Dr Pepper® Meatballs

INGREDIENTS
For Meatballs:
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
- 1 egg lightly beaten
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- Parsley (for garnish)
For Sauce:
- 2 cups ketchup
- 2 cans of Dr Pepper (can also be done with root beer)
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- Salt and pepper, to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
- In a large bowl, mix together beef, breadcrumbs, egg, garlic powder and paprika. Season with salt and pepper and mix until combined. Form into small meatballs, about the size of a ping-pong ball.
- In a different large bowl, whisk together ketchup, Dr Pepper, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, and onion powder. Season with salt and pepper.
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add meatballs and brown on all sides. When the meatballs are browned, add the sauce to the skillet and lower heat to a simmer. Let simmer, basting the meatballs sporadically with a spoon, until the sauce is reduced by half and meatballs are cooked through (internal temperature of 160°F) - approximately 8 to 10 minutes.
- Garnish with parsley and serve.
Fun Facts
- No, you are not seeing a typo in the beverage’s name. There is no period in “Dr Pepper.” The period was removed in the 1950s because a rebranding effort using a new font made the name more difficult to read with the period in place.
- Dr Pepper is the oldest major soft drink in the U.S.
- The beverage was created in the 1880s and first sold in a drugstore in Waco, Texas.