Meatball Recipes 4Eva: Meatball Stew Edition
We love meatballs. We devoted an entire chapter of our cookbook to meatballs, for goodness sake! So yeah, we’re truly, madly, deeply into meatballs. You know this. We’ve made curry with them, we’ve made shakshuka with them, we’ve made classic meatballs subs with them. We make ‘em with chicken, we make ‘em with lamb, we make ‘em with pork. We’ve even made the best vegetarian meatballs you’ve ever tasted. And today, we’re making them the star of a hearty, meaty meatball stew! Think of this as a meatball-ified riff on old-fashioned, beef-and-potatoes beef stew. Nothing fancy, just super traditional, winter fare that’ll stick to your ribs and melt the snow right off your bone-cold bod.
Your Meatball Stew Grocery List
Our meatball stew recipe is not a pantry recipe—you’ll probably need to hit the produce section this week and load up. But you’re going to the store anyway, right? The dream of skipping the store this week is an ever-elusive one, at least for us. The great news is, though, this recipe is major bang-for-buck! It’s really easy on the budget. Ground beef, carrots, onions—that stuff is super affordable, super flavorful and super filling. You know you always need olive oil, salt and pepper. But beyond that, here’s everything you’ll need to make our easy, beefy meatball stew:
Ground beef
Garlic powder
Onion powder
Italian seasoning
Egg
Breadcrumbs
Worcestershire sauce
Whole milk
Onion
Carrots
Celery
Garlic cloves
Yukon Gold potatoes
Green beans
Tomato paste
Fresh thyme leaves
Beef stock
Beef bouillon
Cornstarch
How To Make Meatball Stew
Here’s the reason that this meatball stew rocks—UMAMI. Umami times a million. Umami is the so-called fifth taste, and essentially it means the taste of savorieness. While lots of things can create umami in a dish, this recipe includes a number of umami-giving heavy hitters. Tomato paste is a big umami deliverer, and the combo of beef stock and beef bouillon make for an insanely savory saucy stew base that’ll have you dreaming of seconds before you’ve even finished your first bowl. OK, now that you’re really dying for this stew, here’s how to make it:
Mix all of the ingredients for the meatballs in a bowl. For the best, most tender meatballs, use your hands to mix and stop just when everything looks uniform. Overmixing leads to tough meatballs.
Roll out 24 meatballs. Remember our best meatball-making trick: wet hands make for easier rolling.
Brown the meatballs! They don't need to be cooked through—just nicely browned.
Cook the onions, celery and carrots for a few minutes, then add the garlic. In goes the tomato paste and thyme, then the meatballs, beef stock and the beef bouillon.
Get that stew base simmering! Add the potatoes and beans, simmer for a solid 20 minutes.
Slurry! Cold water + cornstarch combine to make a thickening paste. Add it to the stew and simmer for another 5 minutes or so.
Dig in!
Tools You’ll Need
Stock pot or Dutch oven (something with a tight-fitting lid)
More Meatball Soup Recipes to Try
Meatball Stew, All Winter Long!
And if spring is cold, we’ll eat it till summer if we have to! This cozy bowl of goodness is meant to buoy you through the dreary months. We hope it is just what the doctor ordered! When you try it out, let us know! Share a photo and tag us on Instagram using @themodernproper and #themodernproper so that we can see your stuff! Happy eating!
