Best meatball recipe | Easy pasta ideas | Jamie Oliver (2024)

FAQs

What do you eat with meatballs pasta? ›

Baking will result in meatballs with a crunchy exterior, though the caramelisation achieved from frying will be superior. Baked meatballs take the least amount of effort, as you'll only need to turn them once or twice throughout the cook and you can make a larger batch at once.

Polpette Al Forno

"Al forno" simply means "baked in an oven," and it's the most customary way you'll find meatballs and pasta in the same dish together in Italy. While spaghetti and meatballs may not be so common, a casserole-style dish of pasta and meatballs certainly is - think baked ziti!

Although meatballs cooked in tomato sauce and served with pasta is likely what most Americans first imagine when they think of them, this meatball preparation is virtually nonexistent in Italy. In most regions, meatballs are just fried and eaten as is—enjoyed as a snack or served as a second course without any sauce.

After all of the Italian meatballs I've been making lately, I consider myself a meatball expert. A good rule of thumb is to bake meatballs for 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees fahrenheit.

You can brown the uncooked meatballs in a sauté pan before adding them to the sauce. You can brown them in the oven. Or you can skip browning altogether and put the raw meatballs straight into the sauce to cook.

Orecchiette: Known as small ears, orecchiette pasta derives from Puglia. They are often served with oil-based sauces and especially popular with broccoli rabe and sausage. Spaghetti: The most famous long pasta shape, spaghetti mixes wonderfully with a variety of sauces. It's the classic shape to serve with meatballs.

There are four classic Roman pasta dishes: cacio e pepe, carbonara, amatriciana, and alla gricia.

Egg is used as a binding agent, and some type of bread crumb or cracker is added to give meatballs a bit more depth. When it comes to adding liquid to meatball mixtures, milk is often used for its versatility, depth of flavor, and richness. Without the use of milk, you may be faced with a plate of dry meatballs.

Do you beat eggs before adding to meatballs? ›

Vincenzo's Top Tips To Make Italian Meatballs

You can whisk the egg separately before adding it to the bowl too if you prefer! The are the best utensil in the kitchen is none other than… Your HANDS! It can definitely massage and combine ingredients really well!

But too much bread crumbs make them too loose, and not enough bread crumbs won't help them hold together either. Similar issues can be caused by eggs: Too many eggs, and the meatballs will be too soggy.

The traditional spaghetti and meatballs dinner is a creation of the American household and has no actual roots in Italian culture. Italy does have their own version of meatballs, but they're very different from what we know here. Known as polpettes, they're very rarely eaten alongside pasta.