meatball and sauce

In this meatball recipe, i made a sauce similar to those Swedish meatball sauce so glamorously coveted at Ikea restaurant but i simplify the ingredients so as to reduce the cost to prepare it.

Prepare your meatball here.

For the sauce

2 tablespoon of butter

a tablespoon of all-purpose flour/wheat flour

a litre of beef stock

one large onion, diced

a medium carrots, cut into small pieces

salt & freshly ground black pepper

Melt butter in a sauce pan or pot. Cook the meatball until browned all over. Then transfer to a plate and set aside. Using the fat built-up in the same pan, saute the onion until lightly browned. Then stir in the flour, and cook until the flour had absorbed the liquid inside the pan. Immediately deglaze with a quarter of the litre of the beef stock. Then add the remaining beef stock and bring to a simmer. Add the meatball and the carrots and let reduce the liquid over medium heat until the sauce thickens. Once the sauce thickens, check the seasoning with salt and pepper, and optionally add a dash of lemon juice and a stick of butter to finish.

baked meatball with tomato sauce

Despite its simple form and style, there are considerably some efforts needed to prepare this. First off, prepare the meatball. Here’s how.

Then prepare the tomato sauce. Here’s how.

Finally, pre-cook the meatballs halfway on a pan (by pre-cook I mean half-way or ¾ way since they will be baked inside the oven later). Prepare a square baking dish, pour the tomato sauce into the dish, place the meatballs in, top with some sliced cheddar or grated parmesan or shredded mozzarella and bake until the cheese has melted, about 15 to 20 minutes. Serve with bread.

Perfect for a lazy night of cooking. (provided the meatballs are prepared earlier and making the tomato sauce is no longer considered as troublesome chore)

spaghetti and meatballs

Meatballs are fantastic! Meatballs are amazing! They’re easy, fast and simple. They’re so easy, that i always wondered why are there still people buying those frozen ready-made meatballs? I have two kids to tend to, and always reached home from work by the time the sun has gone down, yet i have time to make those wonderful meatballs everytime i felt like having them as dinner. They’re wonderful to have with simple tomato sauce, whether accompanied by chunks of bread or by pasta, they’re great with vegetable broth, or by having them as sandwiches. Their potential are endless, yet so simple – all you need is good quality minced meat.

For the meatballs

500g minced meat

1 large egg

1 large onion, finely chopped

50g of breadcrumbs/12 pieces of cream crackers

a handful of fresh flat leaf parsley, finely chopped

1 cup of freshly grated Parmesan cheese

salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the tomato sauce (serves 4)

1 onion, finely chopped

2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

2 cans of 400g chopped plum tomatoes

400g of spaghetti

a handful of freshly grated Parmesan cheese

salt and freshly ground black pepper

extra virgin olive oil

To make the meatballs: In a large mixing bowl, add the minced meat, chopped parsley, egg, the Parmesan cheese and a good pinch of salt and pepper. If you’re using the cream crackers, wrap the crackers in a clean towel and smash up until fine, breaking up any big bits with your hands and add into the bowl. If you’re using the breadcrumbs instead, add them into the bowl. With clean hands scrunch and mix up well. If you feel the mixture is still to sticky and would not hold up shape, add some of the breadcrumbs until the mixture have a good consistency and can be shaped. Shape the meatballs into the size of golf balls (or bigger, depending on your preference, but not too big or it will be hard for them to cook properly) and then pat them down so they can evenly cook. Drizzle them with olive oil and jiggle them about so they all get coated. Put them on a plate, cover and place in the fridge until needed.

To make the tomato sauce: Put a large pan of salted water to boil. Heat a large sauce pan on a medium heat and add 2 lugs of olive oil. Add your onion to the pan and stir until softened and lightly golden. Then add your garlic, and as soon as they start to colour, add the tomatoes. Bring to the boil and season to taste. Meanwhile, heat a frying pan and add a lug of olive oil and your meatballs. Stir them around and cook for 8–10 minutes until golden (check they’re cooked by opening one up – there should be no sign of pink). Add the meatballs to the sauce and simmer until the sauce thickens, around 20-30 minutes, then remove from the heat. Once the pasta is cooked, stir them to the tomato sauce, add the Parmesan cheese, correct the seasoning and serve immediately.