Baked Mongolian Beef Meatballs - The Defined Dish Recipes (2024)

FAQs

Should I sear meatballs before baking? ›

The biggest challenge with meatballs is achieving the perfect amount of brownness on the outside while ensuring that they're cooked all the way through. And of course, browning them adds a lot of wonderful complex flavor to the meatballs, so you definitely don't want to skip this step.

Baking soda acts as a meat tenderizer by changing the physical composition of meat fibers. It raises the pH levels on the surface and makes it tougher (pun intended) for the proteins in the meat to bond.

Cook until they are no longer pink in the middle and any juices run clear. You'll need to turn them regularly to make sure they cook evenly and retain their round shape.

More Reasons Your Meatballs are Hard

Sticky hands can result in an overworked farcemeat. Too much time spent forming the balls can also make them tough, and you're more likely to overwork them if you can't get them off your hands.

In an oven preheated to 350 degrees F, these meatballs should be fully cooked through and evenly browned in about 30 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted into the middle of the meatball should read at least 165 degrees F.

The best meatballs are tender, baked and browned in a hot oven to seal in all the juices.

Less than a teaspoon of baking soda ensures that your steak remains juicy and tender—even after a speedy marinade. While other recipes demand hours of marinating, this baking soda hack makes a flank steak or any other fibrous cut of beef ready to sear after just an hour.

When it comes to adding liquid to meatball mixtures, milk is often used for its versatility, depth of flavor, and richness. Without the use of milk, you may be faced with a plate of dry meatballs. Milk adds a certain level of moisture that helps produce perfectly tender meatballs.

Transfer the meat to a zip-top bag, stainless steel or glass bowl, or other non-reactive container, and refrigerate for 3 hours or up to overnight. Remove the meat from the container and briefly rinse the meat in plain water to strip off the baking soda solution (or as much of it as possible). Cook as desired.

Baking them at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes should do it. I bake turkey meatballs for 15 minutes, and bake beef/pork ones for 20–25 minutes to ensure they're cooked through. If you need the drippings to make your sauce, you can scraped them out of the broiler pan bottom.

Why do my meatballs fall apart when I cook them? ›

Because meat shrinks when cooked, mince proteins are likely to separate and crumble unless bound together. Whether it's breadcrumbs or egg (or both), or simply salt, binding the mince is a crucial step in maintaining the softness of your meatballs while preventing them from falling apart.

Egg and breadcrumbs are common mix-ins to add moisture and tenderness. Another binder option that people swear by is a panade, which is fresh or dry breadcrumbs that have been soaked in milk. “The soaked breadcrumbs help keep the proteins in the meat from shrinking,” as food writer Tara Holland explained in the Kitchn.

Tenderizing the Meat:

As the collagen in the meat dissolves over time, it transforms into gelatin, which not only adds a silky texture to the sauce but also contributes to the overall richness and depth of flavor. The longer the simmer, the more tender and succulent the meatballs become.

While water and broth may keep the meatballs moist throughout the cooking process, milk's extra fat and luscious consistency add an unmatched level of complexity to any classic meatball recipe.

Pan-Searing

Range-top browning is straightforward, especially when you're working with a smallish batch of meatballs, plus the browned bits left in the pan give great flavor to a sauce. Brown the meatballs, pour off excess fat, deglaze with a bit of water or wine, and add to your tomato sauce.

Searing meat doesn't create an impermeable barrier that prevents the release of natural juices when cooking or slicing a steak or other cut of meat. But that doesn't mean you should abandon searing altogether. You should always consider searing steaks before grilling, baking, braising, roasting, or sautéeing.