A good meatball is, of course, absolutely delicious! But these meatballs made on your KLAUWE surpass everything! We call these meatballs "Great Balls of Joy". Simple and unbeatable, Impress Your Friends! At Klauwe van de Kok, we explain how to make them.
Ingredients
Making the raw Great Balls of Joy consists of two parts. The first part is creating your homemade rub (spices) instead of using store-bought jars, and the second part is making the seasoned ground meat from which you roll your meatballs.
General:
- Preparation time: 30 minutes
- Cooking time: approximately 15-20 minutes on the KLAUWE
- Required: a meat thermometer
Ingredients for your homemade barbecue rub:
- 70 grams of sea salt
- 60 grams of brown sugar
- 35 grams of paprika powder (regular, not spicy/hot)
- 3 tablespoons of freshly ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons of garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons of onion powder
- 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper
Ingredients for the great balls of joy:
- 750 grams of ground beef
- 40 grams of grated Parmesan cheese (1 packet from Albert Heijn)
- 1 beaten egg
- 60 grams of seasoned breadcrumbs
- 120 ml of milk
- 2 tablespoons of finely chopped garlic cloves
- 2 teaspoons of dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon of sea salt
- 1 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon of dried oregano
- 450 grams of bacon (3 packets from Albert Heijn, 2 packets can suffice but it’s a bit tight)
Instructions
What to do with your KLAUWE:
First, fire up your KLAUWE and aim for a temperature of around 150 degrees Celsius.
For this dish, we’ll be grilling indirectly, so keep in mind where you place your coals. For example, place the coals on one side of your fire basket. Alternatively, you can wait until the coals are burning and then push them to one side with a poker.
When lighting your KLAUWE, you want more oxygen, so open the air vents at the front and back completely. (After lighting the fire, close the rear air vent completely.) The front air vent remains open when lighting and later serves as the fine-tuning point for your KLAUWE’s temperature.
If your fire needs a heat/temperature boost, you can open the rear air vent again briefly. The air vent in the lid should be half open. (Of course, this depends on how the temperature behaves. More air means more fire and higher temperatures, and vice versa; it’s a matter of playing with the oxygen. Once the fire is burning, you control it with the front air vent.)
The lid should not be on the KLAUWE. Let the fire do its work.
Moving on the barbecue rub and the meatballs:
We start by making your barbecue rub. Combine all the ingredients listed above in a large bowl. Once ready, stir the mixture thoroughly. Set the bowl with your barbecue rub aside. Now, let’s move on to the meatballs.
Put the ground beef in a large mixing bowl and add all the other ingredients (except for the barbecue rub and the bacon). Then, get in there with your bare hands to mix the ground beef and the other ingredients well. Take your time with this step; everything needs to be thoroughly combined!
Once the mixture is well combined, roll the meat into golf ball-sized balls. After making meatballs from all the ground beef, roll each meatball in the barbecue rub. Make sure each ball is well coated with your barbecue rub.
Finally, wrap each meatball with a slice of bacon.
Once all the balls are ready, set them aside. We’re going back to your KLAUWE.
Back to your KLAUWE:
When the coals are hot and the tallest flames have subsided, move the fire basket with the lifting hook (and barbecue gloves) to the bottom and fifth level (from the top).
Place the grill rack on level 2 (from the top). Then, put the lid on your KLAUWE. (We’re grilling without the water ring and without the water pan.)
The air vents at the front and back are still somewhat open. Watch where the temperature goes. The goal is about 150 degrees Celsius. If the temperature exceeds 150 degrees Celsius, adjust the air vents. Close the rear air vent completely. See what happens to the temperature. If it continues to rise, close the front air vent a bit more. Ultimately, you can fine-tune the temperature with the front air vent. If the temperature drops too low, open the front air vent more (and possibly the rear vent too). If the temperature gets too high, close the front air vent a bit.
Take your time with this. The temperature needs to stabilize. Do this with a fitting drink in hand, of course.
And then?:
Once the temperature is stable, take the prepared Great Balls of Joy and place them on the hot grill rack of your KLAUWE. Since the fire is now at the bottom, you don’t need to worry as much about the direct and indirect sides at 150 degrees Celsius.
If you have a meat thermometer with a Bluetooth function, insert the probe into one of the meatballs and close the lid of your KLAUWE.
Let the Great Balls of Joy cook and brown nicely. Depending on the fire, this takes about 15 to 20 minutes. Check your Great Balls of Joy occasionally. You don’t want them to burn, so turn them once on your grill rack.
When the internal temperature reaches 71 degrees Celsius, your Great Balls of Joy are ready. It’s time to take them off your KLAUWE and serve them.
Servingtip:
Want to add a special touch? Spray a thin layer of whiskey over the Great Balls of Joy with a spray bottle 5 minutes before you take them off the grill.
Make sure the Great Balls of Joy dry out before serving. Nobody wants soggy balls!
The finishing touch:
These Great Balls of Joy have so much flavor that sauces and dressings are unnecessary. Just grab and bite! (If you’re a sauce lover, go ahead and indulge. Nothing is required, and everything is allowed.)
Bon appétit and don’t forget: Eat with your KLAUWE and Impress Your Friends!