@@EGOCOGITOSUM have you watched any other of his videos? he made Italian meatballs. He thinks outside the box that's why the choices were odd to your normal ass
@@drdurchblick6871 In a lot of countries, a lot of farming/butcher related safety regulations are laxed in favor of more stringent food safety regulations, and undercooked pork can be fatal.
@@rich1051414 Not in France, though. Undercooked pork risk is primarily from the possibility of catching a parasite (trichinellosis), but farmed pork is under a very strict veterinary control in France and such infections are extremely rare. A much higher risk is from eating wild boar or imported horse meat, for example. It is a bit ironic that Alex is concerned about eating undercooked pork (not that it is a good idea!) but he wasn't concerned about salmonella from raw eggs when preparing his own mayonnaise in one of his older videos. Where that is almost guaranteed to cause problems (yeah I did get it like that!).
@@oniadrian Raw eggs are ABSOLUTELY NOT sterile. Salmonella can get inside the egg before the shell is even formed. The only way to be 100% safe with eggs is to cook them or use pasteurized ones.
Maybe when you coat the meat Balls with glacing, dip them in sesameseeds After the glacing. And I Do the same as you. Watching cooking Videos to get inspired is just marvelous. Taste a Mettbrötchen from Germany my friend the next time you travel here.
It's funny how scared the French are of raw pork, considering many more of them are getting ill each year from steak tatare (beef) than we are getting from Mett.
Man I always love just how deep you can dive into a seemingly simple dish Alex. I really love how your knowledge, passion, quirky sense of humour and superior editing skills come together to form extremely entertaining and informative videos. Seeing your genuine enjoyment in your videos is really the most satisfying thing for me. Never stop having fun man.
Hey Alex, i dont remember in which youtube video i have seen it, but I clearly remember in some video the chef talked about using frozen/gelatinous Stock in small cubes mixed inside the meat to improve juicyness.. since you are the master of stocks and are looking for a jucier meatball.. maybe something to consider? All the best from Germany ✌🏻
I do exactly the same thing. Watch a bunch of videos cooking the same dish and then come up with my own recipe taking the best bits (according to me) from the ones I like. It works most of the time. Most helpful are those videos which explain why they're putting in an ingredient - what it does to a dish so you do not unbalance your recipe with ingredients that are all trying to achieve the same aim. Alex is excellent at explaining the 'why' and not just the 'how'. You learn loads watching his videos.
I love the way you trying to find "the best recipe" of meatballs! It's just the best way to learn, to cook better and eat better every day. It's a french guy cooker philosophy and mine too.
Alex, I'm loving the focus you've added to your videos. The past month or so of episodes has been nothing but meatballs and as an audience we've learned so much about them just by watching you. The only other series that I can see has had this focus has been the ramen series, which is also another great series. Thanks from everyone.
this is so meta for me im doing exactly the same thing researching meatball recipe and gotta say alex not only gives u the recipe he also gives the how and the why of each part amazing video alex keep it up
I wonder if you can share some good cooking books, thank you for everything Alex!! You are the first that inspired me to become a home cook. Always grateful.
@@albertozaffonato1325 Get a copy of The Flavor Bible. Its not a recipe book. 90% of it is a big cross reference chart. You look up Lemons for example, and they give you everything that goes good with lemons. The best ones highlighted. Even certain cooking tips for some ingredients.
About spices, one thing I noticed when cooking is that cinnamon balances and mellows cloves. Combining spices is like sound mixing, adjusting the equalizer and adding bands.
Alex, would you ever consider trying beyond meat or impossible within a meatball? Do you think it would change a lot? Would you need a new recipe specifically for a meat alternative?
I tried making a standard meatball with beyond meat and it simply doesn’t translate that well, so I think you’ll need a new recipe for it. The main problem was it lacked bounciness that meatballs have which I think can be sold by adding tapioca flour...
We made the meatballs with Zucchini, Cumin, Cinnamon and sauted onions. They were amazing. We couldnt help it but pan fry them initially and finish them off in the oven. Pickled cucumber, the mashed potatoes with insane amounts of butter and berries and gravy from the frying pan included. Such a feast. Thank you for all the inspiration. I am looking forward to what you come up with as the final recipe.
My favorite part of this video is when you told off those Bon Appetit guys and called their recipe a "false good idea". Thank you for that, I have been wanting to say that about some of their videos for a long time.
