Hand-Mixed Polpette
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“Polpette”, Italian for meatballs. My version calls on the holy trinity of meats veal, pork, beef, and sausage for extra deliciousness. The secret to a great meatball is a balance of meats, parmigiano & pecorino cheeses, and bread soaked in milk to lighten up the texture. No breadcrumbs! This is a Palladino family favorite!
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground pork
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound ground veal
- 1 pound mild Italian sausage
- 1 onion, minced
- 2 tablespoons garlic, minced
- 4 cups, stale bread, diced
- 1 cup milk
- 1 egg
- ½ cup Parmigiano, grated
- ½ cup Pecorino, grated
- ½ cup Italian parsley, chopped
Method
- Sweat onions and garlic in olive oil without color, and cool.
- Place stale bread in 250f oven for 30 min. Completely cool
- Spread plastic wrap in several shingled layers on work counter.
- Place cool bread pieces into a bowl and pour milk over, coating thoroughly all over bread. Let stand 10 minutes.
- Completely squeeze milk out of bread.
- Place all ground meats, cooled onions & garlic, soaked and drained bread, cheeses, parsley, salt and freshly ground pepper on the plastic wrap lined counter.
- Wearing gloves, start to combine mixture like you are rolling bread dough, forward and back, and folding onto itself until well combined.
- Make a tester piece, and cook in a frying pan. Taste for seasoning and cheese. If you prefer more, add it.
- Form into balls and cook in a pan, or roast in an oven.
**If making with tomato sauce, pan fry or roast polpette, cover with sauce and cook 30 minutes. Serve with favorite pasta shape**
