I haven't done this myself but you sure could give it a try. Just make sure they are cooked through. Cheers!

These were among the best meatballs I've ever had. I did have one minor issue: When browning them, I had some problems with them sticking to the pan (despite using the "mercury ball" test to ensure the pan was hot enough). Would a non-stick pan be better? I was worried that non-stick would not brown the meat as well, but I had some minor breakage due to sticking with the regular pan. Any other suggestions?

Despite that one minor problem, these were amazing. I'll be making a double batch for freezing this weekend! Last question: A comment above said that these would keep for "several weeks" in the freezer. If I cryo-vac them will they keep longer? If so, should I do that when they are raw, or after the initial freeze on the sheet tray? Thanks as always for a great website!

Sounds like you may have just needed to use a bit more oil when cooking the meatballs. You could also use a non-stick pan if you like.

If cryovacing the meatballs it may be easier to do it once they have been frozen so that they don't get squished from the pressure. As for whether or not cryovacing will extend the freezer life of the meatballs, the answer is yes. In this case, the meatballs should last for several months.

Hope that helps and glad you liked the meatballs. Cheers!

Can I store meatballs in the freezer after cooking? If yes then for how long?

And I mean after cooking in the tomato sauce.

Yes, leftovers can be frozen for a few months. Cheers!

Thanks :)

I didn't make this recipe yet, but most all of recipes and all kind of tecniqs is great! I love to eat.....I love to cook....I love to bake and I do almost everyday. I never had the problam yet....that is the good sign.
Thank you very much to all of you guys.

I am running low on spaghetti but i have plenty linguine. It this a good pasta to replace spaghetti? Or how about mixing them?

I do not recommend mixing different pastas, as they will cook at different rates, which means you would have to cook them separately. Also, it is better to have one consistent type and texture of pasta for a pasta dish. But then again, there are no absolute rules so you are free to experiment and try it if you like.

As for whether or not you can use linguine instead of spaghetti the answer is yes. I encourage to watch the lesson on "How to Cook Pasta" (in particular topic 7 "Matching Pasta with Sauces" as this is covered in that topic). Hope this helps. Cheers!

I made a change the second time - I cooked the meatballs at 425 degrees for 20 minutes in a convection oven - and then browned them in a skillet with olive oil. Cooking them first (in my experience) made them hold their shape allot better and easier to brown to get the nice crispy bits on the exterior.

Happy New Year!

Matthew

Hey there,

These were amazing, I baked them first and then browned them in the pan and they worked out great just as Matthew had said earlier

I followed the recipe and ensured I did not work the meat too much when combining the ingredients, as the recipe indicated the meatballs would be tough. Just trying to figure out what the reasoning behind this is and exactly what it is about working the raw meat too much that would cause them to turn out not as tender?

Also, when I transferred them from the baking sheet to the heated pan which I had heated the oil in, they splattered quie a bit as if there was a bunch of water. My pan was dry, should i have patted the meatballs a bit to remove any excess oil/moisture before adding them to brown the outside?

I froze half of them for next time as they made quite a few as well.

Thanks
Mark

When forming meatballs, hamburgers, etc, if you pack the meat and force it together the result will be very dense. If you are gentle with it and you do not use a lot of force, the they will have a softer texture.

After baking, you could transfer the meatballs to a tray lined with paper towel to absorb some of the excess moisture before you pan fry them, but I would avoid patting them dry so you don't pull out all of moisture and flavor. You could also pan fry the meatballs first to brown them and then finish cooking them in the oven. Cheers!

Hi,

I have some "Italian bread crumbs" i need to use can i use them instead of bread in this recipe, if so how much.

Dried bread crumbs would likely disintegrate once the milk is added. It is best to use bread. The texture of the bread keeps the meatballs nice and soft. If you want to try crumbs, you can moisten maybe 1/2 cup with a bit of milk but it will likely affect the texture. I'd wait until you have some bread on hand. Cheers!