Sunday, March 6, 2011

Balls!....of the Porcupine Variety

Originally posted 10/25/10

Ahhh crap-It’s Monday……How was everyone’s weekend?  Mine was slow.  We didn’t do much.  My 5 year old woke up sick on Sunday morning, Boo.  So we took it easy, which was good because it was a nightmare outside today. Super windy and rainy….My Halloween decorations all blew down, so now I will get to decorate a second time!  I am assuming we have a lot of snow on the mountain, but I can’t tell yet…..it’s still covered in clouds…..enough about me……let’s move on;)

Last night I made Barbecue Porcupine Meatballs for dinner.  They are called “porcupine” because they have rice in them.  My mom loves to tell me how I used to call them “Porcupine Balls” when I was little, instead of “Porcupine MEATballs”.  That cracks her up.  If you can’t figure out why, go ask someone.  I really can’t get into that on here;)  When my mom made them, she used tomato soup as her liquid.  I revamped the recipe by using my Gourmet Rooster Smokehouse Bacon BBQ Sauce.  So much better…..no offense mom.  They were a hit with the fam, even the kids….
To start, I used 1 and ½ pounds of ground beef.  You can choose what percentage of fat you want….I’m not the fat police, you can do whatya want.  You could also use ground turkey or chicken if you really want.  I used ½ cup of rice, not minute rice!!, ½ cup of minced onion, 1 tablespoon of minced garlic, ½ teaspoon of pepper and 1 teaspoon of salt.  I used an entire 16 ounce jar of Gourmet Rooster Smokehouse Bacon BBQ Sauce.

You will mix together the meat, rice, garlic, onion, salt and pepper, and then form meatballs.  While you are getting your form on, bring the jar of sauce plus ½ cup water to a simmer in a large pot.  You will want to make your meatballs on the large side because you don’t want your meat cooking quicker then your rice.
Above is my balls, simmering in the sauce.  I giggle every time I say that.  I might be a 10 year old boy;)  Anyhoo, you will get a lot more meatballs then this.  I took the picture early on.  Notice that my hands are not in the picture.  I was in charge of the photography myself today…I apologize in advance if the pics are not up to snuff. 
The meatballs will simmer, with the lid on for close to 45 minutes.  Some might fall apart a little bit, but that is ok!  It thickens the sauce and melds it all together.
Finished product!  I put cheddar cheese on mine, but truthfully, I put cheese on everything.  The sauce is smoky and sweet, with a little bit of spice, and really is perfect with the meatballs.  They really are so good, and kids and adults love them.  You should try this recipe!  The sauce is available now on Gourmetrooster.com. 

See ya Wednesday.  I will be making cocktails!  Halloween cocktails to be exact……Mmmmmmm booze;)

Porcupine Meatballs
1 ½ ground beef
½ cup rice (not minute rice)
½ cup onion, minced
1 T minced garlic
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
16 oz. Smokehouse Bacon BBQ Sauce
½ cup water
Combine all but sauce and water.  Form into balls.
Heat sauce and water in a large pot.  Drop balls into sauce.  Simmer, covered, for 45 minutes or until done.


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