Meatballs with Soy-Mirin Glaze

My kids aren't the best eaters.

Well, let me clarify. The Big One is happy to try most things and has a broader palette (which mostly doesn't include vegetables), but the Little One has a diet whose entries you could count on one hand.

Wedged between the hot dogs and the chicken fingers are little meatballs that my wife get's from a local deli. He wants nothing to do with my Real Italian Meatballs, which is a point of contention and the reason I'll be taking him out of my will unless he changes his ways, but I figured I could at least try to replicate the golf-ball-sized spheres of beef he drools over whenever my wife returns from town. I tried once without much success, then a co-worker gave me a recipe, which I've based these on.

I'm pretty sure those deli meatballs use some kinds of canned beef gravy and I'm absolutely sure these are much better. As it turns out, the Little One thinks so, too.

Ingredients

• 1/3 lb Ground Veal
• 1/3 lb Ground Pork
• 1 1/3 lb Ground Beef
• 1 Egg
• 1/2 Cup Parmesan Cheese
• 1/3 Cup Bread Crumbs
• 1 Shallot, minced
• 2 Cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 Tsp Kosher Salt
• 1 Tsp Fresh Ground Black Pepper
• 1/2 Cup Soy Sauce
• 1/2 Cup Mirin
• 1/4 Cup Sugar

Combine the veal, pork, beef, egg, cheese, bread crumbs, shallot, garlic, salt, and pepper in a large mixing bowl. Cover and let stand for about an hour.

Pre-heat your oven to 375 degrees. Form the meatballs to be about the size of a golf ball. Place them on a baking sheet (or two), leaving space between them, and bake for 20 minutes.

While they're baking, make the glaze. Combine the Soy, Mirin, and Sugar in a sauce pot. Whisk over high heat until it just comes to a boil, then reduce heat a simmer for 5 minutes more. Remove from heat.

After the meatballs have cooked for 20 minutes, transfer them to a 13x9 baking pan. Pour the soy mixture over the meatballs, and turn them all to coat.

Raise the heat of the oven to 400 degrees and return the meatballs, now in the glaze mixture, to the over for another 10 minutes.

Remove from oven and serve hot.

Comments

Hey, those meatballs look just yummy :)