style

Ok, It's December in Austin, Texas.  Notwithstanding what the weather may or may not do regarding the coldness, I am going to winter weather cook.  

Today, I'm making meatballs, these are my simple, everyday, cook balls of meat until they are yummy, meatballs.  I cook them in a pressure cooker.  I used to cook them in a dutch oven.  I think they are more tender in the pressure cooker but they are absolutely delicious either way.

These are weird meatballs, but it's how I do them and I've never had any complaints. 

In a food processor (!) combine: 

1 cup fresh breadcrumbs
1/2 cup milk
1 small onion
2 cloves garlic

Process until it's a paste, leave it to sit a few minutes so the bread absorbs everything.  The mixture is like pablum.  Worry not, it'll work out! 

In a large bowl put 

1 1/2 lbs ground chuck
1 tsp each of salt and pepper
1 tsp dry basil
1 tsp oregano
the ground bread, onion mixture
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
1 egg

Mix well with your hands and add up to 1/2 cup fresh breadcrumbs to help it come together in a moist but cohesive ball.  Form them into little balls, I use the 1 inch portion scoop but you can use any measure you want depending on how big you want them.  I portion half on a sheet of tinfoil and pop them straight into the freezer and when they're frozen, throw them into bags so I can grab as many or few as I may need for another  meal.  Just fry them up, from frozen, and throw them in any sauce or soup or just cook them through and make a killer sandwich.  

But I'm sorry, I digress, fry your little balls until they are beautiful, not to cook them just to brown them quickly.

Pour 1 can of whole tomatoes, chopped up and 1 can of stock or water in the pressure cooker.  A sprinkle of sugar and 1/2 tsp of vinegar really brightens up the flavor.  You can omit these and just throw in a jar of tomato sauce, Hunts works best here for the retro flavor.  Either way, throw in a bay leaf.

As you fry the balls, drain them and pop them into the cold sauce in the pressure cooker.  Pour off all the fat from the pan and deglaze with a splash of red wine and a half a can of water.  Add the liquid to the pot. 

Cook on high pressure for 7 minutes, allow to release naturally.  Eat.  Save.  Freeze.  Refrigerate.  Serve with pasta.  Serve with potatoes.  Make a sandwich on crunchy homemade bread.  Do whatever meatbally thing you'd like.  They are tender, meaty and delicious. 

ALTERNATIVELY, if you don't 'do' pressure cookers; use a covered dutch oven and bake for 45 minutes at 375.

   

   

Mmmmm, meatballs goodness
 

go make some meatballs in the pressure cooker, you'll be delighted.

/enjoy

15 comments:

  1. How does ths not have any comments yet??
    They look AWESOME!!
    And I'm off to make me some in a very short while!! Cheers :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. How does this not have any comments yet?
    They look AWESOME!!!
    I'm off to make me some in a very short while
    Cheers :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hi, how is it that these have no comments yet??
    They look AWESOME!! :)
    I'm off to make me some for dinner very shortly :D
    Cheers

    ReplyDelete
  4. Just tried these tonight. Wow - they are really yummy!! I have been wanting to try cooking meatballs in my pressure cooker for a long time and this was my first attempt. I like how the pressure cooker cooked them all the way through but left them soft. I can't imagine going back to my old way of doing meatballs in the oven. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!!

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  5. I'm thrilled! I know, I can't make them any other way now. I'm putting a different meatball, also pressure cooked, recipe up in the next day or so, more meatloaf type with brown sauce. Watch for it!! :)

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    Replies
    1. I will definitely try that one as well. Thanks again for posting your recipes. Can't wait for leftovers tonight!!

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  6. Can you use pasta sauce in the pressure cooker? I like ragu but afraid to try it.

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    Replies
    1. YES, you can use any sauce you like in the pressure cooker :)
      I think you should try to make one of my breads, then reheat the meatballs in the sauce of your choice (go thicker because there's NO evaporation) in the pressure cooker and have gigantic meeatball subs for dinner!!!

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  7. Tracy, for 29 years I have failed horribly at making meatballs like my Italian grandma's until YOUR recipe! We fed 24 people last night and nobody could stop eating them. They were finally tender, had great flavor and the sauce turned out scrumptious! Thank you so much!! All my children will be able to make meatballs like their great grandma's now!

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  8. Thank you for a pressure cooker meatball that doesn't go in the sauce raw! I don't like the idea that all the grease that I usually pour off from my baked meatballs would be sitting right there in the sauce. These sound good I can't wait to try them.

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  9. Thank you for a pressure cooker meatball that doesn't go in the sauce raw! I don't like the idea that all the grease that I usually pour off from my baked meatballs would be sitting right there in the sauce. These sound good I can't wait to try them.

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  10. First time I have ever made meatballs from scratch, they were delicious! I will be keeping this recipe around.

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