Tapas Spanish Meatballs Albondigas Recipes

ALBONDIGAS

Steps:

• Start by making the meatballs. In a large bowl combine the minced beef and pork with the sweated onions, cumin, paprika, parsley, egg yolk, bread dough, salt and pepper. Mix well and shape into meatballs the size of a golf ball. Rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
• To make the sauce, place a medium-sized pan on a low heat, add 4 tablespoons of the oil, chopped onions, garlic and bay leaf and cook until soft for about 10 minutes. Add the red wine, bring to the boil and reduce by half. Add the chopped tomatoes and cook on a low heat for 30 minutes. Add a pinch of sugar to balance the acidity of the tomatoes and season with salt and keep warm.
• Pre-heat your oven grill. Rub 1 tablespoon of olive oil on all the pepper halves and place under the grill until the skins are completely black all round, remove from the grill and cover with some aluminium foil and rest for 10 minutes. After this time, peel all the peppers and cut into long strips.
• Heat some oil in a large frying pan and fry the meatballs until nicely brown on all sides. Add the meatballs to the sauce and cook on a low heat without boiling for 2 minutes on each side. Add the strips of roasted peppers and serve in small dishes with grated manchego cheese melted under the grill.

TAPAS SPANISH MEATBALLS (ALBONDIGAS)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 300°F
• Slice about three 1/2-inch slices off your bread loaf. Tear these slices into small pieces. Spread pieces out onto a sheet pan and bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes until completely dry. Move the bread pieces around midway through to ensure even cooking.
• Remove bread from the oven and let cool for a few minutes. Use a food processor to break down the pieces until you get a fine consistency.
• Raise oven temperature to 400°F. Chop the roma tomatoes into large chunks and peel the garlic. Place the tomatoes and garlic into a roasting pan.
• Drizzle the tomatoes and garlic with the olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast in oven for 30 minutes.
• Remove roasting pan from oven and add the veggie stock to it. Scrape off all the nice caramelized bits. Transfer contents to a medium saucepan. Add in the bay leaf and oregano and bring to a boil.
• Lower temperature and simmer for 25 minutes. Remove the bay leaf from the saucepan. Use a stick blender to puree into tomato sauce.
• In a mixing bowl combine all the meatball ingredients except the olive oil. Thoroughly combine with your hands but do not overmix.
• Portion into 1oz meatballs.
• Heat the 1 tbsp olive oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add in the meatballs and brown on all sides. (Do not overcrowd the pan, do this in two batches if necessary)
• Remove meatballs from pan and set aside. Going back to the sauce ingredients list, add in the diced yellow onion and saute until translucent. Add in the 2 tsp tomato paste and mix into the onions. Saute for about a minute. Lower heat to medium-low.
• Carefully add your tomato sauce into the skillet. Mix to combine. Add in the red pepper flakes, chile powder, and smoked paprika. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Transfer the meatballs back into the sauce along with any juices that have come out. Bring sauce to a simmer and place a lid on the skillet. Cook for about 5-7 minutes or until cooked through.
• Serve with the rest of the country loaf and enjoy!

ALBONDIGAS (SPANISH MEATBALLS)

Steps:

• Mix the mince with the egg and half the onion. Season with 1 stock cube and black pepper.
• Roll the mixture with your hands into ping pong sized balls and fry in oil until almost cooked (the meatballs can still be slightly pink in middle as they are going to simmer in the sauce). Drain all but 1tbsp oil in the pan, retaining the bit's of meat that are left in the bottom of the pan. Add the rest of the onions and some garlic and fry for a further 2 minutes - they should turn a beatiful meaty colour.
• Add the 2 tins of chopped tomatoes and a good sprinkling of mixed herbs (I used Herbs de Provence). Add in the red wine and crumble in the final stock cube, then season again if required.
• Simmer for 20 minutes so that the sauce thickens - longer if it requires it.
• Serving Suggestion - This can be served on it's own as part of a tapas meal, or you could serve these with spaghetti or some Spanish rice.