Tapas – Albondigas (Spanish Meatballs)
These Spanish Meatballs, known locally as Albondigas, are beautifully seasoned and smothered in the tastiest tomato sauce you can ever cook. End result? Meatballs with just enough tomato sauce that you can mop up with fresh, crusty bread, drizzled amply with some great extra virgin olive oil.
Ingredients
For the Meatballs:
- 1-pound ground beef
- ½-pound ground pork (see note)
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup breadcrumbs
- 2 tbsp. milk
- 1-½ tsp. sweet paprika
- 1 tsp. salt
- ½ tsp. pepper
- ¼ cup parsley, chopped
- All-purpose flour, for dusting the meatballs
For the Tomato Sauce:
- 5 tbsp. olive oil, divided
- 1 small Spanish or white onion, finely chopped
- 4 – 5 garlic cloves, chopped
- ½ cup carrott, grated
- 1 28-ounce can whole tomatoes
- 2 tsp. sweet paprika
- 1 cup white wine
- ½ cup chicken stock
- Salt, to taste
- Pepper, to taste
- Crusty bread, your choice, for serving
Instructions
- To a large bowl, add breadcrumbs and milk; stir until well combined and let it stand 5 minutes.
- To the breadcrumb mixture, add ground beef, ground pork, eggs, garlic, salt, pepper, sweet paprika and parsley; knead mixture gently until thoroughly combined.
- Roll into 1-¼-inch meatballs and place them on a baking sheet; cover with cling wrap and refrigerate the meatballs while you prepare the sauce.
- Heat 3 tbsp. olive oil in a sauce pan or dutch oven, over medium high heat.
- Add onion, carrot and garlic; sauté for about 15 minutes, until the onion starts to caramelize.
- In a small bowl, break the canned whole tomatoes into puree and add to the pot.
- Add paprika, salt and pepper and cook till the liquid starts evaporating; about 10 minutes.
- Stir in wine and chicken stock; bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low; simmer for 20 – 30 minutes, stirring occasionally; taste and adjust for salt and pepper.
- While the sauce is simmering, heat 2 tbsp of the olive oil in a large, non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.
- Gently roll each meatball in flour, shaking off any excess, and brown them on all sides, about 5 – 8 minutes; transfer browned meatballs to a plate.
- When the sauce is ready, add browned meatballs and gently stir; simmer 15 more minutes to cook meatballs through.
- Transfer to a cazuela and garnish with chopped parsley.
Notes
Feel free to skip the ground pork and make it with just ground beef ; simply make meatballs out of 1.5-pounds of ground beef.