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one long garlic-toasted sub roll mostly closed around exactly three round pork-and-veal meatballs in thick red tomato sauce with melted pale smoked mozzarella over them, without basil garnish or a separate sauce bowl
Andrew Fowler

Meatball Sub

Simmer these meatballs gently instead of browning them first, and the pork-and-veal mixture stays tender while the tomato sauce picks up flavor from the meat. Fresh bread soaked in milk gives the balls a softer texture than a dry breadcrumb mixture, but they still need to be shaped firmly enough to turn without falling apart. Leave them alone for the first part of the simmer so their surfaces can set. Smoked mozzarella melts over three meatballs in each garlic-brushed roll, which is plenty once the sauce has thickened. Spoon the sauce onto the meat rather than pouring it into the bottom of the bread.
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 25 minutes
Servings: 4
Ingredients Method

Ingredients
  

  • 3/4 lb ground pork
  • 3/4 lb ground veal
  • 2 slices soft white bread crusts removed and torn
  • 1/3 cup whole milk
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/4 cup finely grated Pecorino Romano
  • 3/4 tsp fine salt divided
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 small yellow onion finely chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves minced and divided
  • 1 can 28 oz whole peeled tomatoes, crushed by hand
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1/2 tsp dried basil
  • 4 sturdy sub rolls 8 inches long
  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter softened
  • 6 oz smoked mozzarella shredded

Method
 

  1. Soak torn bread in milk for 5 minutes, then mash with a fork. Mix gently with pork, veal, egg, Pecorino, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper and shape into 12 equal meatballs.
  2. Heat oil in a wide deep skillet over medium heat and soften onion for 6 minutes. Add two-thirds of the garlic for 30 seconds, then stir in tomatoes, water, dried basil and remaining salt; simmer for 10 minutes.
  3. Lower meatballs into the gently bubbling sauce in one layer. Cover and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes without stirring, then turn carefully with a spoon.
  4. Simmer for another 15 to 20 minutes until the centers reach 160°F. Uncover for the final 5 minutes if the sauce needs thickening, and spoon away excess surface fat.
  5. Heat the broiler. Mix butter with remaining garlic, split the rolls without severing the hinge and brush the cut faces; broil for 1 to 2 minutes until lightly golden.
  6. Put three meatballs in each roll with a modest spoonful of thick sauce. Divide smoked mozzarella over them and broil for 2 to 3 minutes until melted.
  7. Rest for 2 minutes, close the rolls around the filling and serve one sub per person. Keep any extra sauce separate so the bread doesn’t become waterlogged.