Yes, the 93% beef isn't helping.

I've not seen the recipe, but something else you might try for more moistness is saute some chopped onion in a little olive oil just until soft. You can also add a bit of garlic if that sounds good. Just a thought but adding a pinch of thyme to the onions might be nice with the mushroom gravy. Remove the pan from the heat and add a couple tablespoons of chicken or beef stock. Let it cool completely before mixing with your beef, rice, egg and s&p.

I sauté onions and mushrooms for the gravy, then add 1 can Cream of Mushroom soup, 1 can Cream of Celery soup and 1 can water, mix well then pour over browned meatballs. Then simmer until cooked thru. So good!

Meatballs are lose because of the rice (porcupine) in them.

But you feel the meatballs themselves are usually a little dry, right? Even when you use the 85% beef? That's what I thought you meant.

I like a recipe for Norwegian meatballs, and they call for a slice of bread, crust and edges removed, thoroughly soaked with water under the water faucet and then torn apart into the meat mixture into tiny bits.

I seldom see ground beef in supermarkets with the hard white fat that makes it juicy when it melts. They throw in all the connective tissue, which isn't fatty, just so there's something white in there to pass off as fat. Fatty hamburger isn't necessary in a recipe like chili where you brown the meat, but for meatballs, meatloaf, and burgers, you need hard white fat. With the right amount of fat, the meatballs will be light and a bit spongey.

I'm buying my ground beef from a meat market now because they trim the meat and they grind the hard white fat along with the muscle meat. I've thought of buying a metal meat grinder like my mother had but I have nowhere to attach it. I would save the fat trimmings from a ribeye steak and grind it with well-trimmed chuck.

Try chopping some of the mushrooms in the food processor until the pieces are pretty fine. Mix it into the hamburger. It makes the meatballs really moist, a little bit healthier and stretches the meat.

I liked my meatballs better when I switched out the bread crumbs for rolled oats. They seemed to be more moist.

kathyg, I'm not sure the rice adds any value to your meatballs (other than to stretch the meat) but a secret for moist meatballs is to use a panade.

It's a fancy name for something simple. For one pound of meat, take one piece of bread (not bread crumbs), break it into small pieces in a bowl and add two tablespoons of milk. Mash it with a fork to make a paste, let it sit for a few minutes and then mix that well into the ground meat before forming the meatballs.

Guaranteed to prevent dried out meatballs, so long as you don't overcook them. The panade is the secret used by Italian cooks for tasty meatballs. Simple but effective.

Thank you everyone for the suggestions. I know the meatballs were dryer than normal because of the meat. Will be sure to wear my glasses into the store next time. Will definitely try some of these tricks. Yes, the rice does help to stretch the meat when I had 4 teenagers in the house, but what is Porcupine Meatballs without the rice! So yummy.