East-West Spaghetti and Meatballs

The title of this recipe is not what my mother called this dish, of course. But she made the best-tasting version of spaghetti and meatballs I have ever enjoyed. I did not know what her recipe was until I first tasted the famous Shanghai dish called Lionhead Meatballs. Then I realized that she had simply substituted readily available Western ingredients and blended things together perfectly. For example, she used beef instead of the original pork and mixed the traditional fresh water chestn