Tonight's forecast: cloudy with a chance of meatballs.

Spiced ground meat, shaped into balls, before being braised, baked or fried is well-rounded comfort food at its finest.

But if you're not quite sure how to get the ball rolling, Daniel Holzman and Michael Chernow of The Meatball Shop and The Meatball Shop Cookbook can give you a little nudge in the right direction.

Five Tips for Great Meatballs: Daniel Holzman and Michael Chernow

1. Pay attention to what you're putting in the balls

"We weigh everything in a recipe: the right measure is the best way to ensure a consistent product. If you don't want to be that much of a dork about it, then at least pay attention to what you're putting in - that way if you stumble onto something great you can make it again.

Chances are you'll want to adjust something the next time you make it so it's really nice to know what you did, and not make the same mistakes again.

And don't be afraid to season the balls, the flavors tend to mellow as the meatballs sit and absorb the ingredients. For recipes that call for braising, always add a little extra salt as the braising process tends to leach out some of the flavor."

2. Make sure you use top-quality ingredients

"Meatballs are an inexpensive food by their nature, so there is no need to skimp on quality. Buy inexpensive cuts of top-quality meat rather than expensive cuts like filet and loin. Once it's ground, almost any cut will render a tender meatball -- so go for flavorful cuts such as pork butt, beef chuck or lamb shoulder."

3. Cook off a tester ball and taste it before rolling all the balls out

"Last thing you want to do is spend all day rolling, roasting, frying and braising your balls only to find out you needed a pinch more salt. Make a small patty and fry it in a little oil, and give it a try. It will make for a tasty snack while you're cooking -- and will save you if you forgot something."

4. Grind your own meat

"We grind all of our meat in-house which allows to choose what size grind to use. For tougher meat like lamb, wild game and goat, we like to use a small (5mm) die to help tenderize. For inherently tender animals and cuts like chicken, rabbit and pork, we prefer a larger grind size (6, 8 or even 10mm).

For some of our meatballs, we use multiple grind sizes which allows us to add interesting texture and differentiate ingredients. Grinding the meat yourself will allow you to mix the ingredients before you grind which saves time on chopping and helps to incorporate everything without over-mixing. When a recipe calls for fresh bread, we just grind it right in."

5. Choose your crumbs wisely

"Panko is all the rage for its crispy texture but it doesn't necessarily make the best meatballs. We like to use plain Italian-style breadcrumbs - that way we can add whatever spices we like to the mix.

Using fresh bread generally translates to a lighter, fluffier texture which is welcome in meatballs with heavier base ingredients like beef and pork."

Beef Meatballs

Makes about 24 golf ball-sized meatballs