Watching Alex’s first meatball video made me want to make meatballs that evening. This video seems to mirror exactly the rabbit hole I went down when researching how exactly I wanted to make them.
You can use: A : Takoyaki pan / Cake pop maker B : Fill the meat mixture in sausage filling but you need to twist in multiple meatball links tightly and cook C: My mother (she's Maltese) used to add some shredded hard cheese and sourbread crumbs to the meat mix to hold up the meatball firm, She mostly does that on meatballs, corned beef broth.
Alex: If you don't wanna eat raw pork, I can't blame you for that. Me: O_O *just finishing my Mettbrötchen for breakfast (minced raw pork on bread roll)*
I'm French and I do like some raw meat from time to time. Steak tartare is basically raw minced beef or horse meat with a raw yolk and seasonings. Though it is not really healthy
Hey Alex. If you want make your meatballs without milk, consider trying beer instead. It's a fairly common substitute in Swedish meatballs. I make mine with lots of beer, a touch of cream, some fond and a little bit of syrup. The sugar is surprising flavour enhancer that should not be underestimated.
I think this is probably the best "reacts" video on the internet, only because you're trying to really get something out of every video you watch, even if it's something to avoid.
If you want to achieve the maillard reaction easier, you can replace some of the salt with baking soda as that will decrease the temperature needed for the maillard reaction (by decreasing the PH) thus accelerating browning
an Italian grandma showed me how to make meatballs. grind meat(any combination of beef, pork, veal, rabbit, whatever). mix seasoning and dried bread crumbs into meat. hand roll into balls smaller than a golf ball, roll them as tight as possible. fry in oil (reserve oil and pan for sauce). when the balls are well browned, they are hard and tough. lightly simmer in sauce for 3-4 hours while making the rest of the meal. pasta, sauce, balls and cheese in a bowl. enjoy.
The breadcrumbs tenderize the meat because it prevents the formation of large meat structures when cooked. The crumbs don't bind together in the same way as the meat.
You could achieve a rare center by sous vide-ing the meatball first to 130 (assuming using only beef) and then doing the browning afterwards to finish! You'll still have liquid leftover to make the gravy and fond from browning.
When I prepare German style meatballs which aren’t balls, I sear them briefly and finish the cooking in a slightly hot Dutch oven. This way they will cook completely without getting boiled. They are juicy inside but lose the crisp. Yet when I scrape the burnt remainders on top they get some crisp back. I always struggle to restrain myself to a reasonable amount. Possibly you want to give this a shot as well
As you are already on the meatball topic. In Poland we have something that we call pigeons its basically meatballs wrap in cabbage in tomato sauce. I recommend trying ^-^
Where I work we follow Niklas Ekstedt recepie but some times we let the bread crumbs soak in beer instead of cream, use your favorite beer. Some resturants mix in a little egg yolk, I'm so sad I missed you in Stockholm, at my favorite resturant as well ;( ofc visiting one of my two favorite chefs.
Adding pasta in the giant meatball video made me think on Porcupine Meatballs, basically like normal ones but with rice added as a filler. My German Grandmother would make them and wrap them in cabbage or stuff the mixture in peppers.
If you use the sous-vide to pasteurise your meatball mixture at a low temp for a long time (I read on Serious Eats that you can kill bacteria at a much lower temp if you can reliably hold it for a few hours) then you could sear the outside at high heat and you might be able to achieve both tasty maillard flavours and a juicy, pink centre.
"This is not a good idea, unless this is a weeknight and you don't care about anything." Bold of you to assume I care about anything even on a weekend.
A traditional german food is completely raw ground pork ("Mett") on a breadroll with raw onions, some salt&pepper as well as sometimes cornichons, in fact it's practically the german equivalent to the jambon-beurre. It's quite safe if you use good quality meat and eat it fresh. Bacteria only become a problem when ground pork gets older than a day.
1 heaped spoon (your silver one) of honey, half lemon squeezed and strained. disolve honey in tepid water as not to destroy nutrients. mix in lemon add water and ice.
As far as im aware if your using preground meat is when you need to worry about undercooking, if grinding your own i feel like i was told it was safe because it came from a bigger "whole" piece with less surface area.
