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Porcupine balls

23/9/2021

3 Comments

 
PictureA classic of Victorian cuisine entwined with family memories.
By Geoff Ellis
 
I'D NEVER heard of porcupine balls before we workshopped our Term 3 cooking schedule. Everyone who shared it had a family or childhood memory to accompany the meal so I guess it must be part of that essential Victorian cuisine. Bill said it reminded him of his Mum's cooking and Leslie said it “tasted like my childhood - in the best possible way”.
 
A lot of people used this recipe to gain confidence in the kitchen in their younger days and it has been passed through generations of many families. As we went back into lockdown it brought back fond memories of learning to cook and the friends and family who can't be with us. Dicing the onion wasn't the only cause of tears today.
 
We had most of those ingredients in the pantry so we only had to buy the mince and soup. We fed seven people for $11.50.

Ingredients
500g minced beef
1 cup rice
1 egg
I finely diced onion
2 cups of water
2 or 3 cans of tomato soup
1 finely chopped garlic clove
Method
  1. Put the mince, rice, egg, onion and garlic into a bowl and mix thoroughly.
  2. Roll into balls.
  3. Heat water and soup in a big pot.
  4. Place meatballs into the mix and lower to a simmer.
  5. Cook until the rice is soft and the meat is cooked.
  6. Serve with mashed potato and a veg or two.
Photos and recipe from Bass Coast Adult Learning Centre’s 'From the Pantry' cooking class, which focuses on the shared satisfaction of making simple, tasty meals that won't break the budget. ​
3 Comments
Miriam Strickland
23/9/2021 01:19:06 pm

It's a regular at our place Geoff. Our recipe comes from "Making the Most of Meat" published by the NSW division of the Meat and Allied Trades Federation of Australia, but has no date. (There's a four digit postcode, but the phone number only has 6 digits. 60s era?) The recipe has just one third a cup of rice. Still works a treat. And the sauce from scratch with more onion, garlic, celery and a cup of chopped, peeled tomatoes plus tomato paste and some stock, but yours is simpler and just as tasty.

Reply
Geoff
24/9/2021 02:22:07 pm

Thanks Miriam,
I reckon that recipe has '60s' written all over it and it sounds pretty tasty. I love the way our kitchens are the heart and soul of our families.

Reply
Margaret Lee
30/9/2021 06:37:05 pm

Ah the Nursing Mum's Cookbook!! What a favourite with my kids all those years ago Geoff.

Reply



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