Turkey Meatballs

Make a few extra since some always seem to “disappear” before they leave the kitchen. They’re the absolute equal and possibly better than any beef-based meatball I’ve tried.

If you want to make a big batch, a scaled-up version is here.

Ingredients:
1 Pound Ground Turkey
1 1/2 Slices Plain white bread (nothing with a strong taste, since it’s for texture, not flavor)
1/3 C Chopped Onion
1 Large Egg
1 t Soy Sauce
1 t Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 t Garlic Powder
1/4 t Dry Mustard
1 Jar Your favorite spaghetti sauce
  • Peel the crusts off the bread and save or other uses.
  • Sift the garlic powder and dry mustard though a fine strainer into a large bowl.
  • Add the soy sauce and Worcestershire sauce.
  • Work the egg though the strainer to remove the stringy part (chalazae)
  • Add the bread and mix with a fork until it forms a slurry.
  • Add the onion and the ground turkey and mix until thoroughly combined.
  • Lightly oil a pan with Olive Oil, and preheat on medium-high. Reduce heat to medium.
  • Form into golf-ball sized balls and gently place in the pan. Cook until browned, then turn by 1/3 and continue cooking. Turn by 1/3 again. When browned, rotate again, cooking any remaining non-browned areas in the same way. Because the meatballs are still extremly soft at this point, handle them gently and turn with a couple of spoons, not tongs.
  • Note that at this point, the outside is all yummy-looking, but the inside is still raw turkey. Don’t skip the next step!
  • Cover the bottom of a pot with about an inch of sauce, add the meatballs, then add sauce to cover. Simmer on medium-low until the meatballs have an internal temperature of at least 165°F, which is the minimum safe poultry temperature according to the FDA.

Note that this recipe work well when scaled, and the balls and sauce freeze beautifully.

At least in this area, ground turkey at Sam’s Club in 5 pound packages costs about 1/3 as much as at the grocery store.

Makes  6 – 8 meatballs.