Citrus meatballs with tomato and herb sauce
Fancy something spicy and fast tonight? This easy tangy Mexican inspired pork dish ticks all the boxes especially for flavour. Increase or decrease the amount of chilli depending on your preferred heat levels. ALL the ingredients for this recipe are now available at your local Ritchies supermarket. Find your local VIC, NSW or QLD store.
Serves
4Preparation time
20 minsCooking time
30 minsIngredients
- 500g premium beef mince
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1 medium onion, finely diced
- 1 tablespoon, finely chopped parsley
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- olive oil
- For the tomato sauce
- 2 x 400g cans diced tomatoes
- 1 cup water
- 1 large brown onion, diced
- 3 medium garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, chopped or a teaspoon of dried thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 3 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped
- ½ cup fresh basil leaves.torn (optional)
- 1 teaspoon dark brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- To serve
- 400g of your favourite pasta
- parmesan or pecorino, shaved
- a few extra basil or parsley leaves
Method
Use a large saute pan on a medium heat, add the extra virgin olive oil and the onions and cook for about 3-4 minutes until they are transparent and just starting to change colour. Add the garlic and cook for a further 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Add the tomatoes, water, sugar, thyme, parsley and bay leave, bring the mixture up to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer with the lid off for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until the tomato sauce starts to thicken. Season with salt and black pepper and remove from the heat. In a large bowl, using clean hands, mix all the meatball ingredients together, work the mince firmly
through your fingers for about 2 minutes as this will help the meatballs stay together while they are cooking. Roll the meatballs into rough 4cm round balls and place them on a plate. Use a large frying pan with just enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan and fry the meatballs until they are lightly browned. Add the meatballs and any juices to the tomato sauce and cook for at least another 10 minutes or until they are cooked through. Just before serving stir in torn basil leaves, if you're using them. Cook pasta following the manufacturers instructions. Transfer cooked pasta to a large bowl, top with meatballs and sauce and scatter with basil or parsley leaves and shavings of parmesan. Serve immediately with crusty bread and a fresh green salad.
