I developed this meatball recipe to solve two problems I encountered with other meatball recipes: 1) I was so tired of having to cook off a tiny piece of my meatball mixture every time I made meatballs to taste it for seasoning; 2) I’m very picky about the texture of the onions in my meatballs. I believe that onions should be cooked down before being added to the meat, otherwise they stay a bit hard which ruins the mouthfeel of the meatballs. But this is a bit time consuming.

I solved the first problem by standardizing the seasoning, as I’ve learned throughout my years that 1 tsp of Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt is the ideal amount for 1 lb. of any meat. This Caramelized Onion Turkey Meatball recipe contains the perfect amount of salt for my tastebuds, but it is based on my using Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt. If you are looking to elevate your cooking I highly suggest buying it. Chefs use it because it has half the salinity of regular iodized salt, which means it is harder to oversalt food with it. Also, it has an ideal texture for sprinkling. If you are using a different type of salt in your meatballs, you will want to cook off a small piece of your meatball mixture before shaping the mixture into balls. I say just save yourself the time and buy the Diamond Crystal.

I solved the second problem by using caramelized onions, which I make in large batches and then freeze, to be used in future recipes. I usually caramelize 3 lbs. of onions at a time, so I can have them on hand for other recipes, like my Caramelized Onion and Broccoli Ziti or French Onion Soup and if you wish to do the same, follow the guidelines here. The recipe for this dish, uses 2/3 cup of caramelized onions, so the instructions provided within are tailored to that amount.

If you follow me on social media, you are well aware that one of my biggest pet peeves is when I read a food creator’s recipe that says, “cook onions until caramelized, about 20 minutes.” It actually infuriates me. First, because it’s near impossible to caramelize onions in twenty minutes without burning the sugars and drying out the onions completely. Second, because there is a little bit of technique involved in the onion caramelizing process. 

Sugar doesn’t caramelize in the presence of moisture, so it is important to draw out much of the moisture from the onions so that the sugars in the onion can caramelize. However, if you do this too quickly, at too high a temperature, the sugars will burn and the onion skins will turn papery. To prevent this, we begin cooking the onions over high heat, for the first five minutes, to draw out and evaporate the water contain within the onions, then drop the temperature down low, so the sugars can slowly caramelize. Also, when caramelizing onions, I prefer to use Vidalia onions, which have a high sugar content. But, you could use brown or white onions as well, or even shallots or leeks. 

One last and very important word about this recipe. I keep it ethnicity neutral so that I can make a large batch of meatballs, then use them in various preparations. Sometimes I toss them with Korean BBQ sauce and eat them with Kimchi other times I toss them in Piccata Sauce. If you want to make Spaghetti and Meatballs with these Caramelized Onion and Turkey Meatballs, feel free to add some dried herbs into your meat mixture. And if you are looking for a classic Spaghetti and Meatballs Recipe, I got one for ya right here.