Pork tenderloin that is simple and deliciously tender. You can adjust the amount of sage to your preference.
| Prep Time: | 10 mins |
| Cook Time: | 50 mins |
| Total Time: | 1 hr |
| Servings: | 4 |
| Yield: | 12 meatballs |
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- ½ cup uncooked white rice
- ½ cup water
- ⅓ cup chopped onion
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon celery salt
- ⅛ teaspoon garlic powder
- ⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 cup water, or more as needed
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
- Mix ground beef, rice, 1/2 cup water, onion, salt, celery salt, garlic powder, and black pepper in a bowl. Roll mixture into 12 meatballs.
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place meatballs into the hot skillet; cook, turning occasionally, until evenly browned. Drain and discard excess grease.
- Pour tomato sauce, 1 cup water, and Worcestershire sauce into the skillet; reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer until meatballs are no longer pink in the center and rice is tender, about 45 minutes. Stir in more water if sauce becomes too dry.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Shape meatballs as directed above and place them in an 8×8-inch baking dish. Mix together tomato sauce, 1 cup water, and Worcestershire sauce in a bowl; pour over meatballs. Cover and bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake 15 more minutes.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 319 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 26 g |
| Cholesterol | 69 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 2 g |
| Protein | 22 g |
| Saturated Fat | 5 g |
| Sodium | 1415 mg |
| Sugars | 5 g |
| Fat | 14 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
The meatballs were okay. But the sauce does not work at all. The astringency blows the meatballs away.
Since our roommate is allergic to tomatoes I used cream of mushroom soup instead. Either way it comes out excellent.
Delicious make them twice a week
It really could have used a whipped egg to bind it all together.
I should have read the reviews 1st.
It was a good, simple recipe to follow. Rice came out at just the right tenderness.
Simple rule of using ground meat: don’t add water, add an egg. The egg makes it hold together. This works for meatballs or meatloaf. Gotta have an egg. No water. Worcestershire or milk or any other liquid in a recipe can only be offset with the use of egg. Breadcrumbs also, if there is more liquid. Otherwise it falls apart.
Way too much water! My meatballs broke apart! Disappointed for sure!
Like others, my mom also used tomato soup, but using tomato sauce instead really makes a difference. I can honestly say these are better than the ones mom used to make (sorry, mom)! I use a little less water in the meat mixture, but otherwise I don’t change a thing – the recipe is great as is.
I have made these for my family for 45 years. I use tomato soup. I do not use all that salt that this recipe called for. My family loves Porcupine meatballs. Our grandson and his girl are coming to dinner tonight. This is what they wanted me to make. I made mashed potatoes to go with it. With a baked butternut squash. With garlic bread. Dessert was pineapple upside down cake.
I can’t speak for the method of cooking these because we grew up with these made in a stovetop pressure cooker. My mom always used tomato soup and water for the sauce, which we used as a gravy on mashed potatoes – sounds gross but it’s delicious. I bought a Cuisinart electric pressure cooker several years ago (before InstaPots became so popular) and I’ve always used it for these but the meatballs just lacked something. The addition of the celery salt and the Worcestershire was just the ticket. I also soak the rice in an equal amount of water for about 15 minutes before adding the beef and seasonings and I always use a lean ground beef so the meatballs hold their shape in the cooker.
This is my go to Porcupine Meatball recipe. I’ve made these several times. I follow the recipe as written. Delicious!
I still have that cook book & use it every so often except it’s from 1959!
It was “ok”. Not my favorite porcupine meatball recipe. I agree with another reviewer who didn’t understand the high ratings. I wanted to like it, but just not enough flavor.
Very easy, very tasty. I will make this again.
I have made this also. Glad you put this recipe up on this page because I had lost mine. Thank you I will be making this soon.
This is a great recipe for porcupine meatballs. I made it as written, with one exception- I used tomato soup in place of the tomato sauce because that’s what my mother did. This recipe is in my “keeper” folder.
Putting the protein into a stainless steel pan (using correct heat) without any fat/oil caused the meatballs to stick. They didn’t caramelize to release till the meatballs were overly browned. Taste was Ok but I’ll stick to the traditional recipe.
This is an oldie but goodie.. Thank you Melinda for sharing a beautiful reminder of the good Ole day’s. Where we were taught to say nothing at all if we couldn’t find anything nice to say.. Beauty with food and cooking is. Change 1 ingredient and its uniquely you’res Love LOVE LOVE it and it’s versatility
I really like this recipe because it is the one my Mom used back in the day! It is identical to the one in the old Betty Crocker cook books and it even has the too large amount of water that makes the meatballs so loose. I cut the amount of water down to a 1/4 cup, subbed in for the Cream of Tomato Soup for the tomato sauce and I soak the rice in water for 15 minutes to get them ready to cook faster, otherwise they come out a bit more al dente than I like. I really should try it w instant rice instead. Using a full 30 ounces of soup helped the rice cook softer. I gently turn the meatballs when I uncover them after 45 minutes in the oven. I think my Mom shredded old bread and added it to the meatballs but I am not sure she did it all the time or how it changed the rest of the recipe. Sometimes I add either 1 Tbs Calabrian chili sauce or a teaspoon of Mediterranean Mix spices to give it a different taste. This is a fun recipe to play with!
I’ve been trying to make Porcupine meatballs for years and they never turned out right. I made Melinda’s recipe and loved it. My husband Evan commented that this recipes is a keeper.