The Best Type Of Meat To Use For Meatballs

The world's largest meatball, which weighed in at a whopping post-bake weight of 1,700 pounds, was crafted in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina in 2017, via South Carolina Living. The recipe included, "more than 1,800 pounds of beef and pork, 700 eggs, 250 pounds of breadcrumbs, 25 pounds of oregano, 56 pounds of salt, and an equal amount of pepper." Unfortunately for Hilton Head's Italian-American Club, it's possible that given the contentious debate that surrounds what should be included in a proper meatball, many folks would dispute the legitimacy of this world record.

There are innumerable options for you to consider when deciding which type of meat to use in your meatball. Ikea's Swedish meatballs, for example, utilize the same two-part mixture as the world-record ball, though the company has, in the past, been caught using an equine additive, per NPR. Alton Brown's recipe adds lamb meat to the fold. But you could even forego red meat altogether and make chicken meatballs. However, some believe that the best meatball recipes utilize a particular three-part meat mixture.

Regardless of which meats you choose to include in your meatball, it's essential that you try and achieve the right ratio of lean meat to fat: 70% to 30%, respectively, according to First We Feast. Additionally, it's imperative that the meat you use is ground, as the relatively short amount of time that a meatball should be cooked will be insufficient to tenderize intact cuts.

Many feel that the best mixture for a meatball combines ground beef, pork, and veal, which is also the blend Food & Wine recommends using for their classic spaghetti and meatballs recipe. Bobby Flay's meatballs also call for equal parts of each meat, per Food Network. As Southern Living explains, "Pork gives the meatballs extra flavor, and veal helps keep them moist and tender." Prepared Cooks explains that veal, unlike beef, is made from young calves and that the lack of development in their muscles is what makes the cut so tender.

Crafting a spherical mound of meat seems like one of the most intuitive culinary ideas, so it's difficult to pin down exactly when the meatball was invented. One contender for the first meatball is the kofta, which combines ground beef, chicken, pork, or lamb with rice, bulgur, or mashed lentils, according to The Atlantic. The polpette, a fun-size predecessor to the considerably larger American meatball, was first recorded in an ancient Roman recipe book containing recipes that could date as far back as the fourth or fifth century, per The Atlantic.

From the very beginning of this dish's history, it's been incredibly versatile. The original polpettes were made with such disparate meats as chicken and cuttlefish. The New York Times shared a recipe for meatballs that should work regardless of which meat you ultimately select. Simply combine your meat of choice with bread crumbs, salt, and an egg, which serves as a binding agent, as well as additional spices depending on your flavor preferences.