Hey Alex, If you wan't that Maillard reaction awesomeness, the jist of it is, proteins, fats and simplified sugars. Paired with correct cooking temperatures (140-170 degrees celsius). Perhaps try adding a little bit (teaspoon or a few) of fructose or another simplified sugar to your cooking. With the added sugar the reactions really start going and you can get an awesome browning even in relatively low temperatures. And it really does enhance the flavor.
Hey Alex There is that pan that Japanese people use for cooking octopus with some batter I forgot what its called but I think its great way to cook your meatballs with that nice browning.
Alex, try using 1/3 lamb in with 2/3 beef. You'll be surprised by the increase in flavour and the depth. This combo also goes great in things like chili and bolognese.
In Italy we only use mixed meat, garlic, parsley and breadcrumbs, salt and pepper and that's it this is the base, you can add also sausage meat if you like
Rare meatballs - I agree with this, a pink center is the way to go (as a continuation of your meatball technique would be: Shape perfectly round meatball with roomtemperatured meatmixtured into deepfryer, deepfry until set, let it rest for a few minutes -> fry in a pan with butter). This will give a nice pink center and a lot of moisture retained in the ball. And - the thing you said about bacteria being incorporated in the mix - well sure, what is on the outside of the meat will end up in the mixture and thus should not be stored (as any minced meat) for a longer duration of time before consumption. And regarding the pork in the meatballs and eating raw pork, with Swedish pork (basically unknown to the bigger part of our population) is that the basic "danger" of eating raw pork is trichinosis caused by the worm Trichinella spiralis, but all pork in Sweden is tested for this before being sold, thus, it's as safe as any raw meat being sold. I've always had the thought of using spherification technique as to make perfect quenelles de brochet (as with regular quenelles de brochet - make mixture but add one of the spherification ingredients to it and after poach it in water with the second ingredient, hopefully this would create a perfect surface on the quenelle, havent tried it though, maybe it could be used for meatballs aswell?)
11:30 Late to the show: Raw groundbeef or pork isnt much of an issue if it's fresh. Have you ever heard about German "Mettbrötchen"? It's basically flavoured ground pork on half a bread roll with onions, salt and pepper - it tastes amazing ^^
Hey Alex, I know you like to have a perfectly round meatball. But you also want that wonderful browning and crust on the outside. Have you considered trying to use a Takoyaki pan? It's a heavy iron pan with the half-circle cooking area that should allow you to keep the shape you want while giving it that wonderful crust.
Chicken fried meatballs like chicken fried steak , with milk gravy and mashed potatoes and sauerkraut or sweet red cabbage . After your done frying the meatballs you use some of the oil and make a brown gravy with more flour and what came off the meatballs for the breading
When i make meatballs, i use an icing bag and roll with one hand. Very efficient and you keep one hand clean. learned this by a Swedish chef making thousands every Christmas.
Alex, one thing I agree with is to not overcook. When I am doing the meatballs it is just frying them to golden brown on high heat which leaves them a bit raw in the center. Then I put them into the thermos pot and hold about half an hour. When done- they will not be raw but juicy and tender yet with the flavor from Americanization. Also, I found mixture of pork and beef the best. Almost 50% + 50% or when doing beef I just add smoked beef ribs meat- the cheapest one but should add a bit fat. It is about 20-30% smoked pork and rest beef. About the breadcrumbs - I am lazy, just use my bread slices, leave them into to sit in the milk for 15- 25 minutes and then break them apart with my hand. And instead of pepper I use a bit of chilly.
What about adding different cuts of beefs? For example adding some filet or hanger for smoothness and tenderness with some tritip or picanha for flavour and a little chew.
Hey alex, in Poland we make Meatballs without milk or eggs or whatever. My mom makes them by soaking an old bun? Bread roll? However you say it in english, in water. Yes she soaks it in water and i must say it is sufficient for binding.
, if you take every sanitation effort you can and you are the one grinding up your cuts of meat then having it incredibly rare in the middle as long as it's cooked to the appropriate temperature should be fine Adding pork fat while grinding up your meat would add the sumptuousness of pork without the actual pork itself and a little bit more fat will make for a juicier meatball
i think that the epicurius scientific wasn't refering to "meat tenderizer" with the term "tenderizer" it indeeds makes the meatballs more tender, it's specially notable if you overcook the food (in spain is quite common) so it makes the final product more tender, instead of tenderizing the ingredients
I am surprised that u have never mentioned the "boulets liegeois" a belgian recipe that u should study. You don't live di far from Liege. Give it a try and try It with the the delicious "sauce lapin".
