Delicious meatballs and the power of the language.

A few days ago I was delivering a lesson in collaboration with a Modern Language teacher and her pupils whom are learning Spanish. The class was making different kind of Spanish food amongst which also some meatballs and I started thinking that my meatballs are never round, spherical, ball shape and I don’t actually care as in the Italian word for meatballs, polpette, there is no sign of their shape.

A while ago I watched a Ted Talk on how the language we speak can actually influence the way we think and I started thinking about my triangular shape meatballs and the fact that I don’t even try to make them round. Next time I will post my family recipe of meatballs in white wine, this spanish recipe has a smoky flavour as it use smoked paprika but if you are not a big fan of smoked food just use normal sweet or hot paprika and adjust the quantity to your taste. Buon appetito!

Albondigas, Spanish meatballs

Ingredients
  

  • MEATBALLS
  • • white bread 4 crustless slices torn into small pieces
  • • milk 90ml
  • • beef mince 400g
  • • pork mince 400g
  • • garlic 1 clove crushed
  • • egg 1
  • • smoked paprika ½ tsp
  • • olive oil
  • TOMATO SAUCE
  • • garlic 2 cloves sliced
  • • chopped tomatoes 2 × 400g tins
  • • smoked paprika a good pinch

Method
 

  1. Put the bread in a large bowl, tip over the milk and toss until it has all soaked in.
  2. Add the mince, garlic, egg, smoked paprika and lots of seasoning.
  3. Mix together really well using clean hands and roll into small meatballs (you’ll make about 32 from this mix).
  4. Heat a little olive oil in a wide, frying pan and brown the meatballs all over in batches. Scoop out once they’re browned.
  5. Add a little oil to a large pot then add the sliced garlic and the tomatoes (clean the tins with a little of water and add this to the pan) and smoked paprika, season and bring the mixture to a simmer.
  6. Cook for 10 minutes, add back the meatballs then simmer for 20 minutes until the sauce is thickened and the meatballs are cooked through.
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