The eggplant meatballs were born from the idea of cooking something with vegetables without having to necessarily use meat.
I assure you that the stale bread combined with the vegetables is very good and keeps the dough very soft.
When I don’t have very dry bread, I might slice the bread I need, even if it’s fresher, leave it out for a couple of hours, and then soak it to make the meatballs, it will still work.
When I, who do not love eggplants, tried them, I have to say the meatballs were very enjoyable.
The only slightly negative thing, if you will, is the frying, but if you want, you can use a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and bake them on a tray in the oven.
However you decide to cook them, they will be delicious!!!
Try my recipe and let me know what you think!!! For the recipe, I used the Pecorino Romano from the Pinna Cheese company, rich in history and their products are a guarantee.
Replicate the recipe and send me your photos, and I will post them on my Facebook page in your name.
Approx 82 Kcal per meatball
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 1 Hour
- Preparation time: 1 Hour
- Portions: 24 meatballs
- Cooking methods: Frying
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons, Summer
Ingredients for Making Eggplant Meatballs
- 4 1/2 oz stale bread
- 10 1/2 oz eggplants
- 1 1/2 oz pecorino (grated)
- 1 bunch chopped parsley
- 3 1/3 oz breadcrumbs
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1/2 tsp salt
- to taste pepper
- 1 1/2 oz breadcrumbs (for breading the meatballs)
- peanut oil (or corn oil for frying)
Preparation of Eggplant Meatballs
Boil the previously washed eggplants, cutting off the stem along with the entire green part and just a small piece of the end.
Soak the stale bread, and when it’s softened, squeeze it well with your hands and put it to drain in a colander with a bowl underneath.
When the eggplants are soft, drain them, remove the skin, and mash them a bit in a bowl with your hands to create a mush.
Once the bread is well-drained, add it to the eggplants, add the grated pecorino, chopped parsley, garlic, salt, pepper, flour, and mix everything well.
Then add the breadcrumbs and mix well; you may need more or less, depending on how much water is left in the eggplants.
Place the mixture in the fridge for at least an hour, then form meatballs and roll them in breadcrumbs.
Heat the oil for frying in a wide enough pot, and once it reaches temperature, adjust the heat to medium.
Fry the meatballs, drain them on absorbent paper, and serve.
