Meatballs
I use a variety of whatever ground meat I can get for cheap. I like equal parts lamb, veal, and pork, though not everywhere will have ground lamb or veal. Beef works too, but, you know. Whatever. Meatloaf.
I don't use powdered garlic, onion, or #### like that. It all tastes like sawdust-flavored Doritos to me.
What I do.
I make a panade, which is just a fancy way of saying "I soak some cut-up hotdog buns or white bread in milk."
Then I mince a shallot (or a quarter of a medium sized yellow onion) and 6 or 8 cloves of garlic very, very, fine. Then I sautee them in some olive oil until they are soft, fragrant, and translucent, but not browned. Let it cool. Totally acceptable to put this stuff in a food processor right now and blend it into a paste.
Then I mince a bunch of parsley, thyme, and basil. (And mint if I am using lamb.)
Then I wash my hands, put the meat in a bowl, and add a little salt, a LOT of fresh pepper, a LOT of fresh grated parm (asiago or peccorino romano works, too.) and a pinch or two of red chili flakes. Then I squeeze some of the milk out of the bread, add it to the mixture along with the herbs and shallot, garlic paste. If using lamb or some gamey meat, some lemon zest is also good.
Then I use my hands to mix it just until it is homogenized. I don't use eggs, because why.
Form them into balls of whatever size. Larger than a golf ball and they cook a little weird. Arrange your meatballs on a parchment-covered sheet pan and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
For cooking, you can go any of three ways:
1. Sear them in a hot pan with some oil, before adding them to your red sauce. This way creates the most flavor for both your sauce and your meatballs, but the meatballs are chewier and less tender.
2. Just plunk them in your red sauce and, basically, poach them. This is still pretty tasty and your balls will be all soft and tender. Don't taste the sauce until the meat has cooked through--raw pork in there--and don't cook too high.
3. Cook em in an oven at 400 degrees. They will cook evenly and quickly this way, but they won't be as brown or flavorful as the first way, or as tender as the second way.
Sorry. I guess I had a lot more to say about meatballs than I thought.