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Grilled Meatball Sandwich

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Grilled Meatball SandwichAlex Farnum

Although we don't follow any fashion rules as dictated by a calendar, this might be an after-Labor Day sandwich because it can be sloppy. If you don't have sauce on your face you aren't eating it right. And if we hear a fork or knife clanking on the plate, there will be hell to pay.

Ingredients

4–6 servings

2 lb (1 kg) ground beef
1/2 cup (4 oz/125 g) ricotta cheese
1/4 cup (1 oz/ 30 g) freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup (1/3 oz/10 g) Panko bread crumbs
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 Tbsp minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp red pepper flakes
Kosher salt
Oil for grill
1 large baguette
8 oz (250 g) thinly sliced Provolone cheese

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    In a large bowl, combine the beef, ricotta, Parmesan, bread crumbs, eggs, parsley, garlic, red pepper flakes, and 2 tsp salt. Mix gently just until combined; you don't want to overwork the meat. Form the mixture into 12 meatballs about the size of golf balls, putting them on a lightly oiled baking sheet as you work. Set aside at room temperature.

    Step 2

    Build a hot fire in a charcoal grill or preheat a gas grill to high. Using a grill brush, scrape the heated grill rack clean. Rub the rack with oil. Arrange the meatballs on the grill rack without crowding. Using tongs, grill until browned evenly on all sides and cooked to medium, 8-10 minutes total, depending on grill temperature. Move any meatballs to a cooler area of the grill if they threaten to overbrown. Transfer to a platter or clean baking sheet as they are finished. Let rest for 5 minutes while you assemble the sandwiches.

    Step 3

    Cut the baguette crosswise into fourths and split each piece horizontally. Lay the pieces, cut side down, on the grill. Toast until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Lay the provolone slices on half of the baguette pieces. Place 3 meatballs on top of the cheese-lined baguette slices. Garnish with the pesto and serve right away.

From This Is A Cookbook: Recipes for Real Life by Max Sussman and Eli Sussman. Photography Alex Farnum. Recipes and text © Copyright 2012 Eli Sussman and Max Sussman; images and illustrations © Copyright 2012 Weldon Owen, Inc. Published by Olive Press. Buy the full book from Amazon
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  • This is so good! And, easy. But, there is something serious wrong with the amount of meat and other meatball ingredients in this recipe. It says to make meatballs the size of golf balls, but if you were too make 12 meats, you have meatballs at least the size of tennis balls, which are too large to put in a baguette. So, halve all of the meatball ingredients, or put the extra balls in the freezer, like I did.

    • peggy20

    • Portland, OR

    • 9/17/2020

  • I had about 1 1/3 lbs. of ground beef and adjusted the other ingredients accordingly. 3 eggs were probably just a tad too much proportionally because they were a bit soft for grilling. Take care not to turn these too early as they will stick if not set enough on the first side. If you want to get them grilled on all sides, they won’t turn out medium rare but they’re meatballs so I didn’t really care. We really liked these, my husband said he would definitely want them again. I might doctor them a bit with some basil, maybe oregano and black pepper. The arugula pesto is really nice on these. The recipe makes a lot. Mine came out runnier than it looks in the photo though I really packed the arugula, I think I could have added more arugula. I didn’t have baguettes but a sub roll hard rolls. The sub roll was the better choice for the style of the meatballs. We like our cheese so I put a slice on each side of the rolls. The 2 of us ate all of this, keeping in mind it was a reduced amount (it made 8 nice meatballs), but we were really full.

    • coachrick

    • Upstate NY

    • 8/23/2019

  • Great recipe. When the weather turned on me and made outdoor grilling unappealing, I broiled the meatballs like another reviewer mentioned, and that worked well. I have to think chefs Max and Eli are not golfers. The beef mixture made a lot more than 12 golf balls of meat... maybe they made 12 lacrosse balls or 12 wiffle balls of meat.

    • Anonymous

    • St Louis

    • 3/21/2018

  • This is a keeper. Fantastic meatballs.

    • cmlynch

    • San Francisco

    • 9/21/2017

  • Super yummy! Made a few modifications ("meatball mix" of pork, beef and veal rather than just beef; added some lemon to the pesto for brightness) but mainly followed the recipe and could not have been happier with the results. This will become a regular in my summer/early fall lineup.

    • taramos

    • Western Mass.

    • 9/9/2017

  • Really good recipe, the pesto was delicious on it's own.

    • brickferd

    • Alexandria, VA

    • 3/27/2015

  • Made these under the broiler, about 4 min per side, then turn. Really great with the pesto! Adding to our rotation.

    • powderbluenight

    • Ely MN

    • 10/17/2014

  • this was excellent. the meatballs were tender and flavorful and the sauce...next time will change cooking method- will start them on cool side of grill; then finish on hot for a crusty sear.

    • shoes58

    • chicago,il

    • 8/27/2014

  • Made as is, great flavors with the pesto sauce, 2 lbs makes plenty for left overs. My guests loved the sandwiches, never saw them eat so much before

    • noelfranz

    • Miami, FL

    • 5/22/2014

  • We loved these sandwiches made as is! I found 2 pounds of meat to make 20 "golf ball" sized meatballs which is just fine with me because the leftovers were excellent.

    • sarahrenee314

    • 5/19/2014

  • When is the dangerous practice of eating partially cooked ground meat going top be taken seriously. It is only safe under specially treated circumstance. Even grinding one's own is suspect.

    • kjeffus

    • 5/18/2014

  • I love meatball sandwiches. Rather than grill the meatballs (always a good idea) I usually get the electric smoker out. Usually takes about an hour.

    • cynicalanddisgusted

    • Nevada

    • 5/14/2014

  • These were excellent! Made half a batch, but kept a full clove of garlic. I also added more fresh herbs in addition to the parsley - rosemary and oregano. The arugula pesto was also excellent! These could be good served as sliders for a party with one meatball.

    • Anonymous

    • 6/9/2013

  • The proportions for the ingredients seem off. With 2# of beef the instructions say to make 12 meatballs. However, I was able to make twice that. When grilling, the meatballs spread and fell apart, which suggests that there was not enough binder. Flavor was ok, but definitely needs some tweaking. The pesto, on the other hand, was excellent.

    • TheDivaChef

    • Covington, Ohio

    • 10/7/2012

  • We LOVE this recipe! We have been making it for years. Sometimes we just make the meatballs, but we love them with the arugula pesto. We often eat it all with pappardelle noodles. It’s really easy to make and everyone loves it!

    • Elizabeth Brady

    • Pasadena, CA

    • 4/14/2023

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