Out of Burgandy for meatballs - substitute w/ Shiraz or Merlot?

Cafe Society
1

Need answer fast! :smiley:

The question is which would taste better in a simmered savory meatball dish - Shiraz or Merlot. 'Cause that’s what people left here after the last party! Anything else you’d add to adjust the flavor? It’s mom’s classic Meatballs in Burgandy Sauce recipe, with large homemade meatballs in a sauce of Burgandy wine, beef stock and sour cream. I just discovered I’m out of Burgandy.

Dinner’s at 6:30, and I have no car today to go get stuff from the store. (I don’t think either liquor store in walking distance stocks Burgandy; they’re more the Mad Dog and Jack Daniels kinda places.)

2

Either would work fine. I’d probably lean towards the merlot because it’s a bit more mellow than a shiraz, but that’s just personal preference.

3

Use the merlot, but be aware that the flavor will be somewhat…lacking.

4

Thanks, I will use the merlot. I might be a decent enough cook to adjust for the “lack” on the fly, but it helps to know where to start. Wines are not my strong suit.

5

Assuming that you don’t usually use a really nice bottle of Burgundy for the meatballs, I don’t think the Merlot will be lacking. In the lower price ranges, they’re both fruity, light wines. It might taste slightly different than you’re used to, but I’m guessing it will be just about imperceptible.

But do let us know how it turns out, I’d be curious.

6

I was a little concerned when I tasted it pre-sour cream. “Lack” was the perfect word for it. It wasn’t exactly wrong, but not exactly right, either. It had a much narrower range of flavors than the Burgandy sauce, lacking both deep and high notes, if that makes any sense. It was all middle. I added a touch more salt and pepper and tossed in some allspice and let it simmer uncovered instead of covered, to reduce a bit a get more "wine"y. After it reduced a bit, I cut the heat and added the sour cream and it was great! Thanks for your help.

7

FWIW, the characteristic grape of most Burgundy wines is Pinot Noir. Lacking that, the next choice is Gamay, which most Americans (including me) are unlikely to have lying around, unless you are really into Beaujolais.

Glad it turned out fine. What did you drink with it?

8

Cook with the Merlot, drink the Shiraz.

9

Any chance you’d care to share the recipe?

10

Please? Recipe? Please??

11

Okay…this is adapted from the recipe for Burgandy Beef Balls in America Cooks: The General Federation of Women’s Clubs Cook Book, published in 1967. It’s old school Americana food, in other words! Not Atkins, South Beach or modern diet friendly. :wink:

1 small onion, diced fine
3/4 cup milk
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 tsp salt
'bout 30 grinds of fresh black pepper (prob’ly about 1/4 tsp or so)
**1 squirt prepared mustard **(yellow, dijon, brat…whatever you’ve got. Prob’ly 1 tsp or so, but I never measure it.)
Dash each of nutmeg and allspice - freshly ground if possible.
2 cups SOFT bread crumbs (as in, pulse a few slices of bread in your food processor. Mom and I used to pick apart the bread by hand. Never again!)
2 pounds ground beef (I’ve had fine luck substituting 1/2 the meat with ground turkey breast to lighten the caloric load just a bit.)

Mix all that up in a large mixing bowl with your hands. Try not to squeeze the mixture, temping thought that may be. Use a light hand. Form into balls - we make ours large for this recipe, about 2 inches across. Brown the balls on all sides over medium heat in a little shortening (original recipe) or butter or bacon grease (what I usually use.) The meatballs are pretty soft at this stage and like to fall apart on ya. Good luck. My best advice is to not crowd the pan - work in batches and give yourself plenty of flipping room. Place the balls in and let 'em sit there for a good 3-4 minutes and eventually they’ll release themselves so you can turn 'em to the next side. Don’t jiggle the pan. And don’t worry about all the “burnt” bits - those are what gives the sauce its beefy flavor.

It’s also possible to place the balls in muffin tins and bake at 350 for 20 minutes or so. When I’m in a hurry, this is what I do, only I leave a little bit of the meatball mixture out of the balls to intentionally “burn” (not really burn, just cook very very well) in my pan so I have that fond to work with. The meatballs suffer a little from not having a sear on them, but it’s much much easier to bake 'em.

When the meatballs are browned on all sides, remove them to a plate. Add to the pan:

3 Tablespoons flour or potato starch

And whisk to combine. If there’s not enough fat in the pan to make a smooth paste out of the starch, then you can cheat by adding a little olive oil. Stirring constantly, add:

10 ounces of double strength Better Than Bouillon Beef Stock (10 ounces water and 2.5 tsp of BtB) or 10 ounces of homemade reduced beef broth or a can of condensed beef broth. Do not attempt to use regular bouillon cubes, you will regret it.
3/4 cup Burgandy

When this thickens a bit, add the meatballs back into the pan and simmer for 20 minutes or so. Just before serving, kill the heat and stir in

**1/2 cup sour cream
**
I like to serve it with mashed potatoes and peas.

The rest of the merlot, of course! :smiley: Actually, my husband and I were wondering about that - is it gauche to drink the wine used in the preparation of the meal? I’m sure something else would have given it more contrast, but there was this mostly full bottle of merlot sitting on my counter when dinner was ready…

Actually, this meal is one of the few that I normally drink with good ol’ moo juice. Maybe because it’s comfort food from when I was a kid, but it’s so rich and meaty that milk tastes really good with it.

12

Not at all. Sometimes that’s just what you want. Contrasts can be good, but I’d go with whatever style I cooked with as a default. Not to mention that you have a bottle of wine to use up. Pop the cork, add to the food, drink the rest with the meal.