I had a thought about how to keep them round and get a delicious browning all the way around the meatball! You might have to freeze them first to avoid overcooking, but try deep frying your meatballs. Actually, now that I think about it, you might have to freeze them to deep fry them... still, I think it’s worth trying.
![[MV] A leap of faith...ความเชื่อใจครั้งสุดท้าย (From "Petrichor the series")](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/U1piZH2CNXA/mqdefault.jpg)
‘French Chef reacts’... more like ‘French Culinary Engineer reacts’... 👀
@@josephr7529 Every chef is a scientist, but the best chefs are artists
He should team up with Heston Blumenthal for a new 'chemistry in the kitchen' series...
If only there was a word for someone that engineers culinary goods
"Culinary Engineer" is my new favorite job title
"French Chef reacts to bassically every youtube channel I watch on a daily basis"
If all “reaction” videos were like this one, the internet would be a better place. Well done, as always and forever, Alex. Thank you 😊
agreed!
@@EGOCOGITOSUM have you watched any other of his videos? he made Italian meatballs. He thinks outside the box that's why the choices were odd to your normal ass
@@EGOCOGITOSUM t'es un rageux gros
After seeing Alex' reaction to the idea of raw pork, I want to see him to travel to Germany and eat Mettbrötchen.
Yeah, Alex is a bit overcautious with food safety... was the same thing with his dough mixer project that he abandonend.
@@drdurchblick6871 In a lot of countries, a lot of farming/butcher related safety regulations are laxed in favor of more stringent food safety regulations, and undercooked pork can be fatal.
@@rich1051414 Not in France, though. Undercooked pork risk is primarily from the possibility of catching a parasite (trichinellosis), but farmed pork is under a very strict veterinary control in France and such infections are extremely rare. A much higher risk is from eating wild boar or imported horse meat, for example.
It is a bit ironic that Alex is concerned about eating undercooked pork (not that it is a good idea!) but he wasn't concerned about salmonella from raw eggs when preparing his own mayonnaise in one of his older videos. Where that is almost guaranteed to cause problems (yeah I did get it like that!).
@@JanCiger Raw eggs are sterile. There's no risk of salmonella, maybe on the shell but the inside is clean.
@@oniadrian Raw eggs are ABSOLUTELY NOT sterile. Salmonella can get inside the egg before the shell is even formed. The only way to be 100% safe with eggs is to cook them or use pasteurized ones.
no Chef John? well, after all, you are the boss of your sauce ...
He is the Steven Seagal
of the meatball.
He is the apollo creed of his meat indeed.
He is the Cher of his meaty sphere.
0/10 no cayenne.
Ghostfather I was really hoping he would watch a chef John video
2:22 "I'm going to let these guys experience their own death" LOL
Wow, I have watched at least half of those videos myself at some point in my life!
This is like the ultimate crossover, I didn't know I needed!
😄😄
Alex: holds out pinky while drinking tea like a boss.
Also Alex: drinks tea out of a jar.
as a poor man from indiana, i second drinking out of jars.
Maybe when you coat the meat Balls with glacing, dip them in sesameseeds After the glacing. And I Do the same as you. Watching cooking Videos to get inspired is just marvelous.
Taste a Mettbrötchen from Germany my friend the next time you travel here.
DemTacs nichts geht über ein leckeres Mettbrötchen🍻
YES THIS this right here You sir are a genius
@@KhanggiTanka Thank you. You're awesome too. 😊
It's funny how scared the French are of raw pork, considering many more of them are getting ill each year from steak tatare (beef) than we are getting from Mett.
Alter ...
Ein Mettbrötchen ist echt keine Delikatesse ...
The cooking world on TH-cam is much harsher than I thought....
Man I always love just how deep you can dive into a seemingly simple dish Alex. I really love how your knowledge, passion, quirky sense of humour and superior editing skills come together to form extremely entertaining and informative videos. Seeing your genuine enjoyment in your videos is really the most satisfying thing for me. Never stop having fun man.
