What to do with leftover meatballs?

[maslex]

Aside from making meatball grinders with the leftover meatballs from the spaghetti dinner (which we already do) What are some other ideas for using them up?

 

[disney4us2002]

Funny timing, I made 24 meatballs tonight and homemade marinara. We ate 8. I have the other 16 freezing right now. After they are frozen, I will vacuum-seal them as 4 packs of 4. We can then use them for another pasta night in a few weeks or for meatball subs. What is a meatball grinder?

 

[QueenIsabella]

Freeze them! A week later, voila! You're 15 minutes from dinner!

If they're not in sauce, you could cook them and put them in beef gravy. I serve this over rice.

Mostly, we just eat the leftovers--I've never had a tough time selling sad, lonely, leftover meatballs (with or without leftover pasta).

 

[QueenIsabella]

P.S. A grinder is a sub if you're from Massachusetts. Recently, we went to w Which Wich and they sell a grinder--I got it, just for nostalgia's sake. I spent much of my formative years in/near Boston. Hoagies are New York, Po' Boys are the south, there are probably others.

Also, you could slice them up and put them on a pizza--either homemade, or to gussy up a frozen one.

 

[Neapolitan Ice Cream]

If the Swedish Chef has taught us nothing else, it's that meatballs can be used for table tennis.

 

[dvcgirl67]

Meatball parm sandwich/sub! You could also serve them with a polenta...or a risotto.

 

[mjkacmom]

P.S. A grinder is a sub if you're from Massachusetts. Recently, we went to w Which Wich and they sell a grinder--I got it, just for nostalgia's sake. I spent much of my formative years in/near Boston. Hoagies are New York, Po' Boys are the south, there are probably others.

Also, you could slice them up and put them on a pizza--either homemade, or to gussy up a frozen one.

Here in north jersey we have subs.

 

[dvcgirl67]

Here in north jersey we have subs.

That's right Jersey! Meatball parm sub with some nice melted mootzadel! .

 

[ClapYourHands]

CT here - they are grinders but can sometimes be subs. I feel like if they’re hot, they’re basically always grinders, but if they’re cold, they could be either grinders or subs.

Despite living here all my life, I have not considered the nuances of the terminology in this much depth before this thread.

 

[barkley]

i agree on freezing them (i put them on a cookie tray and sit them in the freezer for about half an hour then bag them up so they don't stick together). i remember when both kids were school age/dh and i were both working with long commutes-i would spend weekends making big batches of food to freeze up and meatballs were a big production. dozens of them cooked up and frozen in ziplocks ready to pull out and defrost in time for dinner! don't do it anymore except when i make koftas in which case i freeze um cuz i always have some jarred indians sauces on the shelf.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

P.S. A grinder is a sub if you're from Massachusetts. Recently, we went to w Which Wich and they sell a grinder--I got it, just for nostalgia's sake. I spent much of my formative years in/near Boston. Hoagies are New York, Po' Boys are the south, there are probably others.

Also, you could slice them up and put them on a pizza--either homemade, or to gussy up a frozen one.

Or a Spuckie

 

[tinkerbellandpeterpan]

P.S. A grinder is a sub if you're from Massachusetts. Recently, we went to w Which Wich and they sell a grinder--I got it, just for nostalgia's sake. I spent much of my formative years in/near Boston. Hoagies are New York, Po' Boys are the south, there are probably others.

Also, you could slice them up and put them on a pizza--either homemade, or to gussy up a frozen one.

Hoagies might be upstate NY (I don't know). But on Long Island and in the boroughs they are called heros.
They are hoagies here in Philly unless it's hot then it's a grinder.

God forbid you say this on the Dis, but it's very regional and you do have to pay for your plate (or your hoagie, sub, grinder, etc.)

 

[dvcgirl67]

Hoagies might be upstate NY (I don't know). But on Long Island and in the boroughs they are called heros.
They are hoagies here in Philly unless it's hot then it's a grinder.

God forbid you say this on the Dis, but it's very regional and you do have to pay for your plate (or your hoagie, sub, grinder, etc.)

Heros? On Long Island? Thought you were all "sub" people like we are in Jersey.

 

[tinkerbellandpeterpan]

Heros? On Long Island? Thought you were all "sub" people like we are in Jersey.

No, I lived there 35 years and DH as well. Always heros. Parents' grew up/lived in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens. Never in my life heard subs ordered at a deli. I mean I know what a sub is but never a term we used.

 

[AppleDumpling]

Heros? On Long Island? Thought you were all "sub" people like we are in Jersey.

I’ve lived on Long Island my whole life. Trust me, they are heroes. Same as in the city (NY). The only time anyone might call it a sub is if you go to a national chain, such as Subway or Jersey Mike’s, because that’s what they call them. Grinders I have heard in CT.

Aside from making meatball grinders with the leftover meatballs from the spaghetti dinner (which we already do) What are some other ideas for using them up?

I would just have leftover meatballs or chop them up and make meat sauce, which could be frozen. If the meatballs aren’t in marinara or another Italian-style sauce, I might use them for tacos, chili, or cottage/shepherd’s pie.

 

[QueenIsabella]

I’ve lived on Long Island my whole life. Trust me, they are heroes. Same as in the city (NY). The only time anyone might call it a sub is if you go to a national chain, such as Subway or Jersey Mike’s, because that’s what they call them. Grinders I have heard in CT.


I would just have leftover meatballs or chop them up and make meat sauce, which could be frozen. If the meatballs aren’t in marinara or another Italian-style sauce, I might use them for tacos, chili, or cottage/shepherd’s pie.

Here's the thing (for me): I grew up mostly in southeastern CT. However, we did live for 5 years outside of Boston. In addition, all my dad's family lived just outside of Boston, and we visited often (big Italian family, every major and minor holiday was celebrated). So, grinders could be my CT coming through, or the MA, I can't always tell. I don't have a Boston accent, but I do say "wicked". My cousins would laugh at my non-accent (I can pronounce R's!). They also call soda, "tonic" (pronounced TAW-nick). Weirdos! But, we were vastly outnumbered.

Soda's obviously another one that gets called different things in different regions--soda, pop, coke, tonic, etc.)

In any event, a sub and a soda make a tasty lunch, wherever you're from.

 

[RedAngie]

In winter I like to make meatball stew. Meatballs should be small. Potatoes, carrots, onions, etc. in either a tomato or beefy base.

 

[AppleDumpling]

OT, but incidentally, the Greek sandwich made with pita bread, known as a gyro, is correctly pronounced here (LI/NYC) to rhyme with hero. Think hero with a Y: yee-roh, or year-o. NOT Jye-roh (like a gyroscope).

 

[maslex]

Funny timing, I made 24 meatballs tonight and homemade marinara. We ate 8. I have the other 16 freezing right now. After they are frozen, I will vacuum-seal them as 4 packs of 4. We can then use them for another pasta night in a few weeks or for meatball subs. What is a meatball grinder?

It's a sub. I'm from New England and we call them grinders

 

[tarheelmjfan]

P.S. A grinder is a sub if you're from Massachusetts. Recently, we went to w Which Wich and they sell a grinder--I got it, just for nostalgia's sake. I spent much of my formative years in/near Boston. Hoagies are New York, Po' Boys are the south, there are probably others.

Also, you could slice them up and put them on a pizza--either homemade, or to gussy up a frozen one.

Most of the south call them subs.