Dutch Meatballs Bitterballen Recipes

DUTCH MEATBALLS (BITTERBALLEN)

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in flour until smooth. Gradually add broth; bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 1 minute or until thickened. Carefully add meat and parsley; cook and stir for 2-5 minutes or until meat is no longer pink. Stir in the salt, nutmeg and pepper. Transfer to a bowl; refrigerate for 3-4 hours or until chilled., Place bread crumbs in a small shallow bowl. In another bowl, whisk the eggs, milk and oil. Drop meat mixture by tablespoonfuls into bread crumbs; shape into balls. Dip meatballs in egg mixture, then coat again with crumbs. In an electric skillet or a deep fryer, heat oil to 375°., Fry meatballs, a few at a time, for 2-4 minutes or until golden brown on all sides. Drain on paper towels. Serve hot with mustard if desired.

DUTCH BEEF BITTERBALLEN

Steps:

• Gather the ingredients.
• Place the beef in a large pan with just enough water to cover the meat. Bring it to a simmer. Skim off any foam that forms.
• Add the onion, peppercorns, bay leaf, cloves, and thyme.
• Bring back to a boil, reduce the heat, and let simmer for 2 to 3 hours, or until the meat is very tender. Remove from the heat and allow to cool off.
• Strain the meat, reserving the cooking liquid. Discard the onion and herbs.
• When the meat is cool, cut it into small cubes. Set aside.
• Gather the ingredients.
• In a large skillet, make a roux . Melt the butter and add the shallots and flour, stirring vigorously.
• Add the milk to the skillet. Stir well and add 2 cups of the reserved beef cooking liquid.
• Let the mixture come to a boil, reduce the heat, and let it simmer for 30 minutes, stirring frequently.
• Dissolve the gelatin in the cold water and add it to the simmering mixture, stirring regularly.
• Add salt, pepper, and nutmeg to taste. Add the chopped parsley, Dijon mustard, and the diced beef, mixing well.
• When the pot is cool enough, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight, or chill for at least 4 to 6 hours.
• Gather the ingredients.
• Roll heaping teaspoons of the chilled beef mixture into neat, even-sized balls; the mixture should make about 60 in total.
• Bread them twice by first rolling each ball in flour, then in the beaten eggs, and then in the breadcrumbs. Dip each breaded ball again in the eggs and roll for the second time in the breadcrumbs. Place on a baking sheet.
• Heat the oil to 356 F/180 C in a deep, heavy-bottomed pan or deep fryer.
• Fry the bitterballen in batches until golden.
• Remove from the oil and drain on paper towels.
• Serve them hot with Dijon mustard on the side.
• Enjoy.

DUTCH MEATBALLS (BITTERBALLEN)

Steps:

• In a large skillet melt the butter over medium-high heat. When the butter has melted completely, add the 1 cup of flour, a bit at a time, whisking it, it will turn into a thick paste.
• Slowly stir or whisk in the beef broth. Make sure you stir thoroughly, the broth should all be incorporated in the roux. The gravy should be smooth but still quite thick.
• Simmer the gravy for a couple minutes then add the parsley, onion, and ground beef, stir well. Season with the salt, pepper and nutmeg. Taste for seasoning and adjust as necessary.
• Transfer the meat mixture to a Tupperware container and refrigerate for several hours until the gravy has solidified. I refrigerated mine overnight, but 3 or 4 hours should suffice.
• Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. In 1 plate add the flour, in another plate add the eggs and the last plate the bread crumbs.
• Shape the meat mixture into 1 inch balls. Use a small ice cream scoop, it's easier to get the same quantity of meat each time. Place these meatballs on one of the prepared baking sheets.
• Roll the balls first through flour, then eggs, then finally bread crumbs. Place these meatballs on the other prepared baking sheet. Once completed, place the baking sheet with the meatballs in the fridge until ready to fry.
• In a large Dutch oven, skillet or deep fryer, add enough oil, I usually add about 2 inches of oil. Heat the oil up to 375 F degrees.
• Fry the meatballs about 6 at a time until golden brown, should take about 4 or 5 minutes. If you have enough oil in your fryer the meatballs will float to the top when done. Continue until done with all the meatballs. In between batches you might have to clean the oil with a slotted spoon of all the leftover fried bits from the meatballs.
• Serve hot with a grainy or spicy mustard.

GEHAKT BALLEN (DUTCH MEATBALLS)

Steps:

• Place meatloaf mix in a large mixing bowl; crumble bread over meat and knead with hands to combine. Add milk and egg to meat mixture. Knead onion, nutmeg, cloves, salt, and pepper into meat mixture until well-combined. Form mixture into six equal-sized balls.
• Melt butter in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Cook and stir meatballs in hot butter until browned on all sides, 5 to 10 minutes. Stir water, tomatoes, beef broth, and onion soup mix into Dutch oven; bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until meatballs are tender and cooked through, about 1 hour.