These meatballs are bound with masarepa, the precooked corn flour used for arepas, rather than with breadcrumbs. Ground beef, onion, red bell pepper, garlic and cilantro, mixed by hand and fried.
That swap is the whole point, and it has a side effect worth knowing: it makes them gluten-free without anyone having adapted anything.
Cornmeal instead of breadcrumbs
Every meatball needs a binder. Its job is to absorb the juices the meat releases as it cooks and to hold everything together so the ball does not collapse in the pan.
In most of Europe and North America that binder is breadcrumbs, sometimes soaked in milk. In Colombia it is masarepa, for the plain reason that masarepa is in every kitchen: it is what arepas are made from, and there is always a bag open.
It absorbs at least as well, and the small amount used here does not make the meatballs taste of corn. What it does do is give them a slightly firmer, cleaner texture than the softness bread gives.
Gluten-free without trying
Masarepa is corn, so there is no wheat anywhere in this recipe. Meatballs are usually off the table for anyone avoiding gluten, and these are not.
Two caveats. The recipe offers breadcrumbs as an alternative, and taking it undoes this. And if you serve them in a bought sauce, check the label, since many use wheat as a thickener.
Which corn flour
Masarepa, sold as P.A.N., Areparina or Goya, and usually labelled harina de maíz precocida. It is precooked, which is what lets it absorb liquid quickly.
Masa harina, the nixtamalised flour used for tortillas, would also bind meatballs but brings a distinctly Mexican flavour. Coarse cornmeal works less well, since it stays gritty. For a quarter of a cup in half a pound of meat, any of them will hold the meatballs together, but masarepa is what this recipe means.
Mix with your hands, and stop early
The recipe says to mix with your hands, and it is worth doing rather than reaching for a spoon: you can feel when the mixture is even, which you cannot see.
Stop as soon as it is. Beyond that point you are working the proteins in the meat, they tighten, and the meatballs come out springy and dense instead of tender. It is the same rule that ruins a burger.
Wet hands make shaping easier and stop the mixture sticking.
Three ways to finish them
The recipe quietly offers all three and it is easy to miss.
- Fried and served as they are — about seven minutes in the pan, turning, until golden all over.
- Simmered in sauce — fry them first, then give them twenty minutes in the sauce. Frying first is what builds the flavour; raw meatballs dropped into sauce come out pale and soft.
- In a soup — add them and let them cook for as long as the soup needs.
On the sauce itself: the recipe's last step suggests sweet and sour, which is one option among several. Tomato sauce or hogao, the Colombian sofrito of onion, tomato and garlic, are closer to what most households serve, and neither takes long.
What to serve with them
White rice, in Colombia, nearly without exception. A salad alongside, or fried ripe plantain if you want the full plate.
Related recipes
- Meatball stew — the same meatballs, cooked in sauce.
- Meatball soup — and the third option, in broth.
- Colombian white rice — what goes underneath.
- Beef patties — flattened instead of rolled.
Cornmeal Meatballs FAQ
It does the same job. The binder in a meatball absorbs the juices and holds the meat together so it does not fall apart in the pan, and masarepa absorbs moisture at least as well as breadcrumbs. In Colombia it is simply what is in the cupboard, since masarepa is used for arepas every day.
As written, yes. Masarepa is precooked corn flour with no wheat in it, and nothing else in the recipe contains gluten. If you take the recipe's alternative and use breadcrumbs, that stops being true. Check any sauce you serve them with as well.
Precooked corn flour, sold as P.A.N., Areparina or Goya, and used across Colombia and Venezuela for arepas. It is not masa harina, which is nixtamalised for tortillas, and not cornmeal in the coarse American sense. Any of the three would bind meatballs, but masarepa is what this recipe means.
Overmixing. Work the mixture with your hands only until it comes together evenly, then stop. Beyond that point the proteins in the meat tighten and the meatballs turn springy and heavy. The same rule applies to burgers.
Both, in that order, if you want them in sauce. Fry them first to brown the outside, which is where a lot of the flavour comes from, then simmer them in the sauce for about twenty minutes. Dropping raw meatballs straight into sauce gives you a paler, softer result.
White rice, almost always, and often a salad or fried plantain alongside. Sauce is optional: sweet and sour is one option, but tomato sauce or hogao, the Colombian sofrito, suit them better and are what most households actually use.
📖 Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ pound lean ground beef (about 225 g)
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup masarepa (precooked corn flour) (P.A.N. or Areparina; breadcrumbs work but then they are no longer gluten-free)
- ½ large onion, finely chopped (you can soften it in a pan first if you prefer a milder result)
- 1 clove garlic, crushed
- 1 sprig cilantro, finely chopped (the leaf, not the seed)
- Salt, pepper and spices, to taste
- ½ cup vegetable oil, for frying
- ¼ red bell pepper, finely chopped
Notas
Instructions
- Put the ground beef, onion, bell pepper, garlic, masarepa, cilantro, egg, salt, pepper and spices into a large bowl. Mix well with your hands until it is even.
- Shape the meatballs and set them on a tray or a flat plate.
- Put a pan with the oil over medium-high heat. Once it is hot, add the meatballs one at a time and fry them, turning, until golden all over, about 7 minutes in total.
- Lift them out and drain on paper towels. If you would rather cook them in sauce, simmer them in it for about 20 minutes; if they are going into a soup, add them and give them the soup's cooking time.
- Serve with white rice, and with a sauce if you like: sweet and sour, tomato, or hogao.
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