Meatballs with Buttermilk Gravy
Submitted by sheldge
Beef meatballs in tangy buttermilk gravy served over noodles or homemade spaetzle. Pan-fried with mustard and onion for old-fashioned German-American flavor.
YIELD
6 servingsPREP
10 minCOOK
30 minREADY
40 minThese pan-fried meatballs swim in a tangy buttermilk gravy that tastes like something your German grandmother would have made on a Tuesday night. The meatballs themselves are seasoned with mustard and chopped onion, which gives them a savory bite that stands up to the rich, slightly sour gravy.
The gravy comes together right in the same skillet. After the meatballs brown, you cook sliced onions in the drippings, then stir in flour and buttermilk to build a thick, tangy sauce. That buttermilk is doing something special here. It adds an acidity that cuts through the richness of the beef, keeping the whole dish from feeling heavy.
Serve this over egg noodles or go the extra mile and make the included spaetzle recipe. Those little dumplings pressed through a colander into boiling water catch the gravy in every nook and cranny.
Kitchen Tips
- Turn the meatballs often while cooking so they brown evenly on all sides. The full 25 minutes matters for cooking through without burning the outside.
- Reserve exactly 2 tablespoons of drippings for the gravy. Too much and it gets greasy; too little and the flour won’t have enough fat to form a proper roux.
- Whisk the flour into the buttermilk before adding it to the skillet to avoid lumps. Dumping flour directly into hot liquid creates clumps that won’t dissolve.
- For the spaetzle, if the batter won’t push through the colander easily, thin it with a splash of milk until it moves freely.
Variations
- Use ground pork or a pork-beef blend for richer, more tender meatballs.
- Add a tablespoon of caraway seeds to the gravy for a more pronounced German flavor.
- Stir fresh dill into the finished gravy for a Scandinavian twist.
Ingredients
Directions
Combine egg and milk; stir in crumbs, chopped onion, mustard, 1 teaspoon salt, and dash pepper.
Add meat; mix well. Shape into 30 1½ inch meatballs. In large skillet cook meatballs in hot oil, turning often, 25 minutes or until done. Remove meatballs, reserving 2 tablespoons drippings. Add sliced onion; cook until tender. Stir together flour, ¼ teaspoon salt, and buttermilk; add to skillet. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Reduce heat. Return meatballs to skillet. Cook 2 minutes. Serve with hot cooked noodles or spaetzle. Makes 6 servings. Spaetzle: 2 cups all-purpose flour 1 Teaspoon salt 2 eggs ¾ cup milk In a mixing bowl combine flour and salt. Mix eggs and milk; stir into flour mixture. Place batter in coarse-sieved deep-fat frying basket or colander with ¼ inch holes. Hold over kettle of boiling salted water. Press the batter through the deep-fat frying basket or colander with the back of a wooden spoon or rubber spatula. If the dough is too thick to push through, thin it with a little milk. Cook and stir for 5 minutes; drain. Keep warm.
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