Exact Answer: 20 – 45 Minutes
Meatballs are delicious and simple to make. One can easily prepare meatballs to be served with a sauce which are perfectly browned on the outside but still juicy in the middle. To make meatballs, one can make use of finely chopped or minced meat such as beef or chicken. The meat is seasoned with various flavors and ingredients like chopped onions, herbs, and spices and finally shaped into small balls for cooking.
Typically, meatballs are somewhere between the size of a large cherry and a golf ball. Recipes such as Swedish and Italian-inspired meatballs are made with a mixture of both beef and pork, but meatballs, in general, can be made with any red meat, chicken, or mixture.
How Long To Cook Meatballs In Sauce?
| Stages | Time |
| Prep Time | 20 minutes |
| Cook Time | 30 minutes |
| Total Time | 50 minutes |
The best way to cook meatballs is to shallow fry them, preferably in a non-stick pan with a little oil like vegetable or sunflower oil to savor them with one’s favorite sauce. Meatballs take about 15 – 30 minutes to cook over medium heat, depending on their size. Meatballs must be cooked until they are no longer pink in the middle and their juices run clear. One needs to turn them regularly to ensure that they cook evenly and retain their round shape.
Meatballs can also be baked in the oven for around 25 – 35 minutes. Baking them is easier and can allow one to cook a bigger batch of meatballs at once. However, if the meatballs have a high meat content they can become dry in the oven, so it is best to make meatballs that contains a higher proportion of wetter ingredients such as finely chopped or grated vegetables
Ready-made meatballs are also available in the market and they are extremely easy to cook. Most of these types of meatballs take around only 10-15 minutes to get cooked. In the case of ready-made meatballs, care must be taken to ensure that one turns the meatballs frequently so that they cook evenly.
Why Do Meatballs Take So Long To Cook In Sauce?
Meatballs are served in a sauce like a tomato sauce or it could be served along with some gravy or curry. Meatballs are added to the sauce in the last and final stage of cooking. This ensures that the meatball is cooked properly and perfectly. This also helps to provide deep caramelized flavor to the outside of the meatballs and prevents them from breaking into the sauce.
When one wants to put their meatballs in the sauce, they must do so carefully so that the meatballs don’t break open. The meatballs should be gently dipped in sauce and turned over carefully ensuring that all are nicely covered. After the meatballs are in the sauce, cover the pan and cook the meatballs on low heat for about 30 minutes. One can spoon the sauce over them occasionally and add a little water if the meatballs are becoming too dry.
It is essential not to overcook the meatballs. Overcooking the meatballs can make them tough and too dry to eat. One can incorporate using a little milk in their meatballs to keep them moist and juicy.
Conclusion
Making meatballs with sauce is quite easy. Firstly one needs to mix all the meatball ingredients in a large bowl and shape the mixture into meatballs. In the meantime, one can start preparing the sauce that will go along with the meatballs. After this is done, the next step is to add the meatballs, spooning the sauce over them. Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low, and simmer the meatballs in the sauce for about 30 minutes.
The prepared meatballs in the sauce can be garnished with parsley and served. Meatballs need to be handled lightly so that they don’t break and maintain their round shape. One must not overcook them as overcooking makes them dry and tough.
