The Pantry Ingredient That Makes My Grandma Adele’s Meatballs So Famous (It’s Not What You’d Expect)

My Grandma Adele left my family with a handful of her legendary Italian recipes — most notably her lasagna (and her unconventional golden rule that makes it so, so good). My dad makes a batch of her lasagna every Christmas, but that’s not all. On the side we always have a big pot of her meatballs and sauce.

Now before I get into her meatballs and what defines them, I feel like meatballs are one of those foods everyone claims to do the best. People have all kinds of tricks for them: a combination of pork and beef! Let the mixture mingle in the fridge for better flavor! Add a little ricotta for extra fat! Stir in a packet of onion soup mix! (We’re no strangers to Lipton — it’s the secret to flavoring the best chicken thighs of your life.) These are just a handful of the many, many tips people hold close with their meatballs.

Turns out, Grandma Adele’s tip is a little more surprising. If you read about her lasagna trick, you’re already familiar with the fact that she was a big fan of warm spices in her Italian cooking. She swore by adding some ground nutmeg in her meatball mixture. It doesn’t seem like the typical meatball addition, but after doing some research this isn’t such a curveball. Some people on the internet claim it’s key for authenticity. You’d never guess it’s there, and you don’t need a lot. (You also don’t need to grate it fresh, according to Grandma Adele; she used the ground kind.) She followed the ratio of 1/2 teaspoon per pound of meat. It adds a depth of flavor that makes your meatballs truly memorable. 

So find your favorite meatball recipe (sorry, that’s a secret of Grandma Adele’s my family’s not ready to give up, but these meatballs with spaghetti are a great place to start), and be sure to add some nutmeg into the meat mixture. I guarantee you won’t regret it.