Pomegranate BBQ Sauce Meatballs
I made these for Rosh Hashanah and they were a huge hit. The flavors of the BBQ sauce are superb and could go on anything, but the meatballs were also very moist and delicious.
- 8 ServingsServings
Ingredients
- 2 pound ground beef
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 egg
- 3/4 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/2 tsp ground allspice
- handful fresh parsley (1/2 cup finely chopped)
- salt and pepper to taste
Sauce
- 1 small can (16 oz) crushed tomato
- 1/2 cup pomegranate molasses or Jamie Geller Pomegranate & Honey
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon hot pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- salt and pepper to taste
Preparation
Preheat your oven to 350ºF.
Put your meat into a large mixing bowl. Finely mince the garlic and add it to the meat along with an egg, breadcrumbs, allspice and very finely chopped parsley. Season the mixture with salt and pepper.
Mix the meat gently just until all is mixed together. Pinch off about a generous golf-ball sized portion of meat and roll it between your palms until it forms a fairly smooth ball. Arrange the balls on a baking sheet with a lip covered in parchment or tinfoil. Make sure that your balls of meat aren’t touching or they won’t cook evenly.
Place the tray of meatballs into your hot oven for 18-20 minutes until they’re cooked through or just barely pinkish in the middle.
While the meatballs cook, prepare the sauce. Put all the sauce ingredients into a pot and bring to a boil, simmer on low for 30-45 minutes.
Add meatballs to sauce and allow to simmer for another 20 minutes or until ready to serve.
I added the meatballs to the sauce in a pan and put that in the oven on low to stay hot until I was ready to serve.
Note - you should be able to find Pomegranate Molasses in many kosher markets, if not, it is easy to make, just boil 4 cups of pomegranate juice with 1 tablespoon sugar and a squeeze of lemon juice. Boil until reduced by half, about 45 minutes.
** Pomegranate molasses is a tangy sweet and sour condiment made from condensed pomegranate juice. You can usually find pomegranate molasses in a Middle Eastern grocery store, or if you’re feeling ambitious you can always make your own
