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Slow Cooker Amish Porcupine Meatballs. Combine uncooked rice with ground beef, 3 savory ingredients and place it in slow cooker to make a family dinner that everyone requests.
Ingredients
Ground beef
Quantity: 2 pounds (80-90% lean)
Uncooked long-grain white rice
Quantity: 100 g
Onion
Quantity: 1 medium, finely chopped
Kosher salt
Quantity: 2 teaspoons
Black pepper
Quantity: 1 teaspoon
Tomato juice
Quantity: 2 cans (15 ounces each)
Water
Quantity: 1 cup
Slow Cooker Amish Porcupine Meatballs
Directions
How to Make Slow Cooker Amish Porcupine Meatballs
Step 1
Apply a thin layer of oil or nonstick cooking spray to the inside of a 5- to 6-quart slow cooker to make sure it does not stick.
Step 2
Place the ground beef, uncooked long-grain white rice, diced onion, salt with kosher, and black pepper in the slow cooker crock on the counter. Using clean hands, combine all the ingredients thoroughly in the slow cooker till all the rice and onion is topped over the beef. The meatballs should not be overworked so that the meat is tough.
Step 3
After the mixture has been well mixed shape it into golf ball sized meat balls, approximately 1 1/2 inches in diameter. They can be simply made in the slow cooker by pinching off pieces and rolling them between your palms, and then placing them in one, tight layer. There is nothing wrong with their being touched; they will stiffen when cooking.
Step 4
Whisk the tomato sauce and water in a separate bowl or large measuring cup until they are mixed evenly. Gently pour the tomato mixture on top of the meatballs in the slow cooker so that most of the meatballs are covered. Provided that some tops are showing, pour a little sauce on them.
Step 5
Cover the lid on the slow cooker. Bake at LOW (6-7 hours) or at HIGH (3-4 hours), until the rice in the center of the meat ball is soft and the meat balls themselves are cooked (an instant-read thermometer in the center of one of the meat balls should be at least 160degF). The rice will lose its shape and poke out a bit to achieve the well-known porcupine appearance.
Step 6
When the sauce has cooked, add more seasoning with a pinch of salt and pepper. Stir/tilt the crock to cover the meatballs in the tomato gravy, taking care not to smash the meatballs.
Step 7
Serve the meatballs hot and spoon full of the tomato-onion sauce. Chill any remaining ingredients, in an airtight container, in the refrigerator, up to 3 days; the flavours become richer and the rice still continues to absorb the sauce, and becomes even more comforting the following day.
Variations & Tips Amish Porcupine Meatballs
Rice substitutes
Long-grain white rice is the surest choice in terms of texture. Brown rice requires more time and can remain chewy without adding extra time low on the cooker plus an extra 1/4-1/2 cup of water to the sauce.
Flavor additions
Although the basic recipe involves three savory ingredients (onion, salt, pepper) and tomato sauce and water, you can add more flavor to the meat by sprinkling on dried herbs (such as parsley, basil or oregano, 1-2 teaspoons) to the meat mixture. The tomato base used by the Amish is good with a minced piece of garlic or 1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder.
Texture adjustments
In case your ground beef is quite lean, 1/4 cup milk or a beaten egg will be added to maintain the texture of the meatballs, but it will be softer. To make a meatball a little firmer, place the shaped meatballs into the slow cooker crock in the refrigerator and leave them alone, 20-30 minutes, before switching on the heat.
Make-ahead
Combine the meatballs and shape them in the slow cooker insert itself, cover it and refrigerate it up to 12 hours. You can add the tomato sauce and the water when you are going to cook, and follow the instructions to cook the food, but you have to add 30 minutes to the LOW time in case you are starting with very cold food.
Heat level
To add a little kick yet make it homely, add 1/4-1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes to the tomato sauce and then pour it over the meatballs.
Filet
tuck a few meatballs and sauce in a split, toasted hoagie roll, to make a rough meatball sandwich, or cut up leftover meatballs and heat them again in a saucepan and pour over toasted bread to make a lunch the next day.
Amish Porcupine Meatballs
