Albóndigas de frailes - Friar's Meatballs, a Pinedo recipe

I had two bone-in, large porkchops that needed to be cooked, and this Pinedo recipe looked very inviting.  I've had success with her meatball recipes before, so I felt confident that I could tackle this one.  I didn't make a large quantity, but I can see how this recipe would extend to do that.

Her Recipe

My Translation

My Redaction

1 pound pork, weighed after bones and gristle are removed
4 ounces onion
1 clove garlic
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme and some more
1/2 Tablespoon fresh mint and some more
1/2 Tablespoon fresh Italian oregano and some more
1 Tablespoon fresh parsley and some more
3/4 cup dried breadcrumbs
2 eggs
2 Tablespoons butter, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 cup flour

Fresh herbs!

Note that the herbs measurements are approximate, just to give a target for your cooking.

Start heating a large saucepan with water that is at least three inches deep.

Coarsely chop the onion, garlic, and herbs.

Grind the pork, onions, garlic, and herbs once through a meat grinder.  Then mix in the breadcrumbs and grind the whole mix again.

Add one beaten egg and mix well.  Melt one tablespoon of butter and mix it well into the meat mixture.

Form meatballs about two inches in diameter.  If the mixture is not sticking together well, consider adding more breadcrumbs if too wet or more liquid (an egg or butter or water) if too dry.

Put the meatballs, however many that can fit comfortably in the pan without being crowded, into the boiling water.  You will probably have to cook them in several batches.  Turn the heat down to a gentle simmer.  Gently stir them a few times while cooking.  After 10 to 12 minutes, remove the first batch with a slotted spoon; place in serving bowl.  Cook the next batch.  Keep cooking until all the meatballs are done.

While the meatballs are cooking, put flour, one egg yolk, and 1/2 cup cold water into a bowl and stir well.  If the bowl has a lid, shake it, too, to mix it.  

Once the meatballs are done, take 1 cup of broth that the meatballs were cooked in and put it in a small saucepan.  Bring it to a boil.  Turn the heat down to medium, then, while whisking the broth briskly, start pouring in the water/flour/yolk mixture.  Keep the broth moving!  

The broth mixture should simmer now.  Add 1 tablespoon butter and a tablespoon or so of finely chopped herbs (a mixture).  Simmer for a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until the broth thickens.  Add salt to taste.  

To serve, pour some of the thickened broth over the top of the meatballs.  Put the rest of the broth into a pitcher and place on the table.

The first grind with the breadcrumbs sprinkled on top.

Breadcrumbs mixed in.  Ready for the second grind.

Second grind with butter and egg mixed in.

Meatballs achieved!

A gentle simmer, so they don't break apart.

About that much mixed, chopped herbs for the sauce.

Simmering the sauce to get it thick.  

Cooked meatballs.

Meatballs with sauce.

My Notes

I have a grinding attachment for my mixer, so this is convenient for me.  I suppose you could start with ground pork, finely chop the onions and garlic by hand or using a food processor, then mix in the rest.  The point is to have the meat so fine that everything sticks together well after being mixed.

The eleven meatballs I got were cooked in two batches (of five and of six).  I wasn't sure how long to cook them, especially because they first sank then rose to the surface after about four minutes.  But I checked their interior temperature with an instant read thermometer, and they were still pretty cold.  So I kept simmering them until the interior temp was about 160 degrees F, which took 10 to 12 minutes.  I think it would be hard to overcook them.

The amount of water I used to cook the meatballs was a lot, and I realized that I didn't want that much sauce for the meatballs and that the flavor would probably be weak if I used it all.  So I decided to use one cup of the broth.  That still made about 1 1/2 cups of sauce, which was a lot.  

My goal for the sauce was to make it thick and have an herbal taste.  Pinedo did not call for salt but I felt it needed it, so I mixed in 1/2 teaspoon and that was just right.

The Verdict

We wanted a light dinner so our meatballs and sauce went into our bowls along with some whipped sweet potatoes mixed with cardamom, mace, and a splash of cream.  And wine!  Don't forget the wine!

I was pleased to see that the meatballs were fully cooked into the middle.  They also stayed firm enough to hold their shape, even when being removed from the serving bowl into our eating bowls.

The amount of sauce on them for serving looked nice, but my guest taster and I both wanted more sauce while we were eating the meatballs.  We poured in small amounts from the pitcher of sauce as we ate.

The meatballs themselves were very tender, almost delicate.  They had a soft pork flavor enhanced by the herbs, onion, and garlic.  No one flavor was dominant.  I thought I could taste the herbs more than anything else and my guest taster thought the onion was stronger than the rest.  

The sauce was thick enough to stick to the meatballs (hooray!).  It had a stronger herbal flavor than the meatballs, which I wanted because I thought it should emphasize the herbal aspect of the meatballs.  Fortunately, it wasn't too strong.  I thought the balance was just right.

So, success!  Whew!  We had four meatballs each, so there were some leftover as well as sauce.  I think they would make a good evening snack when a full dinner wasn't wanted.