It is wonderful to experience memories through food, says Mathias Pilblad, and it is also wonderful to pass them on, which is why this recipe is so special to me. These meatballs – exactly like the ones my grandmother used to make – have a rougher structure than most of those I make and serve today. I hope you agree they are particularly nice. A couple of cooked, peeled potatoes are always a welcome accompaniment if you’re hungry.
Ingredients: makes about 42 balls
- 500g beef mince
- 500g pork mince
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 tsp ground allspice
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp sea salt
- freshly ground white pepper
- 50g boiled and peeled floury potato, mashed and left to cool completely
- 100ml whipping cream
- 100g onion, chopped
- butter, for frying
- to serve: lingonberry sauce
- various pickles
Method
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
- Beat both minces with the egg, allspice, ginger, salt, white pepper to taste and the potato in a large mixing bowl with a wooden spoon until firmer. Add the cream and give the mixture a couple of quick stirs; it should have a soft consistency. Finally, stir in the onion and continue beating until the mixture is smooth, firm and well combined. Shape the mixture into about 42 meatballs, 30g each and the size of a table tennis ball; there will be a few onion pieces sticking out.
- Melt enough butter in a large frying pan over a medium heat to come about one-third of the way up the meatballs. Add as many meatballs as will fit, without overcrowding, and fry, turning frequently, for about ten minutes until brown on the outside and cooked through when you cut one open. It is important that the heat in the pan does not get too hot, or the small onion pieces will break off and burn. A couple of the meatballs might even break up a bit, but that is okay. Pan-fry in batches, if necessary. As each batch is fried use a slotted spoon to transfer the meatballs to an ovenproof serving dish and keep hot.
- I like to serve these meatballs with the butter they are cooked in with any onion pieces that have fallen off in the frying pan. I always think these are best eaten with a lot of pickles – and I mean a lot of them.
Taken from Meatballs for the People by Mathias Pilblad, published by Bloomsbury Absolute at £20. To buy from The Week Bookshop for £15.99, call 020-3176 3835 or visit theweekbookshop.co.uk
-
Susie Dent picks her favourite booksThe Week Recommends The lexicographer and etymologist shares works by Jane Goodall, Noel Streatfeild and Madeleine Pelling
-
6 incredible homes under $1 millionFeature Featuring a home in the National Historic Landmark District of Virginia and a renovated mid-century modern house in Washington
-
The Harder They Come: ‘triumphant’ adaptation of cinema classicThe Week Recommends ‘Uniformly excellent’ cast follow an aspiring musician facing the ‘corruption’ of Kingston, Jamaica
-
House of Guinness: ‘rip-roaring’ Dublin brewing dynasty period dramaThe Week Recommends The Irish series mixes the family tangles of ‘Downton’ and ‘Succession’ for a ‘dark’ and ‘quaffable’ watch
-
Dead of Winter: a ‘kick-ass’ hostage thrillerThe Week Recommends Emma Thompson plays against type in suspenseful Minnesota-set hair-raiser ‘ringing with gunshots’
-
A Booker shortlist for grown-ups?Talking Point Dominated by middle-aged authors, this year’s list is a return to ‘good old-fashioned literary fiction’
-
Fractured France: an ‘informative and funny’ enquiryThe Week Recommends Andrew Hussey's work is a blend of ‘memoir, travelogue and personal confession’
-
Art review: Sixties SurrealFeature Whitney Museum of American Art, New York City, through Jan. 19
