WHAT A LOAD OF (MEAT) BALLS

Everyone has their own special recipe, right?

Small delicious balls of goodness simmering in a rich tomato sauce.
Every mouthful a flavour sensation, a morish pleasure, a bringer of smiles and happy full bellies.

Prep Time: 25 minutes | Cook Time: 30-40 minutes

Ingredients

–
For the meatballs
500 g minced pork
500g lean minced beef
1 large red onion finely chopped
2 cloves garlic finely chopped
Dried oregano
Fresh thyme
Plenty of salt & pepper
Breadcrumbs
1 egg to combine
–
For the sauce
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
1 small brown onion finely chopped
4 rashers bacon or pancetta finely chopped
2 x 400 g tins organic whole tomatoes
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
Big handful of fresh basil to serve
Spaghetti or Fettuccine to serve
Gratted parmesan to serve

Method

In a big bowl combine all of the ingredients for the meatball mix apart from the breadcrumbs. Get in and use your hands and the breadcrumbs slowly. The consistency needs to be slightly sticky. Test your mixture for taste – fry off a little bit and allow to cool. Adjust seasoning to the mixture to taste.

In your hand roll a good tablespoon of mixture into a little ball. Ideally about 2 bite sizes. Repeat. This mix makes about 60 balls!! In a large fry pan on a medium heat add a good gulp of olive oil and gently fry your meatballs in batches of 10-15. They take about 5-6 mins brown all over. Nice too when they stick a bit to the pan. Set these aside and now crack on with your sauce.

The sauce. In a large deep pan (you’ll be adding the meatballs to this) fry off the garlic, add the onions and cook on a medium heat until the onions soften and become translucent. Add the tomatoes, stirring and turn the heat down to simmer. Add the red wine vinegar, sugar, herbs and season. Allow to simmer away and reduce down. Add a little water if the sauce becomes too thick. Stir in the meatballs carefully  to the sauce, batch by batch, the sauce should be bubbling gently and once the meatballs are in the sauce allow to simmer gently for a few more minutes. Then take off the heat. Prepare  your pasta. Serve away…