The Versatile Mexican-Style Meatball
 | Author:
Eileen Clarke - Rifles and Recipes
Author: Rifles and Recipes |
The Versatile Mexican-Style Meatball
Eileen Clarke
Rifles and Recipes
Make a Mexican-style wedgie sandwich out of these meatballs and sauce (just top them with Monterey Jack cheese) or make it as written: a more traditional dinner with rice.
Either way, these meatballs are as tasty as the traditional Italian ones. And you can customize the heat with the enchilada sauce you choose: mild to hot. I always use mild, but I’m a buttered-noodle kind of person.
And while we’re talking about the enchilada sauce, I’ll point out that I wrote this recipe up for Slice of the Wild several years ago. At the time, Bob’s Thriftway carried Old El Paso brand, and El Paso still offered a 19-ounce can in enchilada sauce.
Things have gotten smaller since then, as we all know, but when following a recipe, the ratio of ingredients needs to stay close. Wet to dry, meat to carbs. You get the idea. The good thing is some other brands carry 19-ounce cans of green enchilada sauce, but two 10-ounce cans (what used to be the 12-ounce variation) add up to just an ounce more sauce than this recipe calls for. Go ahead, buy the Old El Paso at Bob’s and dump that extra ounce in. 5% more sauce isn’t going to make a big difference.
One more recipe note. I haven’t bought ‘bread crumbs’ in years. I use hard rolls. (For convenience, I stash some in the freezer, then microwave them for a quick-thaw when I need them.) And I even stopped toasting the rolls—to make them dry before tossing them into the food processor. Instead, I tear up room-temperature rolls, pulse them a few times in the food processor until they look like ‘crumbs’ and pour them into the ground meat and eggs. Moister bread crumbs mix more easily than drier ones, co-mingling with the other flavors and ingredients more easily without drying them out. That cuts down prep time, eliminates a step or two and even tastes better.
Mexican Meatballs and Rice
Serves 4
Ingredients
1 pound ground venison
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup loosely packed chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
19-ounce can green enchilada sauce
3 cups cooked rice (from 1 cup raw)
Cooking
1. Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Combine the ground venison with the eggs, bread crumbs, cilantro, garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
2. Shape into 1 1/2-inch diameter meatballs and arrange on 1 (or 2 if necessary) cast iron skillet in a single layer. (You should have about 16.) Pour the enchilada sauce over the top and bake 25 minutes, uncovered.
3. When done, pour over the rice and serve.
I’m sad to say this is my last column for MT43News. I have loved sharing wild game recipes with you, but like a lot of people, I’ve come to the time when retirement sounds even better. However, Slice of the Wild: 100 Venison Recipes, and my other wild game cookbooks will still be available at Birdie’s, Reading Leaves, and Goose Bay Handblown Glass.
If they’re out, just give me a call. 406-521-0273. I live in Townsend.
Editor's Note: Eileen has been a contributor to MT43News since we began publishing. We will miss Eileen's recipes and her great humor.
