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© Copyright 1995-2023, Clay Irving <clay@panix.com>, Manhattan Beach, CA USA
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Recipe from: Pietro Criscuolo of Dongió, located in Milan at Via Corio, 3 (recipe found in GQ magazine, May 2005, and given to me by Phil Paccione)
Servings: about 40 meatballs
The secret to Pietro's meatball recipe lies in his using good meat and dropping the polpette straight into the sauce without frying them first. This produces a tender, almost sweet meatball.
1¾ pounds ground sirloin
2 eggs
6 tablespoons finely ground bread crumbs
6 heaping tablespoons Parmigiano-Reggiano, finely grated
1 to 2 teaspoon salt
pepper, freshly ground
3 pints, or more, tomato sauce—homemade or good quality jarred sauce
4 tablespoons olive oil
Place the meat in a large bowl. Add the eggs, bread crumbs, cheese, salt and pepper to taste. With you hands, knead the mixture until all the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated, about 1 minute—You will probably need to make the polpette a few times to determine the amount of bread crumbs and cheese you prefer in the mixture.
Add the sauce and olive oil to a large pot.
Form the meatballs so each is slightly smaller than a golf ball. Add to the sauce. Place the pot over a medium flame, bring to a simmer, then reduce heat and cook for 15 to 18 minutes. Remove from heat and keep covered or serve immediately. Remark to yourself how easy it all was.
Note:
I've made this recipe several times, and I no longer think about frying meatballs. Meatballs cooked in the sauce are tender, almost "fluffy", and the sauce is enriched with a nice meaty flavor from the meat. It truely is delicious! -clay