Big A$$ Meatballs: Giant Smoked Meatballs
These jumbo sized meatballs are inspired by Tony Gemignani's Meatball Gigante at Tony's Pizza Napoletana in San Francisco. This version is topped with creamy truffle burrata and Mike's Hot Honey, for a little kick. For best results make them on your grill or smoker.
Equipment
- Oven or Smoker
Ingredients
- ⅓ Cup Cubed Stuffing
- ¼ teaspoon Garlic Powder
- ¼ teaspoon Onion Powder
- ½ teaspoon Sweet Paprika
- 1 Tablespoon Fresh Garlic or Garlic Squeeze finely chopped
- 2 Tablespoon Water
- 3 Tablespoon Mike's Hot Honey
- ¼ Cup Grated Parmesan
- 2 teaspoon Flat Leaf Parsley chopped
- ½ Cup Whole Milk Ricotta
- 1 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper
- ¼ teaspoon Fine Sea Salt
- 1 Slice White Bread crust removed
- ¼ Cup Heavy Cream
- 1.5 Pounds Ground Beef
- 0.5 Pound Ground Veal
- 1 Pound Italian Sweet Sausage
- 1 Pound Italian Spicy Sausage
- 1 Egg beaten
Instructions
- In a food processor add the ⅓ cup cubed stuffing, with the ¼ tea each of garlic powder, onion powder, and fine sea salt. Pulse until fine. Remove to a bowl and set aside.
- Roughly tear the piece of white bread and place into the food processor, then add the heavy cream and ricotta. Pulse until the lumps are removed and it is silky smooth.
- In a large bowl add the cayenne and sweet paprika with about 2 tablespoons of water and stir to combine. Mixing the seasoning with a liquid first helps it mix into the meat more evenly.
- Add the beef, veal and sausages into the bowl with the spice water and mix well. Continue to mix until the meat is all well combined and smooth. Next, mix in the Parmesan cheese, parsley, and garlic squeeze, followed by the breadcrumbs, and continue to mix. For best results, squeeze the mixture through your hands until all of the elements are thoroughly incorporated.
- In a separate small bowl, beat the egg with the honey, then add to the beef mixture and mix to combine. Make sure all of the egg is incorporated into the meat.
- Form into 6 roughly 12 ounce meatballs. Try not to compress the meatballs too much or they will end up too dense, but make certain they stay together.
- Place the formed meatballs on a greased cookie sheet. Preheat your oven, grill, or smoker to 400 degrees and then bake the meatballs for about 15 minutes. Rotate the pan and cook for another 15 minutes or until the internal temp of the meatballs is 150 degrees (carry over temp will bring it to 160).
- At this point you can refrigerate for later use or place into an 8x8 cooking dish or individual ramekins. If cooking from hot, top the meatballs with your favorite marinara sauce and bake for about 5 minutes then top with sliced burrata and bake for another 1-2 minutes.
- If baking refrigerated meatballs, cover with sauce and bake at 400 degreees for about 15-20 minutes, until warmed through, then top with the burrata and bake 2 more minutes.
- Top the finished meatballs with a little sea salt, julienne basil and another little drizzle of honey.
Nutrition
Calories: 1033kcalCarbohydrates: 16gProtein: 54gFat: 82gSaturated Fat: 32gPolyunsaturated Fat: 8gMonounsaturated Fat: 35gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 281mgSodium: 1479mgPotassium: 894mgFiber: 1gSugar: 9gVitamin A: 571IUVitamin C: 4mgCalcium: 174mgIron: 5mg
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