Eggplant Meatballs

• doses: 8 servings
• tempo ativo: 35 minutes
• tempo total: 50 minutes

Ingredientes

1 cup canola oil (or vegetable oil, see notes for frying below)

2 large eggplants

2 eggs

1 lb lean ground beef

1/2 cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs

3 garlic cloves (minced)

2 tbsp fresh Italian parsley (chopped fine)

3/4 cup pecorino romano (finely grated)

1 tsp red pepper flakes

3/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

Instruções

Boil the eggplants: Bring a large pot of water to boil.Remove the end/tips of the eggplants, slice in half (horizontally) and add to the boiling water. Boil the eggplants (covered) for 10-15 minutes, or until the insides are soft and tender, and you can very easily indent them using a spoon. Transfer the eggplants to a colander and allow to cool for at least 15 minutes or until you can easily handle them without burning yourself.

Remove the eggplant skins: Remove half of the eggplant skins and leave the other half on the eggplants.Sammy's tip: If your eggplants have too many seeds you can remove some, but there's no need to remove them all. You can also choose to leave the skins on all of the eggplants and eliminate this step entirely.

Chop the pulp: Chop the eggplants into small pieces and set aside.

Remove excess moisture: Using paper towels, gently blot the chopped eggplant pressing gently to remove as much moisture as possible. Repeat a couple times. (see notes below)

Combine the ingredients: To a large bowl, add the chopped eggplant, eggs, lean ground beef, Italian seasoned breadcrumbs, garlic, fresh Italian parsley, pecorino romano, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper.Gently mix together until well combined and you achieve a consistency that allows you to easily form meatballs.Shape the meatballs using your hands, giving them more of an oval shape.

Fry: To a large, deep frying pan add the oil and set to medium/high heat. Once the oil is hot, add the meatballs, working in batches if you need.Fry until dark brown and cooked through, flipping as needed. About 3-4 minutes. Sammy's tip: 170–180°C (338–356°F) is a good oil temperature for frying.

Serve: Using a slotted spoon, remove the meatballs from the pan and allow to cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes before serving.

Informação Nutricional

• Calorias: 422 kcal
• Gordura Total: 34 g
• Gordura Saturada: 5 g
• Gordura Insaturada: 28 g
• Gordura Trans: 0.3 g
• Colesterol: 45 mg
• Sódio: 475 mg
• Carboidratos Totais: 13 g
• Fibra Alimentar: 4 g
• Açúcares Totais: 5 g
• Proteína: 17 g