How To Make Stuffed Meatballs
Here's the thing about stuffed meatballs: Nobody has to know they're stuffed until they're fork-deep, like the above photo. Is that a great surprise for someone, or what? Imagine everything associated with meatballs: Pasta, subs, pizza – are any of these made worse with the addition of molten mozzarella? Nope. All made better. Plus, they're as easy as making regular meatballs, but with the fun extra step of meat-sculpting. Oh yeah, did we mention what would happen if you made a meatball parmesan sub out of these stuffed meatballs? Like, whoa. Here's what you'll need:
1 pound ground beef
1/2 white onion finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
2 tablespoons Italian parsley, minced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 pound mozzarella, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 tablespoon olive oil
Mix everything except the mozzarella and olive oil in a large bowl (don't overmix or your meatballs will be unpleasantly dense), divide into 8 portions, then follow these easy steps.
Stuff the meatballs
Take one of the 8 portions of ground meat and divide it in half. Sculpt both halves of the meat loosely around a mozzarella cube until the cheese is no longer visible. If it's packed too tightly, the cheese will eventually explode out. And not in a good way, like you're thinking.
Fry the meatballs
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Fry the meatballs, 4 at a time, on each side. We understand that they're spheres (or at least somewhat spherical), just find sides and cook the meatballs on each one until browned and cooked through, about 3 minutes. If a little cheese started to poke out, no problem.
Sauce 'n serve
When the meatballs are cooked through, add your favorite tomato sauce and serve immediately while still piping hot for best cheese flow. *In our original recipe for stuffed meatballs, this is known as the "time-sensitive ball effect."