Meatballs in Tomato Sauce
Meatballs in tomato sauce always look super delicious and I crave them every now and then, however, I’m usually, ultimately, dissatisfied with their taste – I don’t like a dry ball, an overly herby ball, a crumbly or a sloppy ball – who does?
Meatballs in Tomato Sauce
Dissatisfied with our regular meatball in tomato sauce recipe (I won’t mention names!), I was scouring the web for alternatives and I have to say I’m very excited to share this lovely, meaty, moist and firm meatball recipe with you. Not complicated to make at all, just takes a little time and patience to roll all the balls while you cook your tomato sauce.
Inspired from this Martha Stewart meatball recipe, which uses milk soaked bread instead of dry breadcrumbs. This is the trick to keeping them moist – Ingenious! Maybe you already knew this, and if you did, why didn’t you tell me? I also cam across another interesting recipe which uses ricotta for added texture, have you tried this? I will give it a go next time.
Meatballs are simple to prepare and delicious to eat. Make a double batch so you can freeze half for another time. Use fresh herbs where possible, they make all the difference together with the milk soaked bread, eggs, and cheese.
The best way is to start off by making the tomato sauce. This way your sauce can be simmering while you make the meatballs. I made a large quantity (two 800g tins of tomatoes), I wanted some leftover sauce for pizza later in the week. For best results simmer the sauce for at least 1 hour.
Once the the sauce is simmering away start on the meatballs. Simply put the mince (I used 500g pork and 600g beef) into a bowl and add all the other ingredients (onion, garlic, chilli flakes, parsley, Pecorino, eggs, seasoning, milk soaked bread).
Mix until well combined.
Once your mix is all well incorporated start making the balls. I used an ice-cream scoop to get my balls nice and even.
Simply scoop out the mix and place onto a lined baking tray. You can shape the balls later to make them look prettier and more presentable.
Now for the fun part, finish off the balls by rolling them in the palm of your hands until you’ve achieved a lovely rounded shape. Have a bowl of cold water to hand to dip your hands in now and then, this way the meat won’t stick to your hands.
Methods:
There are a couple of options when it comes to cooking the meatballs, you can choose your preferred method :
a) Brown your meatballs in a heavy based frying pan then pop directly into the pan of tomato sauce and cook on the stove top for about 1 hour;
b) Brown the meatballs in a heavy based frying pan then pour the tomato sauce over and bake in the oven for 40-50 minutes at 190C.
c) Brown the meatballs by roasting them directly in the baking dish on a high oven setting, 230C for about 17 minutes then pour over the tomato sauce that has simmered for at least 1 hour over the top and return to the oven for further 15-20 minutes on a lower oven setting of 190C. This option is probably best if you are cooking a very large quantity of meatballs.
I chose option (b) brown the meatballs on the stove top then pour over the tomato sauce and bake in the oven at 190-200C for 40-50 minutes at 190C.
If doing this way you will need to place your meatballs in a large baking dish, pour over the simmered tomato sauce and I topped mine with a mix of grated mozzarella and parmesan.
Bake in the oven for 40-50 minutes at 190C.
Serve with your favourite pasta, delicious with spaghetti or if you’re in need of a low carb meal serve with spiralized courgette (courgetti!). If you have a spiralizer then it takes seconds to make. I bought mine a couple of years ago from the Hong Kong Design Gallery in Wanchai. If you’ve not checked out their shops yet then you should, there are always interesting new products to be found there.
I don’t cook my courgetti, I think it would become too sloppy and watery. The hot sauce softens it slightly to give it that perfect al dente texture.
How do you make your meatballs? Do you have any special tricks you’d like to share with us? Do you eat courgetti with your pasta sauces? You can leave me a note in the comments box below, would love to hear from you.
gx
P.S. Don’t forget to pin this recipe to Pinterest by clicking the image below!
Meatballs in Tomato Sauce
- 2 800 g cans best-quality whole tomatoes pulsed with juices in a blender
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 onion finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons tomato puree
- 1 bay leaf
- a pinch of dried chilli flakes
- a bunch of fresh flat leaf parsley chopped
- 200 ml warmed milk
- 2 slices bread crusts removed
- 600 g minced beef
- 500 g minced pork
- 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped onion
- 2 large eggs lightly beaten
- 50 g grated Pecorino Romano cheese you can use Parmesan if you don't have Pecorino
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves or any other fresh herb you may have to hand
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt use 1 teaspoon if Parmesan is substituted for the Romano
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese for serving
-
Pulse the tomatoes in a food processor until you have a finely chopped sauce.
-
Cook the finely chopped onions in the olive oil for 3-4 minutes until translucent but not browned.
-
Add the minced garlic and cook for a further minute.
-
Add the bay leaf, chilli flakes, chopped parsley, tomato puree and cook for another minute stirring well.
-
Pour in the pulsed tinned tomatoes.
-
Season to taste.
-
Let simmer for at least an hour.
-
Heat the milk in a small saucepan.
-
Soak the bread in the milk, turning the slices over to absorb it.
-
Let cool and mince the bread.
-
In a large bowl add the minced meats, garlic, onion, eggs, cheese, parsley, chilli flakes, salt & freshly ground black pepper.
-
Using clean hands or a wooden spoon mix together until completely combined.
-
Start to form the balls by rolling 1 1/2-inch meatballs, you can use an ice-cream scoop to get them all evenly sized (dip your hands into cool water so the meat won't stick to them as you roll.)
-
At this stage you can chill the raw meatballs to firm them up if you have time.
-
Heat a 14-inch heavy based pan over high heat, add the olive oil
-
When the oil is very hot, add the meatballs in a single layer to brown
-
Work in batches if necessary so you don't overcrowd your pan.
-
Cook to brown on all sides, this will take 8 to 10 minutes.
-
Place your browned meatballs into a large baking dish
-
Pour over the simmered tomatoes and bake in a pre-heated oven for 40-50 minutes at 190C.
-
Serve with pasta and extra parmesan.
This recipe yielded 26 meatballs. There was enough to feed a family of six plus leftovers for a lunch, plus another small tray of 9 meatballs which went into the freezer (will do for the kids one night!).
Leave a Reply