How to Make Meatballs Magnifico

Pietro Criscuolo, chef-owner of Dongió in Milan, makes his meatballs quickly. Photo by …By GQ

Pietro Criscuolo makes meatballs, he waits for nobody. Not even a reporter desperately trying to jot down his recipe. Criscuolo, 71, is standing in the middle of his family's Milan restaurant, Dongió, and is performing something of a meatball clinic.

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He cracks two eggs onto a mound of ground beef, tosses in a few spoonfuls of bread crumbs, adds plenty of freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, a touch of salt, some more Parmigiano, a few more bread crumbs, and then kneads the mixture until all the ingredients are well integrated. Every now and then, he looks up at me, smiles with his big droopy eyes, and says something in Italian that I can't understand.

I'm having enough trouble keeping up with him as he speedily rolls out about forty polpette. Although truthfully, there is not much to be confused about. As Pietro's son Antonio says in somewhat broken English, The simpler the recipe, the better the taste. And Pietro's recipe is indeed simple.

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The secret lies in his using good meat and in dropping the polpette straight into the sauce without frying them first. This produces a tender, almost sweet meatball. Dongió, which Pietro has run since 1987 with his wife, Milena (who makes the pasta), his daughter, Monica (who handles the pastry chores), and Antonio (who runs the dining room), serves the polpette simply, of course-on a plate in a pool of red sauce. You can be a bit more daring, though, and try them with spaghetti or on a hero roll.

Ingredients
Makes about forty meatballs

• 1 3/4 lbs ground sirloin
• 2 eggs
• 6 tablespoons finely ground bread crumbs
• 6 heaping tablespoons Parmigiano-Reggiano, finely grated
• 1 to 2 teaspoons salt
• Pepper, freshly ground
• 3 pints (or more) tomato sauce
• 4 tablespoons olive oil

Step 1
Place the meat in a large bowl. Add the eggs, bread crumbs, cheese, salt, and pepper to taste. With your hands, knead the mixture until all the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated, about 1 minute. (You will probably need to make the polpette a few times to determine the amount of bread crumbs and cheese you prefer in the mixture.)

Step 2
Add the sauce (homemade or jarred; your call) and olive oil to a large pot.

Step 3
Form the meatballs so each is slightly smaller than a golf ball. Add to the sauce. Place the pot over a medium flame, bring to a simmer, then reduce heat and cook for 15 to 18 minutes. Remove from heat and keep covered or serve immediately. Remark to yourself how easy it all was.

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