<p>I just put them to simmer in the sauce, no pre-cooking. I am going to try that flax idea! Wow. Going to the fridge right now to defrost some meat!!</p>
<p>The meatballs I make most frequently are Indian. (Not a classic recipe, but something I made up myself. </p>
<p>I lightly brown them…add liquid, cover and steam them</p>
<p>@Consolation I’m a newbie to Indian cuisine. Only had curry for the first time ever at age, er, ummm, 40-something . Can you share your recipe please? I made a crockpot butter chicken/curry the other day that has me interested in exploring Indian cuisine.</p>
<p>@shellz
Well, I don’t exactly have a recipe, but…</p>
<p>I throw the following in the cuisinart:
- a couple of inches of fresh ginger, peeled and cut into a few chunks
- 2 or 3 scallions, with just the roots trimmed off and similarly cut into a few pieces
- 3 or 4 cloves of garlic, peeled
- 1 slice of low carb bread torn into pieces (optional)</p>
<p>Process in bursts until it is all minced, then add a 20 oz package of ground turkey broken up, about a teaspoon of salt, and sometimes a heaping teaspoon or so of my homemade Madras curry powder or a healthy pinch or two of my homemade garam masala. You can also throw in an egg. Process in bursts until it is all mixed.</p>
<p>You can use one wide, deep skillet or shallow pan with a lid for the whole thing, or you can brown the meatballs in something like a cast iron skillet and do the rest of the cooking in the pan with a lid. I’m going to assume you use 2 pans.</p>
<p>Heat 2 or so TBS of oil over med high heat in a wide, heavy pan, suitable for browning. Adjust the temp so that the meatballs brown quickly. Rapidly form meatballs of about 1"-1 1/2" diameter and drop them into the skillet as you go. (Or make them all up first if you aren’t terribly handy at this sort of thing! 
) Shake the pan, use a spatula, whatever works to brown them on almost all sides. If you are doing them in batches, or you aren’t getting them in there quickly, remove browned ones to another dish as you go. You are not trying to cook them through. Add a little oil as necessary. When they are done, the oil should be just about gone. Remove the last meatballs to the dish and deglaze the pan with a little water, scraping. Set aside.</p>
<p>For the sauce, heat 2 or 3 TBS of oil over med high heat. Add</p>
<p>1 tsp black or brown mustard seeds
about 1/4 tsp fenugreek seeds
2 dried red Thai-type chilis,
a cinnamon stick
about 6-10 cardamom pods
4 or so cloves
either a few bay leaves or 10-12 curry leaves</p>
<p>They will start to pop and brown quickly, and when they do immediately add</p>
<p>2 med onions, peeled, cut in half from top to bottom, then thinly sliced. </p>
<p>Cook until starting to brown. Add a couple cloves of sliced garlic and some minced ginger if you want and cook briefly. Add a tsp of turmeric and cook briefly.</p>
<p>Add about 1/3 cup crushed tomatoes, the deglazing liquid from the skillet plus water to make about 1/3 cup, the juice of a lemon, and optionally about 1/3 cup plain yogurt. Stir to mix, add the meatballs, bring to a simmer, cover, and cook for about 30 minutes. Correct for salt and lemon juice.</p>
<p>OR
- make the meatballs and cook them in the jarred sauce of your preference,
- make the meatballs and cook them in a sauce where everything remains the same except you skip the individual spices and use some kind of spice mix, such as Balti from Penzey’s, instead.</p>
<p>@ Bunsen: I love this Swedish meatball recipe though it doesn’t have mushrooms in the sauce but you could add them once you’ve browned the meatballs and before you add the flour for the roux/gravy. I think mushrooms would be a great addition…even common or garden ones.
<a href=“http://damndelicious.net/2014/02/21/swedish-meatballs/”>http://damndelicious.net/2014/02/21/swedish-meatballs/</a></p>
<p>The best Swedish Meatball recipe I’ve ever found had celery seed in it. It was some kind of “family recipe” issue of a magazine like Food&Wine. I haven’t been able to locate it for years, though.</p>
<p>Bake.</p>