We are expecting a new baby in our family soon and I know now, that the most important thing in the first weeks with a newborn is NOT TO BE HUNGRY and to have enough food! At least that's what I've learned from our first child. So this time I decided to make some meals to put in the freezer. Sure, we certainly won't starve, and grandmothers like to take care and bring some food too (mom, I'm relying on you with the borscht soup!), but I just like to be prepared and I also just like my food and my tastes.
We already have some homemade food in the freezer, but I decided to make these extra meals, which I'm sure will come in handy!!
- oats "cowboy" cookies, when the sweet tooth strikes
- shortcrust pastry , for quiche and pies
- my favorite bacon and egg sandwiches, that are great for breakfast, lunch or dinner
- creamy navy bean soup, as a quick source of protein!
- pumpkin puree , for simple pasta sauce, soups or as an addition into my sourdough pancakes!
- ground beef with herbs in a style of Italian sausage, because it's totally versatile and can be dumped out of the bag in the freezer!
- and especially these beef and tofu meatballs, that we just love!
Why and with what to combine ground meat?
Every time I cook with meat I have a need to combine it- with something. Probably because organic quality meat is not the cheapest thing, but if you add in something healthy that's quite big in volume , it looks like more meat! I've already shared my favorite recipe here for veal burgers , where I use buckwheat groats. Buckwheat works great in patty or burger recipes, but you can't make meatballs with this mixture because they fall apart. Believe me, I've tried it several times. I also like to use bulgur or couscous in the same way, but buckwheat just leads the way.
I came up with the combination of tofu and meat in meatballs by coincidence. I was out of the buckwheat and the tofu in the fridge was slowly exceeding the recommended expiration date. I remembered that I had made kale patties with smoked tofu before and they were great, so why couldn't plain tofu work too? Anyway, it worked great and I haven't made them differently since and it practically doesn't matter if you use beef, pork, turkey or even rabbit meat!
Why combine beef with tofu?
Well, in Asian countries, combining animal and plant-based proteins is a common thing , so why not try it too? Combinations of beef and tofu are most often seen in various stir-fry recipes or in soups and guarantee a great combination of not only flavors but more importantly different textures.
What to serve the beef and tofu meatballs with?
These beef and tofu meatballs are great and just lightly spiced, so suitable for any kind of modification.
Some of my favorite ways to prepare them include:
- with tomato sauce: classic spaghetti with meatballs - just cook (or heat) the tomato sauce in a wide saucepan and throw in the meatballs for the last 10 minutes of cooking to warm them up
- with cream sauce: just pan fry any vegetable with onion, we like broccoli, spinach or beans, add meatballs to warm up and pour in cream, great with cooked rice or bulgur
- add them into soup: they are great in any broth, French onion soup, tomato-based soups or thick cream soups
- risotto : again, just pan fry any vegetables, add meatballs to warm them up, after a few minutes stir in cooked rice, couscous, bulgur or buckwheat and season to taste
- into Asian stir-fry : fry in a pan the vegetables cut into larger pieces (onion, leek, pepper, carrot, broccoli, mushrooms,...), heat the meatballs and finally add Asian sauce or just soy sauce and a little water with cornstarch, best served with rice or Asian noodles
- with baked potatoes : bake some seasoned potatoes cut into fries, wedges or cubes in the oven, turn halfway while baking and add meatballs to warm through - best served with some dip and fresh vegetables or coleslaw
How to make beef and tofu meatballs?
In a large bowl, mix 500 g of ground beef (or pork, rabbit, turkey,...), add 200 g of finely grated tofu, 1 egg, 2 crushed garlic cloves, 1 finely chopped small onion, spring onion or shallot, a handful of breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, oregano or parsley to taste and a pinch of allspice (optional). You can use whatever spices you like, but I like to use only mildly flavored meatballs so they can be used in any dish.
With wet hands, form the mixture into walnut-sized balls and place them onto a baking tray, which can be greased or lined with baking paper.
Bake the beef and tofu meatballs in a preheated oven at 200 °C for about 15 minutes. You can turn them over once while baking.
How to store beef and tofu meatballs?
After the meatballs have cooled, place them in resealable bags or an airtight container. You can store them in the fridge for about 5 days and in the freezer for up to 2 months.
To reheat them, either put them in a hot oven for a few minutes or you can reheat them straight in a sauce or pan with vegetables. See above for a more detailed description.
TIPS:
– you can also add various sauces such as BBQ, ketchup, Worcester or Asian sauces to the balls - for this amount you only need about 2 tbsp
- if you prefer more spicy flavors, add Indian curry spices, curry paste or any chilli into the meatballs
- it's always worth making a double batch of meatballs, as there are never enough meatballs!
Recipe
Recipe for 35 meatballs
Beef and tofu meatballs
Ingredients:
- 500 g beef (pork, rabbit, turkey,..) ground meat
- 200 g finely grated firm tofu
- 1 egg
- 2 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 small onion, spring onion or shallot, diced
- handful of breadcrumbs
- salt and pepper to taste
- 0,5 tsp oregano, thyme or dried parsley
- pinch of ground allspice (optional)
Instructions:
- Add all ingredients into a large bowl and mix to combine.
- With wet hands, form the mixture into walnut-sized balls and place them onto a baking tray, which can be greased or lined with baking paper.
- Bake the beef and tofu meatballs in a preheated oven at 200 °C for about 15 minutes. You can turn them over once while baking.
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