Meatball Master

I love this weird kitchen thing! While I do use it for meatballs, as a cottage baker, I use it to get perfectly sized cookies that I don't need to weigh. I just squish the dough in, freeze them, then move them to a Ziplock in my freezer so that I can bake as many as I need as orders come in.

If you like homemade meatballs, you need this! Maybe two! I had tried making them by hand, or using different meatball makers that look like melon balls on scissors. The amount of time it takes to make meatballs with this is super quick. I have made these without putting them in the freezer, and while it takes a bit longer to get them out, and you have to shape them a bit by hand, but it works and is still faster than other ways. Letting them freeze for a couple hours, or over night works great! I have even had to leave them in the container for a week, no freezer burn and they popped out easily. Works great for popping into a baggie and freezing for when you need them later. I usually bake meatballs, which I did from frozen and they held up, was even asked what brand they were by a friend so they could buy some. If you are thinking of getting this, do it!

Works just like we expected, makes great size meatballs for spaghetti, not necessarily round, but a lot more even sized than making them by hand. Not quite the easiest to load meat into, it could probably work better if there were tiny little holes for the air to escape while the two halves are being put together, but then it'll lose that freezer-burn-proof ability. We use these and the burger silicone units, and love them. How to really get the best use out of them? Mix your seasonings into the meat, smoke, salt, pepper, onions, etc., and if you blend beef with pork for really tasty burgers n balls, you'll quickly realize the convenience of popping these out of the freezer and into a pan with a tiny (bit of water, to speed up thawing), and Oh - the - flavor..!!! No need to fire up the grill, and best of all, you can pull out of the silicone press only what you want to use, and throw the rest back into the freezer - ZERO freezer burn, after months of storage! We also tried cooking them, in the silicone tray, direct into the oven at 350 deg. Well... the grease has got to go somewhere, yeah... all over the place while we were pulling it OUT of the oven. Skip that idea, use a stovetop and frying pan. 4 stars instead of 5 - still need someway to get the air OUT of the inner chambers when compressing the two halves together.

My grandkids love my meatballs. But with arthritis in my hands making them was painful at times. This solved the problem. It is thick enough I don't have to worry about dropping them on way to freezer. I freeze them and then put them in bags for a quick meal when company surprises me. My Granddaughter called the other day and told me for her wedding present she wanted me to make meatballs. So thankful I have this it will be easy to get them all made. I just have to pat the meat in. And it fits in the freezer without taking up lots of space. Thank goodness I have this.

I'm not impressed, but not disappointed either. It's just an okay product. They're meatball hexagons vs balls, but that's not a big deal but just something to note. The biggest issue is the process of it all. You either have too much or too little, it makes a mess and it stains as well. It's also a challenge to wash it as well. It does save time when making lots of meatballs though, and it's nice to just freeze them and have them in a bag ready to go. I found the trick is 350 degrees for 20 minutes on a wire rack with parchment paper under it to catch the grease, and then flip them for another 20 minutes and you have a perfect meal. Definitely better than store bought ones full of soy texture and who knows what else.

I really like this product super easy to use and wash

I made meatballs using this today. It was awesome! I used 2 lbs 85/15, meatloaf mix for meatballs. I prewashed as directed, lightly sprayed with pam, spread the meat mixture to the line and put in the freezer for about 2 hours. Set it out, removed the lid and it was lovely. I did have to use a small spoon to separate the meatballs but they came out whole. I cooked them on a rack over a cookie sheet for 20 minutes and they came out excellent! This is a game changer for me. I’ll be making a lot more meatballs. I did have a little bit of spillage, I just used my spoon and made a new meatball. I didn’t find it difficult to wash I, just sprayed it off with hot water until I couldn’t see any meat debris then wiped it down with dawn and hot water, took maybe 10 minutes. Then I just let it air dry in the dish drainer.

If you're like me and HATE making meatballs, well then this is NOT what you are looking for to ease your pain. This THING is so UN-handy as a meatball helper. I sprayed both top & bottom with Pam. I filled to the line indicated. I planned to freeze these easy peasy meatballs, so I started at the center to let the air out, so as not to get freezer burned. This nifty little gadget started oozing meatball mixture out of the sides. Okay, I must have inadvertently overfilled, idiot! So I took some out...several times and still could not get this $#%$@*% thing to close. So, needless to say, I made my meatballs the old fashioned way. Let's not forget the easy clean up!! Unless you own a dishwasher, you need to wash each. independent. hole. with a hot soapy sponge. TOP, BOTTOM and SIDES multiple times to get the Pam & meatball grease clean. I bought this months ago, but never used it until yesterday. So, too late to return it. I don't even want to give it away to someone because they will think that I HATE them!! I often times ignore reviews like this (obviously) and I've paid the price. Do not make the same mistake!!!