Episode 12 - Mountain Meatballs in Chilli Coffee Sauce
Sunday, February 26, 2012 at 04:17PM Morning folks. I will be typing gingerly today, as I seem to have blown out my shoulder in a completely non-embarrassing fashion.
Notes:
This was recorded on the 23rd of December (eagle-eye viewers will see I'm wearing the same Beethoven shirt as in my Christmas message). We had our friends Adrian an Tommy over, but the only wacky shenanigans caught by the cameras was the opening of one beer by my lovely wife. Oh well!
Also, HEY YOU GUYS you want to tell me what I can do better? Like seriously? Then do my 10-question survey! Tell me what I stink at! (Seriously, now that the editing itself is becoming less of a chore I start to worry at my content. Do people get annoyed by my banter? Do they want less instruction, more instruction? Do they want me just to shut up? Crippling insecurities!)
Recipe Notes:
The recipe makes 8 meatballs, which could technically feed 8 people, or 4 hungry ones. Though it's very timing-dependant (getting the sauce made before the meatballs are ready), both the meatballs and the sauce are very forgiving in that neither of them will be ruined by a little extra time on the stove/in the oven. In the video, I served with the little bit of noodles, but I've happily served with rice or bread in the past. Just be sure you have something to mop up the lovely sweet-smoky-spicy sauce!
Music Notes
Sepultura - "Mountain Song", from "Revolusongs", 2003
I only used a little snippet of the intro for this, as the main song is a little bit repetitive and really didn't match the mood I was going for., allowing me to use....
The Baseballs - "The Look", "Hot N Cold", "Pokerface", from "Strike!", 2009
The Baseballs! Not only does it allow for delicious punning (meatballs, Baseballs, geddit?), but I get to showcase one of my favourite cover bands of the past year. The Baseballs are a 7-piece rockabilly outfit out of Berlin, who cover pop songs. Modern pop songs. Like Rihanna, and Lady Gaga, and Maroon 5, and Snow Patrol. I spotted their poster in JB Hifi, looked them up on my phone and had the album bought from iTunes before I left the store (cheating, a little, but JB had it for $27.95, and iTunes had it for $16!). And it's awesome. Elvis style vocal and three-part harmonies, with get-up-and-dance piano riffs make for a winning combination. I chose the look not only for my wife's love of Roxette, but because I saw a Youtube clip (now taken down) of them performing it live and watched as they sung the "Nanananana" bit as the opening and 5000 people went absolutely insane.
Their second album, "Strings N Stripes", however, I did not dig as much, after being unable to obtain it in Australia, in shops or on iTunes, I obtained it in a COMPLETELY LEGAL MANNER THAT DOES NOT RHYME WITH BORRENTING. I spotted a lot of reused piano parts, and missed opportunities. The standout was their version of Lady Gaga's "Paparazzi" which has made it into my regular rotation.
Recipe
;)
Meatballs:
- Preheat oven to MAX POWER.
- Peel & slicify 2 onions to the smallness of your liking. Throw them into a big pan on medium heat & sweat them down for about 10 minutes.
- Put your mince in a bowl and add the cooked onion, mustard, oregano, cumin, coriander, breadcrumbs (if you have giant hands, use less breadcrumbs), eggs, with some salt and pepper.
- Get your hands in there and squooosh it all together. Add more breadcrumbs if the mix is too wet.
- Divide the mix into 8 spheroids the size of a softball (or cricket ball, or polo ball).
- Pour out some mozza onto a cutting board.
- For each shreroid, make a hole and fill it with cheese, then shape it back into a ball so it doesn't escape.
- Line up the balls on an oiled oven tray, and cram them into the oven for 30 minutes.
Sauce:
- Wipe your onion pan, and put it back on the heat. Moar oil.
- Chop up your remaining onion, plus your capsicums, dried chillies, and all 10 freaking cloves of garlic, then add to the pan with the paprika and cook for 15 minutes.
- Put on a pot of coffee in the meantime.
- Cut the tomatoes into quarters.
- When the coffee's done, add the Worcestershire sauce, ketchup, vinegar, mustard and brown sugar, then the tomato quarters on top.
- Pour the hot coffee into the pan, mix everything together, turn the heat to high, and bring to a boil.
- Turn the heat to medium-low, and simmer for 20 minutes until sauce thickens up.
Combination!
- Take your balls out of the oven, leaving the heat on.
- If you're feeling health-conscious, you can pour out a little of the fat, just be sure not to lose a meatball into the sink.
- Pour the sauce between and around the meatballs and return to oven for a further 5 minutes.
- Serve with noodles, bread or potatoes, pop a meatball into eat plate, cover with sauce, sprinkle ofver extra mozzarella cheese, seize and consume!
(please do the survey, guys! I require opinions!)
Reader Comments (2)
Did your survey Lucas! :)
The addition of coffee is so interesting, and I love the cover songs!