Alex: “Using sausages for meatballs is not a good idea”
*Italians adding salsiccia to a meat ragu like there's no tomorrow have entered the chat*
sinner they are
Salciccia is like cheese, it makes everything better
Hey Alex, i dont remember in which youtube video i have seen it, but I clearly remember in some video the chef talked about using frozen/gelatinous Stock in small cubes mixed inside the meat to improve juicyness.. since you are the master of stocks and are looking for a jucier meatball.. maybe something to consider? All the best from Germany ✌🏻
Just found it! Its from serious eats :)
shokugeki no soma kind of stuff
Like soup dumplings!
Liquid does not improve juiciness! It's fats!
@@rivendoto YES
Hi Alex! i'm Roberto, and i'm really happy to see your videos, keep going like this man...as an italian i'm really proud of you❤️
This video is exactly what I do any time I try a new food except I run out of time at the end and order Chinese.
Alternative title: Frenchman recreates Kermit drinking tea meme for 13 minutes straight.
The reaction on Collin Keys video was spot on haha
this collin key guy is so disgusting..
its a seizure trying to sell merch to 6 year olds using fever dream imagery
@@nicokuhne3255. What a description! Haha, love it!
That video was bizarre. It was as if Alex had accidentally tuned in to the television on a satirical near-future dystopian science-fiction movie.
I do exactly the same thing. Watch a bunch of videos cooking the same dish and then come up with my own recipe taking the best bits (according to me) from the ones I like. It works most of the time. Most helpful are those videos which explain why they're putting in an ingredient - what it does to a dish so you do not unbalance your recipe with ingredients that are all trying to achieve the same aim. Alex is excellent at explaining the 'why' and not just the 'how'. You learn loads watching his videos.
I love the way you trying to find "the best recipe" of meatballs! It's just the best way to learn, to cook better and eat better every day. It's a french guy cooker philosophy and mine too.
Alex,
I'm loving the focus you've added to your videos. The past month or so of episodes has been nothing but meatballs and as an audience we've learned so much about them just by watching you. The only other series that I can see has had this focus has been the ramen series, which is also another great series.
Thanks from everyone.
this is so meta for me im doing exactly the same thing researching meatball recipe and gotta say alex not only gives u the recipe he also gives the how and the why of each part amazing video alex keep it up
The biggest thing I learned from these videos is that super popular youtube videos mostly are absurd content made by lunatics!
You damn right
I wonder if you can share some good cooking books, thank you for everything Alex!! You are the first that inspired me to become a home cook. Always grateful.
he has a book
@@yooooothisisinsanebroiloveyou8 me too but I need moaaaaaar
@@albertozaffonato1325 Get a copy of The Flavor Bible. Its not a recipe book. 90% of it is a big cross reference chart. You look up Lemons for example, and they give you everything that goes good with lemons. The best ones highlighted. Even certain cooking tips for some ingredients.
@@misterturkturkle thank you!
@@albertozaffonato1325 Welcome. I love mine and i know a lot of YT chefs that swear by it.
For a bit of freshness try adding spearmint to the mix, we add it in traditional Greek meatballs
Oh I need to try that! 🤤
Epicurious: * doesn't get Alex as a guest *
Alex: Fine, I'll do it myself.
2:55 "its like an adult movie" i genuinely died, absolutely love Alex, an absolute legend!
5:56 Alex throwing shade on meatballs made from sausages:) love it
suprisingly this still works as content for me, I was happy to see you watch some channels I know and appreciate
I have to tell you Alex. I’ve been watching your channel for a long time and I really like these new series videos you’ve been doing.
About spices, one thing I noticed when cooking is that cinnamon balances and mellows cloves. Combining spices is like sound mixing, adjusting the equalizer and adding bands.
Alex, would you ever consider trying beyond meat or impossible within a meatball? Do you think it would change a lot? Would you need a new recipe specifically for a meat alternative?
He makes real food
@@novakane8722 yo dude, I'm trying to be nice in 2020 so all I will say is, ignorance is bliss
Sebastian Rodriguez it was a joke, albeit a bad one
I tried making a standard meatball with beyond meat and it simply doesn’t translate that well, so I think you’ll need a new recipe for it.
The main problem was it lacked bounciness that meatballs have which I think can be sold by adding tapioca flour...
I'd personally just go for falafels than impossible meatballs or the like. Why try for a likely mediocre imitation when you can have something great?
