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Mammas Gigantic Meatballs

A mouthwatering family treat using all that is best in italian-americano food. Make this with love and you'll get love in return.

By bbcgoodfood · From Open Recipes · 17 ingredients
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Why it works: Oregano and basil match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,390 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓

Mammas Gigantic Meatballs

Serves 6

Ingredients

Directions

Step-by-step directions aren't available for this recipe. See the full recipe at the source →

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

1044Calories
81 gProtein
44 gFat
73 gCarbs

Counts 15 of 17 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 15 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Beef100g cooked250
Pork100g cooked242
Pasta1 cup cooked (140g)220
Parmesan Cheese1 oz (28g)110
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Plum1 medium (66g)30
Wine2 tbsp cooking wine (30ml)25
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Clove1 tsp ground (2g)7
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Oregano1 tsp dried (1.8g)5
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Basil5 leaves fresh (2.5g)1
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Meatballnot in our table0
Saucenot 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.

By bbcgoodfood. Recipe from Open Recipes.

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. Oregano + basiltop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,390 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  2. Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together29,058 recipes

    Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

  3. Oregano + garlictop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,756 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  4. Basil + garlictop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,805 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  5. Basil + peppertop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together5,294 recipes

    Shared aroma: methyl cinnamate (strawberry).

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

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, oregano, basil, garlic, pepper, egg, white wine):

  1. Tomatofits better
  2. Capsicumfits better
  3. Eggplantfits better
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against beef, oregano, basil, garlic, pepper, egg, white wine. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.