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Chipotle Meatballs

Ground pork formed into meatballs with minced bacon, garlic, eggs, bread crumbs, and oregano, cooked with a chipotle chili and tomato sauce.

Elise Bauer

Elise founded Simply Recipes in 2003 and led the site until 2019. She has an MA in Food Research from Stanford University.

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Elise Bauer
Elise Bauer
Chipotle Meatballs
Elise Bauer

Several years ago a Rick Bayless recipe for chipotle meatballs appeared in the Wednesday section of the New York Times. Fortunately we didn't notice the recipe until a correction for it appeared in a subsequent paper, correcting the 2 cans of chipotle peppers the paper had published with the correct 2 chiles.

We made the meatballs and loved them, but couldn't help wincing over the idea of eating them made with 5 times as much chipotle!

We first published this recipe in 2006 and have since modified it a bit. This is the updated version. Excellent served with rice and/or tortillas.

You could even serve the meatballs with spaghetti for a Tex Mex-ish version. It's quite spicy and best accompanied with something cooling like sour cream and thinly sliced head lettuce.

Chipotle Meatballs

Prep Time 25 mins
Cook Time 20 mins
Total Time 45 mins
Servings 6 to 8 servings

Ingredients

  • Meatballs
  • 2 slices bacon, minced
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup bread crumbs
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 1/2 pounds ground pork
  • 2 teaspoons dried oregano or finely chopped fresh mint
  • 1-2 teaspoons chipotle powder (or a couple teaspoons of adobo sauce)
  • Sauce
  • 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, chopped, about 1 cup
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1-3 chipotles chiles in adobo (canned), minced fine and sauce reserved
  • 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes (preferably fire-roasted)
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/2 cup beef or chicken broth

Method

  1. Preheat oven to 400°F
  2. Mix meatball ingredients:

    Mix all the meatball ingredients together in a large bowl and mix well with your clean hands for a minute or two. You want the mixture to be well integrated, but you don't want to overwork it or the meatballs will be tough.

  3. Form into meatballs and bake:

    With wet hands or an ice cream scoop, form meat into about 16 plum-size balls and space them out in a 13-by-9-inch baking dish, or, if you have one, a mini-muffin tin. Bake at 400°F until lightly browned, about 15 minutes.

    chipotle-meatballs-method-1
    Elise Bauer
  4. Make the sauce:

    While meatballs bake, heat the olive oil in a sauté pan over medium-high heat and sauté the onions until they just start to brown. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.

    Add the minced chipotles, the can of tomatoes, oregano or mint, and beef broth. Mix well and add salt to taste. If you want more chipotle flavor, add the reserved chipotle sauce spoonful by spoonful, mixing and tasting between spoonfuls. Simmer the sauce uncovered as the meatballs cook.

    chipotle-meatballs-method-2
    Elise Bauer
  5. Toss meatballs with sauce to serve:

    When meatballs are ready, put them into the sauce and toss to coat. If the sauce is too thin for your taste, continue to boil it down for a few minutes. Otherwise, serve with rice, tortillas or polenta. Garnish with cilantro to serve.

    chipotle-meatballs-method-3
    Elise Bauer

Notes:

The word "chipotle" actually comes from the Nahuatl words chil (chile pepper) and poctli (smoke). (See Wikipedia.)

Links:

Diana Kennedy's chipotle meatballs from The Wednesday Chef

Rick Bayless' chipotle meatballs as written in the New York Times

Chipotle Meatballs
Elise Bauer