Serves 6
The meatballs and tomato sauce freeze well, so what I often do is double up the quantities to have a meal ready on stand-by for a hungry family. You can use a variety of herbs in the mince mixture, sage, thyme or rosemary also work well.
Ingredients
500 gr. minced beef
500 gr. minced pork
50 gr. fresh breadcrumbs
100 ml milk
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed and finely chopped
3 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp freshly grated parmesan
A splash of white wine
zest of 1 lemon
Handful of mint and parsley, leaves finely chopped
Plain flour
For the tomato sauce
2 tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1½ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp chili flakes
1 tbsp tomato purée
800 gr. chopped tomatoes
250 ml dry white wine
Small bunch of basil
1 tbsp freshly chopped oregano
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method:
1) Heat the oven to 200˚C/390˚F/Gas 6
2) Soak the breadcrumbs in the milk.
3) To make the sauce, heat the oil in a large pan and sauté the onion for about 5 minutes until soft but not colored. Add the garlic and stir over a medium heat for 1-2 minutes. Add the cumin and chili flakes and cook for 30 seconds more. Deglaze the pan with the white wine and stir in the.tomato purée, chopped tomatoes, basil, oregano and seasoning, then bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for about 30 minutes until rich and thick.
4) While the sauce is simmering, prepare the meatballs. Fry the onion and garlic in one tablespoon of the oil for 5 minutes over a medium heat, deglaze with the splash of wine and let the wine reduce. Tip into a bowl and leave to cool. When cold, stir in the breadcrumbs, along with the mince, parmesan, lemon zest and herbs. Season generously, then mix well.
5) Shape the mince mixture into large meatballs. Heat the remaining oil in a sauté pan, lightly coat the meatballs in the flour and brown the meatballs on all sides for about 5 minutes. Pour the tomato sauce into a baking dish and place the meatballs on top. Cover loosely with foil and bake in the oven for about 10-15 minutes. Remove the foil and return to the oven for 5 more minutes. Serve with basmati or pasta, tagliatelle, a good sprinkling of grated parmesan and a few parsley leaves.
Bon appetite!!!
