Customshop’s tuna meatballs will spice up a party
Meatballs made from tuna? Sounds odd but it’s genius.
These are Customshop owner and executive chef Trey Wilson’s clever take on traditional meatballs, and it’s one of my favorite recipes I tested all year.
The flavor of the tuna combined with the spicy chorizo is fantastic. Plus, the long marination makes it a great dish if you need to prep ahead of time for a party. Make the mixture the night before or early in the morning and cook the meatballs right before guests arrive.
Wilson serves his over polenta or, on the current menu, atop a slice of zucchini nestled in a bed of tomato sauce. For my New Year’s party, I am simply adding toothpicks.
I don’t own a meat grinder, which is what Wilson uses, so when I went into Clean Catch to purchase some Big Eye tuna for the recipe, I asked chef Charlie Reid for advice. He suggested using a food processor, which worked perfectly. Just pulse the mixture several times until you end up with the consistency of ground beef.
Customshop serves 2-ounce meatballs at the restaurant, but they can be made smaller for bite-size portions. When I’m making cookies, batters and other round items, I use a scoop (also called a disher) for uniformity. Each portion is exactly the same size and shape, so everything cooks evenly. For this recipe, I filled a size 30 scoop level to the top to make 1 1/2-inch balls.
Next month will be my first anniversary writing You Asked For It for The Observer. It certainly has been a fun and educational adventure. I can’t wait to see what dishes you ask for in 2016. Happy New Year!
Are you looking for a recipe from a Charlotte-area restaurant? Send your request to Jennifer Lover, jen@jenlover.com or on Instagram (@jenniferlover). Please include your name, why you like the recipe, the area where you live and the restaurant’s location. Lover is a creative director, stylist and cook who lives in Charlotte.
Spicy Tuna Meatballs
From Trey Wilson, Customshop.
1/3 cup day-old bread, torn into small pieces
1/4 cup milk
1 pound fatty tuna, cubed
2 ounces Mexican chorizo sausage
1 egg
1 small shallot, minced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
Your favorite tomato sauce
In a small bowl, soak the bread pieces in milk until the milk is fully absorbed.
In a large bowl, mix tuna, chorizo, milk-soaked bread, egg, shallot, garlic and parsley until well combined. Refrigerate overnight (6 to 8 hours).
Push tuna mixture through a meat grinder or place into the bowl of a food processor and quickly pulse 8-10 times until meat is coarsely ground. Shape into 1 1/2-inch balls.
In a large skillet, fry meatballs in a generous amount of olive oil (1/4 to 1/2 inch deep) over medium-high heat until browned on all sides and cooked through, 5-7 minutes.
Serve meatballs with your favorite tomato sauce.
Yield: 18-19 meatballs.
This story was originally published December 29, 2015 at 10:40 AM with the headline "Customshop’s tuna meatballs will spice up a party."