From my own brain
I thought of these one night when I was craving spareribs but didn't have any spareribs. So I tried them out and they've been a hit in our family ever since.
1 to 2 lbs of hamburger, thawed (1 lb makes 20-30 balls, 2lbs makes about 40-60 balls, it depends on how big you make your meatballs)
2 Tbsp to 1/4 cup finely blended oatmeal (almost like an oatmeal flour), I do this in the blender and then store it in a tightly sealed container and use it as I need it.
Mnced onions (desired amount)
dash of salt and pepper
Add all ingredients to a large bowl. Mix and assess if you need more blended oatmeal. You want to make sure you have enough but too much will make them dry. 2 Tbsp+ is about right for 1 lb. And 1/4 cup is about right for 2 lbs. Mix well with fork and roll balls into 1 inch balls. Place in 9x13 inch pan (they can be close together.) The picture below is of 2 lbs and 60 meatballs.
Cook for 30 minutes at 375. They may need longer if you are doing 2 lbs.
Meanwhile, in a saucepan make sparerib sauce. It can be any recipe. I like ones that are a little tiny bit sweet and not overly spicy. A sparerib can handle that but it is a lot for a meatball. Or if you want a super fast sauce, just buy it in a bottle. I haven't found one I like yet. If you do, let me know. I'll try it out!
After the meatballs cook, make sure they look mostly done. You want them to be completely brown all the way around. If they're not put them back in for a few more minutes. If you're really adept, hold the pan and pour the drippings into a bowl. I'm not super adept so I usually just remove them from the oven and put them on a large plate. Then I pour out the drippings and wipe out pan and put the meatballs back in.
Pour some sparerib sauce over the meatballs. (I don't usually ending up needing all of it so I store it in a bowl and use it later for chicken or for another smaller batch of meatballs.) Put meatballs back in oven and cook for another 20 minutes. I usually pull one out and cut it in half and make sure it is all the way done.
Serve with mashed potatoes, any flavor of rice, or use for hors d'oeuvres. Very good!
For appetizers, serve meatballs on a plate with a toothpick in each.
***Lo-Fat suggestion: Instead of hamburger, use ground turkey. That will at least off set some of the calories/fat from any sauce you use. Unless you're able to find a low fat sauce... and then you're set!
Title : BBQ Sparerib Meatballs
Description : From my own brain I thought of these one night when I was craving spareribs but didn't have any spareribs. So I tried them out and they...