Preheat your oven to 220 C.

Cut the dough into 14 evenly sized pieces.

Working one at a time, stretch out a piece of dough into a long strip, about 8 inches long. Place a thin slice of cheese at the top, followed by a meatball, and roll up the cheese and meatball in the dough. Rotate halfway through rolling to ensure you are completely encasing the cheese and meat into the dough. Pull tight and use any remaining slack to cover any possible gaps/holes. Press the dough into itself to seal and place on a parchment lined or flour covered baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough, cheese, and meatballs.

In a medium saucepan over high heat, bring the 5 cups of water to a boil. Once boiling, add the baking soda and stir to dissolve. Return the pot to a boil, then, in batches of 3 to 5, add the rolled dough balls into the pot and allow to boil for 20-30 seconds, stirring gently. Remove and place back on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough balls.

Brush each boiled ball with beaten egg and then sprinkle each with coarse sea salt. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the outsides have browned. Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes, serve.