The World would be a better place if there were more people like you. Thank You Alex❤
We made the meatballs with Zucchini, Cumin, Cinnamon and sauted onions. They were amazing. We couldnt help it but pan fry them initially and finish them off in the oven. Pickled cucumber, the mashed potatoes with insane amounts of butter and berries and gravy from the frying pan included. Such a feast. Thank you for all the inspiration. I am looking forward to what you come up with as the final recipe.
My favorite part of this video is when you told off those Bon Appetit guys and called their recipe a "false good idea". Thank you for that, I have been wanting to say that about some of their videos for a long time.
Watching Alex’s first meatball video made me want to make meatballs that evening. This video seems to mirror exactly the rabbit hole I went down when researching how exactly I wanted to make them.
Alex: "It's not adorable. *sip*"
I laughed so hard here XD
Jamie's a surfer dude xD
I always get excited when I see a new video from you Alex. Loving this series!!
As always, editing like a well orchestrated firework. 😄👍🏼
Love all your videos, dear man of France that cooks, but this I upvoted for the "In terms of fashion, tho, he is a surfer, basically"!
some of my favourite variant to meat balls is with rice cooked throughout as a filler, it absorbs the flavour well
You can use:
A : Takoyaki pan / Cake pop maker
B : Fill the meat mixture in sausage filling but you need to twist in multiple meatball links tightly and cook
C: My mother (she's Maltese) used to add some shredded hard cheese and sourbread crumbs to the meat mix to hold up the meatball firm, She mostly does that on meatballs, corned beef broth.
Thank you for your hard work ❤️
With all appreciation and respect i guess you can't call yourself a chef that simply
Alex: If you don't wanna eat raw pork, I can't blame you for that.
Me: O_O *just finishing my Mettbrötchen for breakfast (minced raw pork on bread roll)*
Feels like the whole world is scared of raw meat while we germans just dig in xD
I'm French and I do like some raw meat from time to time. Steak tartare is basically raw minced beef or horse meat with a raw yolk and seasonings.
Though it is not really healthy
Hey Alex. If you want make your meatballs without milk, consider trying beer instead. It's a fairly common substitute in Swedish meatballs. I make mine with lots of beer, a touch of cream, some fond and a little bit of syrup. The sugar is surprising flavour enhancer that should not be underestimated.
I think this is probably the best "reacts" video on the internet, only because you're trying to really get something out of every video you watch, even if it's something to avoid.
I love that you are using a "stylo" rather than a normal boring pen .... thought I was the last of our kind doing that :))))
I love that you use a Kaweco Sport. Fountain Pen Peeps represent!
And I want to know more about his notebook. It appears custom, maybe Tomoe River? Or is it something that he's put his own cover over?
Glad I'm not the only person that recognized that.
TWSBI Eco!
@@ChrisDePrisco I love my several Ecos. But I admit my Lamy 2000 may be my favorite.
What nib do you guys think he is using?
Using some aged beef, 20% fat, panko & beer mixture, dipping in a demiglace based cream sauce. Deep fry it in tallow.
Alex, you should try using a takoyaki pan to keep the meatballs round.
This is the best commentary on food videos ive ever seen
This man is an engineer, I am an engineer. We need to nerd it.
Advertises Skillshare, learns everything on TH-cam
If you want to achieve the maillard reaction easier, you can replace some of the salt with baking soda as that will decrease the temperature needed for the maillard reaction (by decreasing the PH) thus accelerating browning
an Italian grandma showed me how to make meatballs. grind meat(any combination of beef, pork, veal, rabbit, whatever). mix seasoning and dried bread crumbs into meat. hand roll into balls smaller than a golf ball, roll them as tight as possible. fry in oil (reserve oil and pan for sauce). when the balls are well browned, they are hard and tough. lightly simmer in sauce for 3-4 hours while making the rest of the meal. pasta, sauce, balls and cheese in a bowl. enjoy.
The spaghetti inside the meatball reminds me of how Korean dumplings use small pieces of dangmyeon (sweet potato starch noodles) inside the filling
The breadcrumbs tenderize the meat because it prevents the formation of large meat structures when cooked. The crumbs don't bind together in the same way as the meat.
