** I’m sorry if this is a repeat. It was supposed to be scheduled to go up a different day than the apple dumplings. Between watching the kids 24/7, my new graduate class, etc., I must have accidentally entered in the wrong date. But this recipe is really really good, so it should be okay. ** 🙂
I know I’m on a Pioneer Woman kick, but I made this recipe as well after catching a glimpse of her show on the Food Network. They moved Paula Deen for Pioneer Woman… but hey, they both cook southern food with a lot of butter, so FN probably figured nobody would notice. LOL
I think I’ve had these at a church function as well. I tried to make them a little healthier using ground turkey and it was really good. Usually mix-ins and toppings cover the beef to turkey switch pretty well. I’ve tried making a burger out of turkey and it just isn’t the same.
What I really love is that they could be an appetizer or an entree. You could serve them in a baking pan or kept warm in the crock pot. You can set this in your fridge the night before and pop it in the oven the next day to bake for church, someone’s house, etc. Next time, I might double the sauce though. It was rather skimpy and looks nothing like the amount on the photo for the original recipe. When mincing the onion, I like to use my food chopper. It obtains a really good consistency.
BBQ Meatballs
yield 8-16 servings (depends on if used as appetizer or entree)
1 and 1/2 lbs. ground turkey (or beef)
3/4 cup of quick oats or old fashioned oats*
1 cup milk
3 Tb. minced onion
1 and 1/2 tsp. salt
pinch ground black pepper
oil
1 cup flour
Sauce:
1 cup ketchup
5 Tb. minced onion
3 Tb. white vinegar (you can substitute apple cider vinegar for part of the white vinegar)
2 Tb. sugar
2 Tb. Worcestershire
dash of Hot sauce
*I’ve made this recipe using both, and I did not notice any difference in taste. The quick oats held together a little better at first, but some of them broke in the skillet whereas the old-fashioned oats did fine. Just use what you have.
1. In a great big bowl: Mix the meat, oats, milk, onion, salt and pepper. Roll into meatballs – I used a medium cookie scoop which is between 1-2 Tablespoons. The meat is rather gooey at this point from all the milk, but they did hold together.
2. Lay the balls on a cookie sheet and stick in the fridge for 30-60 minutes.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
4. In a great big skillet, heat up a little oil over medium heat. Roll the balls in the flour and cook the meatballs until lightly browned on all sides. Place the cooked meatballs in a baking pan. I had to use a 9×13 and a 7×11 to hold all the meatballs.
5. Mix up your sauce: In a medium bowl, mix up the ketchup, onions, vinegar, Worchestsershire sauce and hot sauce. Pour over the meatballs. Stick in the fridge until morning, or bake immediately, or freeze!
6. Bake the meatballs for 45 minutes.
