Mother-in-law’s Baked Meatballs with a modern twist

This meatball recipe adds cooked rice in place of breadcrumbs. The rice and egg are binding agents which help the meatballs to keep their shape.

At the end of the cooking process, add grated cheese to create a super flavour.  The cooked rice and egg are used as binding agents to help the meatballs keep their shape.

When it comes to meatballs, size matters. If you keep the meatballs the same size they will cook at the same rate. You can use a cookie or ice-cream scoop to keep them uniform.

Another tip is to make sure your meat has a bit of fat, as this helps to keep the meatballs tender. If you are using extra lean mince meat, add a dash of olive oil or fat.

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Baked meat balls

5 from 1 vote

Recipe by Irene Muller Course: DinnerCuisine: GlobalDifficulty: Easy

Servings

8

servings

Prep time

15

minutes

Cooking time

45

minutes

Total time

1

hour 

Moist and succulent as meatballs should be.

Ingredients

• 800 g minced meat

• 1 egg

• 1/2 cup cooked rice

• 1 cup finely chopped onions

• 1/2 teaspoon white pepper

• 1 teaspoon ground coriander

• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

• 1/4 teaspoon cloves

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1 teaspoon Ina Paarman’s rosemary & olive spice

• 4 peeled potatoes

• 410 g tin of tomatoes of your choice

• olive oil

• cheese

• butter

Method

• Slice the potatoes very thinly, drizzle with olive oil and salt and set aside.

  • 

• In a bowl, combine all the ingredients.
• Do not overmix! The trick to keeping meatballs tender and juicy is not to overmix when you combine the ingredients. Overmixing makes them tough so only stir just until combined!
• In a prepared oven dish, place the meatballs and add in the tomatoes.
• Arrange the potato slices to your liking and put a dollop of butter on each meatball. Sprinkle with mixed herbs or the rosemary and olive spice.

  • 

• Place in preheated oven for 45 minutes.
• Remove from oven and turn on the grill. Sprinkle grated cheese on each meatball and put under the grill until golden in colour. Let the pan rest for a few minutes and then serve.

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