An very intresting creative research process, thanks for sharing it. I'll definetly implement it 👌
You could achieve a rare center by sous vide-ing the meatball first to 130 (assuming using only beef) and then doing the browning afterwards to finish! You'll still have liquid leftover to make the gravy and fond from browning.
Alex .... you are officially obsessed with meatballs !!!
But he was overly focused on the balls. Now he needs to put his efforts to the meat.
His own words.
I nearly choked on my drink from this.
Who isn’t?
When I prepare German style meatballs which aren’t balls, I sear them briefly and finish the cooking in a slightly hot Dutch oven. This way they will cook completely without getting boiled. They are juicy inside but lose the crisp. Yet when I scrape the burnt remainders on top they get some crisp back. I always struggle to restrain myself to a reasonable amount. Possibly you want to give this a shot as well
As you are already on the meatball topic. In Poland we have something that we call pigeons its basically meatballs wrap in cabbage in tomato sauce. I recommend trying ^-^
Watching anybody but Alex cook in his videos just makes me want to wash my hands for some reason 😂
Where I work we follow Niklas Ekstedt recepie but some times we let the bread crumbs soak in beer instead of cream, use your favorite beer. Some resturants mix in a little egg yolk, I'm so sad I missed you in Stockholm, at my favorite resturant as well ;( ofc visiting one of my two favorite chefs.
Adding pasta in the giant meatball video made me think on Porcupine Meatballs, basically like normal ones but with rice added as a filler.
My German Grandmother would make them and wrap them in cabbage or stuff the mixture in peppers.
If you use the sous-vide to pasteurise your meatball mixture at a low temp for a long time (I read on Serious Eats that you can kill bacteria at a much lower temp if you can reliably hold it for a few hours) then you could sear the outside at high heat and you might be able to achieve both tasty maillard flavours and a juicy, pink centre.
"This is not a good idea, unless this is a weeknight and you don't care about anything." Bold of you to assume I care about anything even on a weekend.
A traditional german food is completely raw ground pork ("Mett") on a breadroll with raw onions, some salt&pepper as well as sometimes cornichons, in fact it's practically the german equivalent to the jambon-beurre. It's quite safe if you use good quality meat and eat it fresh. Bacteria only become a problem when ground pork gets older than a day.
1 heaped spoon (your silver one) of honey, half lemon squeezed and strained.
disolve honey in tepid water as not to destroy nutrients.
mix in lemon
add water and ice.
As far as im aware if your using preground meat is when you need to worry about undercooking, if grinding your own i feel like i was told it was safe because it came from a bigger "whole" piece with less surface area.
Hey Alex, If you wan't that Maillard reaction awesomeness, the jist of it is, proteins, fats and simplified sugars. Paired with correct cooking temperatures (140-170 degrees celsius). Perhaps try adding a little bit (teaspoon or a few) of fructose or another simplified sugar to your cooking. With the added sugar the reactions really start going and you can get an awesome browning even in relatively low temperatures. And it really does enhance the flavor.
Hey Alex
There is that pan that Japanese people use for cooking octopus with some batter I forgot what its called but I think its great way to cook your meatballs with that nice browning.
Takoyaki
Alex, try using 1/3 lamb in with 2/3 beef. You'll be surprised by the increase in flavour and the depth. This combo also goes great in things like chili and bolognese.
In Italy we only use mixed meat, garlic, parsley and breadcrumbs, salt and pepper and that's it this is the base, you can add also sausage meat if you like
oh and eggs obviously
Rare meatballs - I agree with this, a pink center is the way to go (as a continuation of your meatball technique would be: Shape perfectly round meatball with roomtemperatured meatmixtured into deepfryer, deepfry until set, let it rest for a few minutes -> fry in a pan with butter). This will give a nice pink center and a lot of moisture retained in the ball.
And - the thing you said about bacteria being incorporated in the mix - well sure, what is on the outside of the meat will end up in the mixture and thus should not be stored (as any minced meat) for a longer duration of time before consumption.
And regarding the pork in the meatballs and eating raw pork, with Swedish pork (basically unknown to the bigger part of our population) is that the basic "danger" of eating raw pork is trichinosis caused by the worm Trichinella spiralis, but all pork in Sweden is tested for this before being sold, thus, it's as safe as any raw meat being sold.
