Ingredients

• 1 stick butter (114 g)
• 1 C all purpose flour (120 g)
• 3 C beef stock (700 ml)
• 3 Tb onion, minced
• 1 Tb fresh parsley, minced
• 8 oz shredded and chopped cooked beef (250 g)
• Salt
• Pepper
• Nutmeg
• ½ C flour
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 C bread crumbs

Instructions

Step 1

1. Make a roux with the butter and the flour.
2. Slowly stir in the stock, making sure the roux absorbs the liquid and there are no lumps.
3. Simmer for a couple of minutes on a low heat while you stir in the onion, parsley and the shredded, chopped beef.
4. Bring it back up to heat while stirring.Taste, add pepper and salt and a pinch of nutmeg. Taste again and adjust if necessary.
5. Pour the meat gravy into a shallow container, cover and refrigerate for several hours, or until the gravy has solidified.

Step 2

1. The mixture should be so thick that you can cut squares out of it
2. Take a heaping Tb of the cold, thick gravy and quickly roll it into a small ball
3. I weigh mine out at approx. 20 g each, or .7 oz. They can be a bit bigger, up to 23 g, as long as they're all about the same.
4. Roll lightly through the flour, and put them back in the fridge while you prepare the next round of covering
5. Beat the eggs well. If you use panko, you may want to pulse them once or twice in the kitchen processor, or just squeeze it between your fingers, as some pieces tend to be fairly large.
6. Take the floured balls out of the fridge and rub them between your palms once more, if they need rounding a bit more, then carefully dip them in the egg on the tines of a fork
7. Make sure that the egg covers the whole surface of the bitterbal (if it doesn't, the filling will spill out into the fryer and you will be left with a hollow shell, and a messy fryer!).
8. Tap the fork on the rim of the plate to remove any extra egg, and then roll the ball through the bread crumbs. Set each ball aside on a plate.
9. _Optional_: after breading them once, I personally prefer to pop them in the freezer for about half an hour, and then I egg and breadcrumb them again
10. This creates a slightly larger bitterbal, but with a thicker crust.
11. If your kitchen is exceptionally warm, you could refrigerate them in batches of ten

Step 3

1. But when all are done, refrigerate or freeze the snacks while the oil in your fryer heats up to 375F
2. If you are not planning on serving all 50 bitterballen, you can freeze them individually and then store them in a closed container in the freezer for later
3. There is no need to thaw them before frying.
4. Fry five to six balls at a time, until golden brown
5. Serve on a plate with a nice grainy or spicy mustard.
6. Makes approximately 50 bitterballen.