When I was a young girl, my good friend was Italian. She often invited me to come with her to her grandmother’s house on Sunday. There were always large homemade meatballs, pork chops, sausage, etc.. There was always joking and laughter as her aunts, uncles, and cousins gathered together. They treated me like family, and I’ll never forget their warm smiles.
When I asked my friend’s lovely Grandma how she prepared her wonderful meatballs, she listed the ingredients as a handful of this and a handful of that.
Ready to make traditional meatballs? Let’s go.
We start with ground beef. (I always recommend grass-fed beef when available.) Combine your beef with a beaten egg and a handful of Parmigiano cheese. In this case a handful equals a tablespoon. (I use aged Parmigiano Reggiano). Next add some parsley, about a teaspoon, and some fresh garlic.
Next, mix in a handful of your favorite breadcrumbs. Since my family is gluten-free, I use Shar’s bread crumbs, (In this case a handful is equal to a quarter of a cup). Season with salt and you’re ready to roll your meatballs. Not too tight, now. You want to lightly roll them between your hands to form a ball that feels like it will hold together, but lightly so they will absorb the sauce that you will simmer them in after you fry them in oil. I use extra-virgin olive oil for frying over a medium flame being careful that the oil doesn’t smoke.
Finally simmer your meatballs in homemade sauce.
You’re going to love these traditional meatballs. É squisito!
P.S. If you make this recipe, share your snap on Instagram and tag #glutenfreehomestead. I always love seeing your photos.
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- 2 pounds ground beef
- 1 egg
- a handful of parmesan cheese (about 1 tablespoon)
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- some parsley (about 1 teaspoon)
- a handful of gluten free Shar’s bread crumbs(about ¼ cup)
- some salt
- oil for frying
- Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.
- Roll into meatballs.
- Fry meatballs in oil and brown them well on all sides over medium-low heat, turning carefully about 10 minutes.
- Then simmer meatballs in 1½-2 quarts of gluten free sauce.
- Serve and enjoy.
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Debra Jason says
I don’t maintain a gluten free diet, but know who many who do.
This recipe sounds like it would be delish.
Thanks.
~Debra
Barbara says
Thanks! These meatballs are tasty and best of all, everyone can enjoy them.
Annemarie says
I have been going more and more gluten over the years. Thanks for sharing this!
Barbara says
Your welcome, Annemarie. I hope you enjoy this recipe.
Dana (@DragynAlly) says
I love that this recipe is gluten free and not vegan. Sometime people have a tough time separating the 2.
Barbara says
Thanks for stopping by, Dana. I hope you’ll enjoy this recipe.
Bonnie Gean says
What is the purpose behind going gluten free? I see many websites touting gluten free, but few fail to explain why it’s so important. These meatballs look yummy… how different do they taste from meatballs that aren’t gluten-free?
Thanks!
Barbara says
Excellent question, Bonnie.
According to the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness, “Celiac disease is an autoimmune digestive disease that damages the villi of the small intestine and interferes with absorption of nutrients from food. What does this mean? Essentially the body is attacking itself every time a person with celiac consumes gluten.” You will find more information about symptoms and related diseases at http://www.celiaccentral.org/Celiac-Disease/21/
My husband and 2 of my sons have non-celiac gluten sensitivity. My daughter and youngest son are allergic to wheat. This is why we are gluten free.
Gluten is mostly found in cereal & grains, especially wheat. Some substitutes don’t taste too good, but more and more the food industry has been making better tasting gluten free foods because a lot of folks are finding that they feel better without gluten. Actually, we have found these meatballs don’t taste any different than those made with bread crumbs containing wheat.