Cook it Fresh

homemade meatball on the left, Armour brand frozen on the right

I have used frozen meatballs a few times in the past when I wanted a fast, cheap meal or appetizer. I usually use them as a quick addition to marinara sauce because they are easy to keep in the freezer for last minute dinners. However, I also enjoy making homemade meatballs when I have the chance as I vastly prefer the texture and flavor of homemade; or do I? In this post I put my meatball preferences to the test with my mom’s recipe for Swedish meatballs made with both homemade and Armour brand frozen meatballs.

Swedish Meatballs

You can also make this recipe in a crock pot by placing the baked meatballs, broth and spices in a crock pot on low heat for a few hours and stirring the butter/flour mixture in during the last half hour of cooking.  These meatballs would be great simmered in marinara sauce too; just replace the allspice and nutmeg with dried oregano and basil.

Serves 6

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups fresh bread crumbs
1 cup milk
1 1/2 pound ground chuck
1/2 pound lean, ground pork
2 eggs
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1 1/4 cup beef broth
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 Tablespoons melted butter
2 Tablespoons flour
1 Tablespoon finely chopped parsley for garnish
4 cups cooked rice for serving

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the breadcrumbs in a large mixing bowl. Pour the milk over the breadcrumbs and leave to soak for 5 minutes. Add the meat, eggs, onion, 1 teaspoon salt, allspice and nutmeg to the bowl. Mix well with hands or a fork.

2. Form the meat mixture into 1-inch balls and place on a rimmed baking sheet. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until firm and just beginning to brown.

3. Place the baked meatballs in a large saucepan and pour beef broth over them. Add pepper and remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt to the pan and bring the broth to a simmer over medium-low heat for 30 minutes.

4. In a small bowl, mix the melted butter and flour together to form a thin paste. Pour butter mixture over the meatballs and stir gently to combine. Continue to simmer until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes.

5. Serve meatballs over rice and sprinkle with chopped parsley if desired.

For this comparison, we made one batch of meatballs using the recipe above, and half a recipe using the same sauce but substituting frozen meatballs for the homemade. We followed the package directions for cooking the store bought meatballs in sauce which meant adding the still frozen meatballs to the sauce and simmering them for 20 minutes. After the two kinds of meatballs had simmered in the sauce, they looked remarkably similar and both looked very appetizing, although the homemade variety had a paler color. However, after the first bite, all the tasters agreed that the two varieties of meatballs tasted completely different. The homemade meatballs were not as salty as the frozen, but had a denser texture and depth of flavor that we all found more appealing. The onion and spices that had been added to the meat made the homemade meatballs complex and interesting instead of merely salty. The frozen meatballs, on the other hand, were soft and “mushy” feeling, as one taster put it, as well as being overly salty and lacking in flavor. The frozen meatballs did have time and convenience on their side, however, as there was no mixing, forming or baking involved; just add them to the sauce and simmer! They also were a bit cheaper than homemade.

Bottom Line: Using frozen meatballs in place of homemade will certainly save you time and perhaps a bit of money as well, but at the cost of complexity of flavor and texture.