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Meatballs

A Uruguayan meatball dish with veal, breadcrumbs, Parmesan, raisins, and a wine and stock broth.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 22 ingredients
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Why it works: Raisin and nutmeg are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,377 recipes. Both carry alpha-terpineol, which smells lilac, floral. The science ↓

Meatballs

Timeabout 30 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Make the filling

  1. Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a skillet and sauté the onion until soft.

  2. Add the tomato, pepper, sugar, salt, and pepper to taste.

  3. Cook, stirring from time to time, until the mixture is thick and quite dry. Let the mixture cool.

  4. In a bowl mix together the veal, breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, raisins, nutmeg, and the tomato mixture.

  5. Add the eggs, mixing thoroughly.

  6. If the mixture is too dry to hold together, add a very little milk.

  7. Form into balls, about 2 inches in diameter, and flour them lightly.

Brown and simmer

  1. Heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of oil in the skillet and sauté the meatballs until lightly browned.

  2. As they are done, lift them out and set aside.

  3. Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a saucepan and sauté the onion until very soft.

  4. Add the beef stock, dry red wine, thyme, oregano, and bay leaf, and simmer for a few minutes to blend the flavors.

  5. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

  6. Add the meatballs, cover, and cook over low heat until they are done, about 30 minutes.

  7. If necessary to cover the meatballs, add more stock and wine in equal amounts.

Finish and serve

  1. Serve the meatballs with rice or any starchy vegetable, using the broth as gravy.

  2. If the broth is a little thin or too abundant, lift the meatballs to a serving dish and keep warm.

  3. Reduce the broth over brisk heat until it is slightly thickened.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

1392Calories
67 gProtein
52 gFat
158 gCarbs

Counts 17 of 18 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 17 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Beef100g cooked250
Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Parmesan Cheese1 oz (28g)110
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Grape1/2 cup (76g)62
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Wine2 tbsp cooking wine (30ml)25
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Nutmeg1 tsp ground (2.2g)12
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Oregano1 tsp dried (1.8g)5
Thyme1 tsp dried (1.4g)4
Bay Leaf1 leaf (0.6g)2
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Vealnot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Raisin + nutmegtop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together5,377 recipes

    Shared aroma: alpha-terpineol (lilac, floral).

  2. Pepper + nutmegtop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together13,015 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

  3. Tomato + peppertop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together17,923 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  4. Onion + tomatotop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together20,633 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  5. Tomato + parmesan cheesetop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,490 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Veal
Provides the meaty body and tender texture of the meatballs.
Breadcrumbs
Absorb moisture and keep the meatballs tender rather than dense.
Eggs
Bind the mixture so the meatballs hold their shape while cooking.
Parmesan cheese
Adds savory, salty depth and helps the meatballs brown.
Onion
Adds sweetness and aroma as it softens in the oil.
Beef stock
Forms the savory liquid that becomes the gravy.

The step that matters

Cook the tomato mixture until thick and quite dry. If the filling stays wet, it will not hold together when shaped and the meatballs may fall apart in the pan. Cooling it first keeps the mixture firm enough to form.

Swap the raisin

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (onion, tomato, sugar, pepper, veal, parmesan cheese, nutmeg):

  1. Lemonfits better
  2. Cherryfits better
  3. Limefits better
  4. Raisinthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against onion, tomato, sugar, pepper, veal, parmesan cheese, nutmeg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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