Meatball Main Dish – Twiins in the Kitchen®

The Best Keto Meatball Parmigiana - Twiins Style

Servings: Yields 16-18

I have been longing for a Sunday pasta & meatball dinner for a few months. Since I started doing Keto I substitute hearts of palm sheets for lasagna noodles or use zucchini or spaghetti squash. These make a wonderful conversion however, the meatballs are not keto... I've been switching out the breadcrumbs for Pork Panko on several dishes that call for breadcrumbs and to my surprise, the Pork Panko works well. 😋 😋

Ingredients

2 ¼ lbs ground beef 80-85% lean/20-15% fat (or 2¼ lbs of ground beef, veal, and pork mixture)
3/4 cup Pork Panko or crushed pork rinds (packed)
10 garlic cloves, finely chopped or grated
1/2 large onion, finely chopped
1 tsp dried basil
6 large eggs
3-4 large handfuls of grated Pecorino Romano cheese (about 1 cup+ 1 Tablespoon)
1 handful of fresh parsley, chopped (or 2 Tablespoons dried)
salt and pepper to taste
EVOO (for frying)
8 oz whole milk mozzarella

Directions

Place ground meat in a large mixing bowl, and break up with a fork.
Add Pork Panko, onion, garlic, basil, salt, and pepper and combine well.
Make a well in the center of the meat mixture and place all the eggs, Pecorino Romano cheese, and parsley.
With a large fork scramble the eggs, cheese, and parsley in the well, then start to combine into the entire meat mixture. You can do this best with your hands that are scrupulously clean or with gloves…your preference.
Once well combined (don’t over-mix) use an ice cream scoop to get even-sized meatballs,(about a small cupped handful of meat mixture) and roll into a ball then place on parchment or waxed paper. Continue making meatballs until all meat has been formed. An ice cream scoop should yield 16-18 meatballs.
In a large skillet pour enough EVOO to about 3/4 inches in depth. Let the oil get hot, then working in batches, brown all sides (Don’t overload, allow each meatball some breathing room, or they get steamed & not browned).
When meatballs are browned and crisp, remove them to a paper towel-lined bowl or tray. Repeat until all meatballs are cooked.
Cook meatballs in tomato sauce for 20 minutes. (Skip the next step if you are not making it parmigiana style.)
In a casserole dish, lightly coat with tomato sauce then place meatballs in the dish, sprinkle with grated cheese, and slices of mozzarella. Microwave on medium just enough to melt the cheese (about 3-5 minutes depending on your microwave). Serve with a big salad or your favorite keto pasta and enjoy!

Notes: The texture is a little meatier than meatballs made with soaked Italian bread but they are just as delicious. I like using Skinny Pasta (konjac noodles) or Palmini hearts of palm noodles in place of real pasta.

Make a well then add eggs, cheese & parsley then mix well

Forming the meatballs

Place formed meatballs on parchment paper

Frying meatballs

Draining fried meatballs

Cook 20 in tomato sauce and serve!

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The Best Napoletana Meatballs - Twiins Style

Servings: Yields 30-35

One of our best Sunday morning memories is of our mother frying meatballs for our Sunday dinner. There is something to be said for the wonderful aroma of meatballs frying along with the anticipation of the meal to follow, as it was usually shared with grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. It wasn't just a meal...it was an event! Sundays were always special in our home because we would get to spend time with our cousins who we had so much fun with. As soon as Mom started placing the cooked meatballs in the bowl we would sneak into the kitchen to grab them out of the bowl while they were still hot; a tradition that our children and husbands still carry on today! 😋 😋

Ingredients

2½ lbs ground beef 80-85% lean/20-15% fat (or 2½ lbs of ground beef, veal, and pork mixture)
1/3 – 1/2 loaf day-old Italian bread soaked in milk (should yield 8 squeezed-out meatball sized mounds of bread)
10 garlic cloves, finely chopped or grated
1/2 large onion, finely chopped
6 eggs
3 large handfuls grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1 handful fresh parsley, chopped
salt and pepper to taste
EVOO (for frying)

Directions

Place ground meat in a large mixing bowl, break up with a fork and set aside.
In another large bowl, soak bread in enough milk to cover. Let bread absorb milk then squeeze out milk between your hands. (You should have 7-8 handfuls, discard milk)
Place squeezed out bread on top of ground meat.
Add the onion, garlic, salt, and pepper to combine well.
Make a well in the center of the meat mixture and place all the eggs, Pecorino Romano cheese, and the parsley.
With a large fork scramble the eggs, cheese, and parsley in the well, then start to combine into the entire meat mixture. You can do this best with your hands that are scrupulously clean or with gloves…your preference.
Once well combined (don’t over mix) scoop out about 1/2 handful of meat mixture and roll into a ball and place on parchment or waxed paper. Continue making meatballs until all meat has been formed.
In a large skillet pour enough EVOO to about 3/4 inches in depth. Let the oil get hot, then working in batches, brown all sides (Don’t overload, allow each meatball some breathing room).
When meatballs are browned and crisp remove to a paper towel lined bowl or tray. Repeat until all meatballs are cooked.
30 minutes before your tomato sauce is ready, place cooked meatballs in the tomato sauce and continue cooking the sauce.
Serve with your favorite pasta and enjoy!

Notes: These meatballs freeze well and can be used at a later date. They are delicious as a stand-alone meal with or without tomato sauce. Make them smaller and they become a delicious appetizer, add mozzarella & some tomato sauce for meatball parmigiana heroes!😋😋