MEET THE SOUS CHEF
PATRICK MCKEE, EXECUTIVE CHEF, PALEY'S PLACE, PORTLAND, OR
At home, Patrick McKee, executive chef at Paley’s Place in Portland, Oregon, works with a different kitchen brigade. His two children, Isabella, 12, and Henry, 8, often cook alongside Dad. Says McKee, “We’re like the Three Musketeers in the kitchen.”
One dish they make regularly is spaghetti and meatballs, a recipe that McKee, a Kansas City, Missouri, native who has lived in Portland, Oregon, since 1994, attributes to his mother. He shared all of his meatball-making secrets with Tasting Table, and gave us a spectacular workhorse recipe for tomato sauce that can be used on your next Big Night.
TRACK THIS CHEF
DAY IN THE LIFE
Read Up
McKee works 75-hour weeks, so days off are mellow and usually include exercise and a trip to the library or Powell's to check out new cookbooks. His favorites include Fergus Henderson's The Whole Beast: Nose to Tail Cooking and the quarterly food magazine Lucky Peach.
TIPS & TECHNIQUES
Mastering Meatballs
For his meatballs, McKee uses a recipe his grandmother adapted from a '40's era Woman's Day article. It contains ground beef, pork and veal but no breadcrumbs, so the meatballs are gluten-free. He browns his meatballs before adding them to the sauce, but in doing so, leaves them slightly underdone. Then he adds them to the hot tomato sauce to finish cooking.
Kids in the Kitchen
When it comes to cooking with kids, McKee encourages parents to “let your kids actually do stuff. Let them roll the meatballs. Let them chop the herbs. They’ll be more excited to eat something they helped cook.”
YIELD
4 servings
INGREDIENTS
Meatballs
Ground beef (80 percent lean), ½ pound
Ground veal, ¼ pound
Ground pork, ¼ pound
Large egg, 1
Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, ¼ pound (finely grated)
Medium yellow onion, ½ (finely chopped)
Garlic, 3 cloves (finely chopped)
Flat-leaf parsley leaves, ¼ cup (finely chopped)
Kosher salt, ½ teaspoon
Freshly ground black pepper, ½ teaspoon
Extra-virgin olive oil, 2 tablespoons to ¼ cup
Sauce
Extra-virgin olive oil, 2 tablespoons
Medium yellow onion, ½ (finely chopped)
Garlic cloves, 3 (thinly sliced)
Red pepper flakes, pinch
Dry white wine, ½ cup
Thyme sprigs, 3
Dried bay leaf, 1
Canned chopped tomatoes, one 15-ounce box or can (preferably Pomi or San Marzano)
Tomato paste, one 6-ounce can
Basil leaves, ½ cup (finely chopped)
Pasta
Kosher salt, 2 tablespoons
Spaghetti, 1 pound
Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, ¼ pound (finely grated)
Basil leaves, ½ cup (roughly chopped)
EQUIPMENT
Mixing bowls
Large plate
Plastic wrap
Bowls for serving
DIRECTIONS
1. Make the meatballs: In a medium mixing bowl, combine the
- Ground beef
- Ground veal
- Ground pork
- Large egg
- Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- Finely chopped yellow onion
- Finely chopped garlic
- Finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
Use your hands to mix the ingredients together until thoroughly combined, then form into 16 balls (each a little larger than a golf ball). Place the balls on a plate, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
2. Make the sauce: In a medium pot set over medium heat, add the
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Finely chopped yellow onion
- Thinly sliced garlic
- Red pepper flakes
Cook, using the wooden spoon to stir the onions often, until they are tender and translucent, about 2 minutes. Add the
- Dry white wine
Cook until the wine is nearly absorbed, 5 to 6 minutes. Then stir in the
- Thyme sprigs
- Bay leaf
- Chopped tomatoes
- Tomato paste
Turn the heat down to medium-low and simmer for 1 hour, then stir in the
- Chopped basil leaves
Turn off the heat and set aside.
3. Fry the meatballs: In a cast-iron skillet set over medium-high heat, add
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Heat the oil until it shimmers, about 2 minutes, then add the shaped meatballs (you may need to cook them in batches and in the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil depending upon the size of your pan) and cook until brown on all sides, 10 to 15 minutes total. Use the tongs to transfer the meatballs to the warm sauce. Once all of the meatballs are cooked, return the sauce to a simmer and cook until the meatballs are cooked through, about 10 minutes.
4. Make the pasta: Fill a large pot with water, add the salt and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the
- Spaghetti
Cook until al dente, 10 to 12 minutes, then drain the pasta into a colander, saving ¼ cup of pasta water (to thin the sauce, if needed).
5. Divide the spaghetti into 4 bowls. Top each with a few meatballs and some sauce. Finish with the
- Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- Roughly chopped fresh basil