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Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Slow Carb Turkey Meatballs

Turkey is a great source of protein, and the lean stuff has almost no fat to it, which makes it a perfect fit to a Slow Carb diet, or any diet for that matter.  This recipe will make you a dozen or so nice, big lean turkey meatballs.  When paired with a serving of steamed vegetables or cooked beans, it makes a wonderful slow carb meal that doesn't break any rules at all.
There really isn't anything to feel guilty about with this recipe, as with most strict slow carb recipes, so eat as many as you'd like until you are satisfied.  These meatballs will leave you feeling full and content, and are a perfect compliment to a slow carb dinner.  Vary the seasoning as you see fit, but what I've listed gives them excellent flavour.  Please try them, enjoy them, and leave me a comment to say how yours turned out!


Ingredients:
  • pack of lean ground turkey
  • garlic salt
  • rosemary
  • pepper
  • chili powder
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
  • olive oil
Directions
  1. Preheat a frying pan to medium heat.
  2. In a large bowl, add all of the remaining ingredients.  Mix well.
  3. Add a tbsp or so of olive oil to the frying pan, and then add approximately tablespoon-sized scoops of turkey to the pan.  Since the turkey is wetter than if you had added breadcrumbs, the meatballs won't hold their shape very well initially, but try to keep them somewhat round.
  4. When you have filled the pan with meatballs, cook them for a minute or 2 on the first side to sear them, and then use a fork or tongs to flip them over to sear the other side.
  5. After both sides are nicely browned, you can cover the frying pan with a lid for 5 minutes or so to trap the steam and ensure that the insides get thoroughly cooked.
  6. Remove from the heat and serve immediately.  They are ready when there is no pink left in the center.  Check the thickest meatball, and if it's cooked, it's a good bet that they're all cooked.
Recommendations and options:
You can vary the amounts of the seasonings that you add to the turkey to fit your preferred flavor.  I like to add a lot of chili powder, but just a bit of rosemary and garlic salt.  The Worcestershire sauce is also quite powerful, so a little will go a long ways.
To make them even more satisfying, you could add some chopped onions or crushed garlic to the meat mixture, prior to forming the meatballs.
If you steamed them during cooking, they should have kept their moisture and don't necessarily need anything additional.  However, Salsa or hot sauce go well with them.  I like serving these slow carb turkey meatballs with a variety of steamed vegetables.  

3 comments:

  1. I made these for dinner tonight, they were very good! I served them over black beans with homemade marinara sauce. I doubled the recipe and kept the cooked meatballs warm in the oven while I cooked the rest of the meatballs. I was looking all over for a slow carb meatball recipe, but it was hard to find one without either breadcrumbs or cheese in it. Thanks for sharing!

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  2. My husband and I have recently started the "4 Hour Body" slow carb diet. I notice there really aren't any sources for slow carb diet recipes on the internet and am so glad to find your blog! :)

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  3. I've just started the slow carb diet myself and was looking for recipe ideas with white beans and found your site. I look forward to seeing more, but the ideas you've included are great. Although Max's caution is correct, not all W-sauces are created equal. Even something as basic as French's avoids HFCS. Check out this site http://www.stophfcs.com/list.html Also, I'm not so strict! A tip I'd like to offer when making low/slow carb meatballs is use mayo and/or some mustard for flavor. The mayo offers a slightly thicker consistency than the egg alone. Of course you have to watch the ingredients in mayo. Another option for those who dabble with cheese would be to add some grated parmesan - great for flavor as well as bread crumb substitute. I look forward to trying these meatballs over white beans and spinach with some tomato sauce. Yum!

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