Meatballs have grown to become among the most popular types of food in the world. The truth is, almost all cultures on the planet have a type of meat rolled into a ball.
The idea of meatballs is very simple. All that happens is that meat is ground, after which it is shaped into a ball, after which it is cooked. However, as you would expect, almost every different culture has a certain twist that makes their meatballs unique. Home-style meatballs, for instance, have some differences from Italian-style meatballs.
In our post, we will be discussing the difference between home-style and Italian-style meatballs.
Let’s dive in!
Origin
Before anything else, let’s talk about where these two types of meatballs came from. Just like with most of the most popular foods, it is hard to tell where exactly the food came from. With meatballs, it is the same.
Some people place the origin of meatballs in Italy while others place it in America. However, the truth is that meatballs originated in Rome, with some variations being found in the oldest Chinese recipes.
It is, therefore, hard to identify where a specific type of meatball came from.
Ingredients
You should also know that Italian and homestyle meatballs have ingredients that are almost 100% similar to each other. Regardless, you will find certain differences. For Italian meatballs, you will have to add some milk and some herbs.
Therefore, when preparing homestyle meatballs, you will require ground meat, bread crumbs, egg, parmesan cheese, kosher salt, black pepper, medium onion, parsley, as well as garlic.
For Italian meatballs, however, you will need bread crumbs, olive oil, milk, ground beef, onion, ground pork, fresh parsley, eggs, salt, garlic, red pepper flakes, ground black pepper, parmesan cheese, as well as an Italian herb seasoning.
Serving
The traditional Italian-style meatballs feature more than one type of meat, as you have seen from the ingredient list. You might notice some have beef and pork, while others have veal coupled with beef. They are more complex and have amazing uniqueness.
Homestyle meatballs, however, are put in some red sauce, and in most cases, served together with some pasta. That is not an Italian way of serving it. You should know that it does not mean they are not tasty. Most people will prefer to enjoy them this way.
Size
Bigger is always better, which is the mentality that is placed in homestyle meatballs. One of the biggest differences between the two types of meatballs is the large size of the homestyle meatballs. Other variations, such as the Swedish and Italian are smaller. The size, however, might differ.
Conclusion
That is our homestyle vs. Italian style meatballs comparison. You should know, however, that there is an even larger variety of meatballs out there. Some are from Asia and others from Europe. We would recommend that you check out these different types of meatballs and explore the different flavors and textures in each.