I've always had the thought of using spherification technique as to make perfect quenelles de brochet (as with regular quenelles de brochet - make mixture but add one of the spherification ingredients to it and after poach it in water with the second ingredient, hopefully this would create a perfect surface on the quenelle, havent tried it though, maybe it could be used for meatballs aswell?)
11:30 Late to the show: Raw groundbeef or pork isnt much of an issue if it's fresh. Have you ever heard about German "Mettbrötchen"? It's basically flavoured ground pork on half a bread roll with onions, salt and pepper - it tastes amazing ^^
Hey Alex, I know you like to have a perfectly round meatball. But you also want that wonderful browning and crust on the outside. Have you considered trying to use a Takoyaki pan? It's a heavy iron pan with the half-circle cooking area that should allow you to keep the shape you want while giving it that wonderful crust.
What no reaction to the amazing chef Kay's Cooking? Her meatballs and spaghetti bolognese are legendary
ahaha loved the kermit meme act. great as always. Alex we need a spreaditlikebutter meme
You missed the Serious Eats One! It's the one that goes deepest into the science reasons for recipe choice!
Chicken fried meatballs like chicken fried steak , with milk gravy and mashed potatoes and sauerkraut or sweet red cabbage . After your done frying the meatballs you use some of the oil and make a brown gravy with more flour and what came off the meatballs for the breading
When i make meatballs, i use an icing bag and roll with one hand. Very efficient and you keep one hand clean. learned this by a Swedish chef making thousands every Christmas.
You should do a video sharing your book/cookbook collection!
You best believe I’m going to try your ultimate meatball recipe. Your thumbnail picture is precious by the way.
Alex, one thing I agree with is to not overcook. When I am doing the meatballs it is just frying them to golden brown on high heat which leaves them a bit raw in the center. Then I put them into the thermos pot and hold about half an hour. When done- they will not be raw but juicy and tender yet with the flavor from Americanization. Also, I found mixture of pork and beef the best. Almost 50% + 50% or when doing beef I just add smoked beef ribs meat- the cheapest one but should add a bit fat. It is about 20-30% smoked pork and rest beef. About the breadcrumbs - I am lazy, just use my bread slices, leave them into to sit in the milk for 15- 25 minutes and then break them apart with my hand. And instead of pepper I use a bit of chilly.
What about adding different cuts of beefs? For example adding some filet or hanger for smoothness and tenderness with some tritip or picanha for flavour and a little chew.
I respect your passion for food 👌
Hey alex, in Poland we make Meatballs without milk or eggs or whatever. My mom makes them by soaking an old bun? Bread roll? However you say it in english, in water. Yes she soaks it in water and i must say it is sufficient for binding.
Very convenient timing with the upload, Alex! I have to peel 2kg of potatoes. That is just the right distraction.
watching alex's videos at 4am is a very bad idea, i need a complex flavourful dish now, but again. it is 4am
, if you take every sanitation effort you can and you are the one grinding up your cuts of meat then having it incredibly rare in the middle as long as it's cooked to the appropriate temperature should be fine
Adding pork fat while grinding up your meat would add the sumptuousness of pork without the actual pork itself and a little bit more fat will make for a juicier meatball
I love the way you said "Mukbang beastmode" lol
i think that the epicurius scientific wasn't refering to "meat tenderizer" with the term "tenderizer" it indeeds makes the meatballs more tender, it's specially notable if you overcook the food (in spain is quite common) so it makes the final product more tender, instead of tenderizing the ingredients
Nice to see a Kaweco Sport where I didn't expect one! :)
would like to mention that in germany we have a specialty with raw pork it is called mett Brötchen
This was such a great video!!!
common man! you have to give german "Königsberger Klopse" a shot!!!
I am surprised that u have never mentioned the "boulets liegeois" a belgian recipe that u should study. You don't live di far from Liege. Give it a try and try It with the the delicious "sauce lapin".
I had a thought about how to keep them round and get a delicious browning all the way around the meatball! You might have to freeze them first to avoid overcooking, but try deep frying your meatballs. Actually, now that I think about it, you might have to freeze them to deep fry them... still, I think it’s worth trying.
Alex you need to takeover the reaction video genre wow im amazed .
Lots of meatballs, lots of inspiration. Makes me wonder if you'll cover the infamous Dutch Meatballs in Gravy also?
In Belgium for the "boulet liégeois" we fried the meat ball before putting them in the sauce