Here I am again with a new recipe, super easy and very delicious! Beautiful super soft potato and ricotta meatballs.
What makes them special is a corn flour coating. As you can see from the picture, the corn flour makes them beautifully golden. Moreover, I chose to create a surprise effect with a melty cheese center.
The potato and ricotta meatballs are also excellent cold. Perfect for nibbling on during an appetizer or buffet. Delicate and super soft that melt in your mouth!
We can cook the ricotta and potato meatballs in a pan with a little olive oil, or in the oven/air fryer.
At the end of the article you’ll find some practical and useful tips and a little gift for you ❤️
If you’re a meatball lover don’t miss these tasty suggestions!
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 1 Hour
- Preparation time: 30 Minutes
- Portions: about 10-12 meatballs
- Cooking methods: Stove, Air Fryer, Electric Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 10.6 oz potatoes (weight without skin)
- 10.6 oz ricotta (mixed or cow's milk)
- 0.7 oz Parmigiano Reggiano DOP
- 1 egg (medium whole)
- 1 tablespoon chopped parsley
- to taste salt
- to taste pepper (if desired)
- 2.8 oz bread crumbs (approximately)
- 3.5 oz cheeses (like Galbanino, Provola, Emmentaler, Fontina etc.)
- to taste garlic (if desired)
- 1.1 oz bread crumbs
- 1.1 oz fine cornmeal (fine grain)
- to taste rosemary (if desired)
- 1 pinch salt
Tools
- Bowl
- Saucepan
- Pan
- Potato Masher
- Potato Peeler
- Grater
Preparation
To make potato and ricotta meatballs follow this simple advice.
Buy a nice dry ricotta or you’ll have to put it in a sieve to drain its whey.
It’s best to do this operation the night before so you don’t waste time waiting.
Or leave it in the sieve for at least an hour. Meanwhile, wash the potatoes and boil for about 20-30 minutes.
Cooking time varies based on the size of each potato, so check by piercing them with a toothpick.
Once cooked, remove them from the saucepan and let them drain in a sieve, then mash them well with a fork.
Place the ricotta in a fairly large bowl, add grated Parmesan and a handful of freshly chopped parsley.
Adjust with salt and pepper (if you like) and work with a fork to mix the ingredients.
Then add a whole medium egg and the now lukewarm potatoes and mix all the ingredients well.
Incorporate the breadcrumbs and a pinch of garlic (if you like) sliced thinly. Mix everything.
The amount of breadcrumbs can vary depending on how well it is absorbed by the ricotta and potatoes.
That’s why it’s very important to let the ricotta dry in a sieve if it’s not dry enough.
With these quantities, it takes about 80 grams of breadcrumbs but adjust according to consistency.
You should get a soft but workable mixture, it shouldn’t stick to your hands.
Now it’s time to form the potato meatballs! Cut the cheese into small cubes.
I used Galbanino but you can choose whatever you prefer or have in the fridge.
Take a portion of the mixture and flatten it on the palm of your hand.
Place one or two cubes of cheese in the center. Add just a little more mixture on top and close starting from the sides.
Make sure to seal it well with your hands and form a meatball of the shape and size you prefer.
I made them quite large and got 10 in total, but if you make them smaller you can make more. After forming them, let the meatballs rest in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
In a bowl, put the breadcrumbs and corn flour, rosemary, a pinch of salt and mix with a teaspoon.
This will be the coating for your meatballs that will become beautifully golden!
I confess that I always have a pack of corn flour in my pantry, which I often use for breading fish, meat, or vegetables.
It makes the surface of foods crunchier and more delicious and gives a nice golden color.
Now take the potato meatballs from the fridge and pass them all in the coating, being careful not to break them.
Once coated, you just have to choose how to cook them!
You can put them in the oven or air fryer (320°-340°F static mode for about 15-20 minutes) or in a pan.
I chose to cook them in a pan (it should be quite large). Brown a clove of garlic in two tablespoons of olive oil.
Place the meatballs at the bottom of the pan, spaced apart, and cook for about 10 minutes over low heat.
Please note, potato meatballs are very delicate, when you have to turn them on the other side, be careful.
Once browned, place them to drain on a sheet of absorbent paper and then finally enjoy these fantastic meatballs!
If you decide to cook them in the oven/air fryer, don’t forget to put a little oil on the bottom of the baking sheet and a little on each meatball.
Below you will also find the recipe video!
Let me know if you try these ricotta and potato meatballs and come back to visit me soon!
Article protected by copyright © – Gabriella Geroni © All rights reserved
To watch the video of this recipe preparation, visit my YouTube channel: Potato and Ricotta Meatballs with Melty Cheese Center.
Can I avoid putting the egg in the mixture?
If you want, yes! The egg is used for binding, but it can be replaced, for example, with potatoes, and since potatoes are the main ingredient in this recipe, you can make these meatballs even without an egg 😉
How can I replace the ricotta?
Ricotta, like potatoes, is the main ingredient of this recipe; replacing it means changing the recipe completely, which I haven’t tested yet!
If you really don’t like ricotta, try replacing it with cream cheese or, for something completely different, use zucchini.
You will need to grate, squeeze them well, cook them in a pan, and then drain the excess oil. You can add them to the other ingredients and adjust the amount of breadcrumbs to add as it may vary.
This version I haven’t tried, but zucchini could be an excellent alternative to ricotta 😉 If you don’t even like zucchini, see if in this collection of Easy, Economical, and Tasty Meatballs you find your favorites!How long do these meatballs last?
Once you’ve formed the meatballs, you can put them on a plate, cover them with cling film, and store them in the fridge for about two days.
Or if you prefer, you can prepare the mixture and leave it in the fridge for two days and then proceed to form the meatballs and cook them.
After cooking, you can keep them in the fridge for a couple of days and reheat them in the microwave (for a few seconds), in a pan, or in the oven for a few minutes.
Additionally, you can freeze them once cooked and when you want to eat them, put them in the oven/air fryer or pan while still frozen and proceed with cooking.
