Given how many meatballs I eat, it was inevitable that I would come up with a good albondigas recipe. What can I say? I love meatballs. Anyone who doesn’t lacks some critical gene required to be a good human, I suspect.

Every culture in the world makes some kind of meatball, and those cultures that are vegetarian make meatless meatball-like orbs. Meatballs are universal. They are little balls of comfort.

I’ve made this particular albondigas recipe with venison, duck, and wild pork. Any meat will do. Bear? Sure. Beef or pork? Of course. Skip the muskrat, though. This recipe comes together in an hour or so, making it easy enough to do on a work night. Kids love making meatballs, too, so shanghai them into it.

I mostly like eating these with rice while watching football or nature shows, but chipotle meatballs make a damn good party appetizer. I’d like to see a duel between chipotle meatballs and Swedish meatballs. Both awesome, both classic party fare, just very different.

OK, I am rambling. Make these meatballs! Seriously. Make them.

One good tip is to double the batch and, before you sauce your meatballs but after you’ve browned them, set them on a baking sheet or plate in the freezer until they are solid, then keep your albondigas in a freezer bag. That way you can pull out meatballs whenever the mood strikes you. Just reheat in the sauce of your choice, ideally this chipotle sauce.

Note that there is one other common way to eat albondigas, which is as a soup. Those meatballs are much smaller.