Meatballs were never a staple in my household growing up.
I have been watching Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares these past few months and noticed, on a number of occassions, that the “signature” dish he often teaches the struggling restaurant is meatballs. The meatballs on the show are cricket-ball sized monsters. Instead, I decided to try my hand at small golf-ball sized meatballs for a simple tomato based past sauce.
Ingredients:
Meatballs
500g pork mince
500g beef mince
4 rashes of bacon or pancetta, chopped (optional)
1 tbsp of olive oil
4 cloves of garlic, crushed or finely diced
1 large spanish onion, finely diced
1-2 teaspoon of paprika (depending on your tastes)
½ cup of breadcrumbs
1 egg, beaten
2 tablespoons of parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon of rosemary, chopped
Salt and pepper
Pasta sauce
1 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, crushed or finely diced
2 x 400g tins of diced tomatoes
1 spanish onion, finely diced (optional)
Sweet basil leaves, roughly torn
What to do:
For the meatballs:
1. Preheat the oven to 180oC (350oF).
Optional step: Fry the bacon in a pan and when cooked, set aside.
2. Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat. When hot add the garlic and onions.
3. After about 30 seconds, add the paprika and let cook until onions are soft, then take off the heat.
4. In a large bowl, add the cooked onions mix, pork mince, beef mince, bacon (optional), breadcrumbs, egg and herbs. Roll your sleeves up and mix the ingredients thoroughly with your hands. Add a teaspoon of salt and pepper to the mix.
5. Using the palms of your hands, form small golf-ball sized meatballs. This is the most time-consuming part. Place each meatball on a tray lined with baking paper.
6. Bake the meatballs for about 30 minutes until brown.
For the sauce
7. Heat the oil in a pan over medium heat, then when hot, add the garlic and onions (optional)
8. When the garlic is browning, or the onions are soft, tip in the tins of tomatoes.
9. Bring the sauce to the boil, then reduce the heat, and let simmer for about 10 minutes.
10. Add the cooked meatballs and sweet basil to the sauce, then let simmer for another 20 minutes. This is about the time you should start getting the water ready to boil the pasta.
11. Serve with some warm sourdough, a simple green salad and a glass of red!
