The Juiciest Italian Meatballs I Have Ever Made !

This episode is part of the Perfect Meatball Series. Other episodes :

My (updated) Italian Meatball Recipe :
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Ingredients (you still need to watch the video to understand the full process)
1 pound ground beef ( 20% fat )
1 tsp salt,
1 egg,
2 slices of white sandwich bread, soaked in whole milk,
1.5 garlic clove,
1/8 cup chopped parsley (flat leaf is possible)
1/8 cup (up to 1/4) grated pecorino cheese (Parmesan works as well, but it is less funky)
1 heaped tbsp of Ricotta cheese
1 heaped tbsp of grated zucchini flesh (white only)
Aim for 2 ounces ~55g raw meatball in weight.
Preheated oven, 425°F or 220°C, then roast them for 16 to 18min. and NO SOAKING.

NYC addresses from this episode :
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Frankies 457 Spuntino
457 Court St, Brooklyn, NY 11231, United States

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The Meatball Shop
200 9th Ave, New York, NY 10011, United States

My other social accounts :

Director, Author, Host & Camera : Alex
Editor : Joshua Mark Sadler

Planning a foodie trip to Paris ? Here are my favorite spots :

Salut,

Alex

[Bitwaba]

I only watched to see how many times Alex could say "juicy balls" without laughing.

[JamieOliver]

Now those are some juicy looking balls! Nice one Alex. x

[thomasmacejko]

Alex: lives in france, few hundred kilometers from italy.
Also Alex: Flying to new york to eat authentic italian cuisine.

[J_Squatch]

6:40
Alex: Fat. Equals...
Me: Flavor
Alex: *P L E A S U R E*
Me: well ok then

[BirchWeber]

I cook in an Italian restaurant where meatballs are one of our essential dishes. There's a massive difference between a meatball that has just finished cooking and one that's been sitting in marinara in the walk-in for a day or two and/or in the warm sauce during service. They are always great, but they definitely transform after a small amount of time submerged in marinara. They are very spongy and light right away, and become more and more dense with time. The benefit to keeping them in the sauce is that your marinara turns into gold and is a fantastic base for many other dishes.
The best tip I know is that when your slicing prosciutto ages too far to slice thinly, incorporate it into your meatball grind for an umami bomb.

[loeffelatom]

Whenever the camera shots and the music intensifies, you know there will be an epic result coming..

[but]

Alex in NYC: loses the accent
Alex in the Airport: The accent is back!

Oh, and please tell me you met Stephen from "Not Another Cooking Show"

[Cyberia]

The best thing about this video was the reveal at the end that the “Italian” meatballs are only the start of the journey. Sweden was the obvious flex. I imagine Chinese lions heads meatballs will be part of the journey, and Spanish albondigas. Does kibbeh count? They are my favourite Lebanese snack. Or will it be köfte instead. Vietnamese meatballs would be great. Maybe Indonesian. German Königsberger Klopse. Some African? Indian kofta (mostly meatless?)

[xlicat]

My mother's recipe for meatballs (I come from the south of Italy, so in other regions could be different)
1 kg of meat ( a mix of beef meat and pork meat, the percentage of beef meat is generally the highest one, more than 70-80% )
2-3 eggs
8 to 10 gr of salt
parsley q.b. (for me every meatballs should have the right amount of it)
150 gr of cheese ( you should use hard cheese, personally we use parmigiano reggiano or rodez )
100 gr of breadcrumbs
1 glass of milk
Meatballs size should be big like a walnut.
You should mix all together. (If it is too dry or too wet, you could add milk or breadcrumds based on consistency)
Then you could fry them or cook with tomatoes sauce (but firstly you should seal them in a pan with a little bit of olive oil).


For other recipes from the south of Italy, I'm here :D

[kerrydeal]

Made these for Christmas dinner with lasagne, after initially complaining when the video was released about the use of zucchini. BUT... so amazing! Will never make my old way again. For those of you trying at home, he really breezes fast through the part where you have to squeeze extra milk out of bread and the water from the zucchini. I added some crushed red pepper because I like a spicy meatball!

[johannk]

My mans is really using meatballs as an excuse to write off two international vacations on his taxes

[ontherailmedia]

The cinematography paired with the music when you do your own version is absolutely beautiful. The close up shots, the wider shots of you mixing, the slow motion drizzle of the olive oil paired with the classical music is just stunning. Pressing the meatball to show the juices come out and licking the plate makes me feel emotional. Great job.

[jamesn]

Ahhhh the most exciting thing I’ve heard in months is you going to make Swedish meatballs! I had hoped so much you’d make some on this series

[chrisadams]

Watching your video has made me want to get back into cooking. I moved far away from home and have been working a lot and lost my wooo as I call it. My vibe, my centre, my peace! But you’ve awaken my inner cook and I thank you. My family thanks you. I will continue to support you and your channel. What your doing is amazing and I love that your taking the time to edit and bring content in a way others don’t. Keep doing your thing. I’m here to soak it in. Thank you.

[andrewrobinson]

I didn't know I needed a globe-trotting Great Meatball Adventure, but here we are and I am so thankful. Cheers!

[EudaemoniusMarkII]

Alex, your smile, your attitude, your videos delight me. Thanks for making great stuff and teaching us!

[FieroFats]

As a guy who likes meatballs, I feel like there wasn't enough comparison of meatballs from different places in the area like you did with other foods.

You went nuts with Croissants, trying them for days.

[MrSaranm]

Me: I hate when recipe pages have ten paragraphs of life story before the actual recipe
Also Me: Hey lets watch this guy literally go to a different country for just meatballs

[fritzstorp]

*Makes meatball*

Lady trying it: wow the cheese on top is good
Alex:👁👄👁 ‘and what about the——‘

[robmarais]

Well done, Alex! Here is another idea: pour a 0.5cm layer of strong beef demiglace into a greased quarter sheet pan, then pop it in the freezer. When the demiglace is completely frozen, turn it out and chop into very small pieces. (If you want, break the sheet into a strong plastic bag and quickly beat the hell out of it, that's loads of fun.) If the pieces start to thaw, pop back into the freezer to refreeze. After you finish mixing your meatballs, and just before you form them, mix in the frozen demiglace pieces - for 2 lbs beef, perhaps 1/2 cup of the frozen demiglace. Cook as usual, and you might be surprised at the extra juiciness.
I got this idea from learning about xiao long bao, the famous soup dumplings from Taiwan. Try it out sometime and see if it helps your meatballs, it does help mine.