Meatballs With Marinara Sauce

My husband calls me the Queen of Meatballs. It’s not exactly an endearing, charming title, but at least you can be assured that these meatballs will be delicious:). Meatballs should be juicy and tender, not hockey pucks and you have my promise that they will be.

The most classic sauce with meatballs has got to be tomato sauce. I thought I would make a really easy Marinara Sauce. If you are lucky enough to have fresh garden tomatoes, by all means, use them in this sauce. I’m not that lucky, so I’m using canned tomatoes. The best thing about using canned tomatoes is that you can make this sauce all year long. The sauce is sweet, tomatoey and tastes really fresh. I love adding fresh herbs and garlic to any tomato sauce, because they really elevate the flavors of it.

You can make both the meatballs and the sauce ahead of time, which is great if you’re a busy person, which seems to be everyone these days. You can also serve the meatballs and the Marinara Sauce with Pasta one day and then another day, change it up a bit and make a sandwich out of it. How about placing the meatballs and sauce on some rolls or a baguette, topping it with some mozzarella and Parmesan cheese and putting it under the broiler? 

Ingredients:

Meatballs:

3/4 lb ground beef

3/4 lb ground pork

1 cup panko bread crumbs

3/4 cup milk

1 egg

1 onion, minced

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

2-3 Tablespoons olive oil

Marinara Sauce:

1 onion, minced

3-5 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

2 (28 oz) cans crushed tomatoes

salt, pepper (to taste)

1-2 Tablespoons fresh parsley, basil, chopped

Instructions:

Pour the milk over the breadcrumbs and set it aside for a few minutes for the milk to soak into the crumbs.

Combine the ground meat, minced onion, breadcrumbs, milk, egg, salt and pepper. Mix until all the ingredients are well dispersed.

I know somebody is going to ask if they can substitute ground turkey, or not use ground pork, etc. YES. You can use whatever ground meat that you like. It doesn’t matter. I personally don’t like the taste of ground turkey, but if you do, go ahead and use it. I do like ground pork. If you don’t, then don’t use it. 

Form the meat mixture into 1 Tablespoon sized meatballs.

Use dampened hands when shaping your meatballs, it really helps for the meat mixture not to stick to your hands and also for the meatballs to be in a nice even shape, not jaggedy and rough. 

Heat about 1 Tablespoon of oil in a dutch oven or another heavy bottomed pot or a high rimmed skillet. Cook the meatballs in 2-3 batches, on medium heat, covered, about 2-3 minutes per side, until golden on both sides.

Set the meatballs aside.

In the same dutch oven, remove all the excess oil, leaving about 1 Tablespoon behind.

Add the minced onion, season with salt, and cook for about 5 minutes, until the onions are softened.

As the onions cook, they will release liquid and clean up all the delicious brown bits from the bottom of the pot. This will also add a lot of great flavor to the sauce.

Add the minced garlic and the red pepper flakes. Cook for another minute, until the garlic is fragrant. Pour in the crushed tomatoes. Season with salt.

Bring the sauce to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for about 15 minutes. Add the fresh herbs to the sauce. Return the meatballs to the marinara sauce. Serve the meatballs with pasta or as a submarine sandwich. Garnish with more fresh herbs and freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Meatballs With Marinara Sauce

 

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Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

35 mins

Total time

50 mins

 

Author: Olga's Flavor Factory

Recipe type: Entree

Serves: 50 meatballs

Ingredients

Meatballs:

• ¾ lb ground beef
• ¾ lb ground pork
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs
• ¾ cup milk
• 1 egg
• 1 onion, minced
• 1½ teaspoons salt
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 2-3 Tablespoons olive oil

Marinara Sauce:

• 1 onion, minced
• 3-5 garlic cloves, minced
• ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 2 (28 oz) cans crushed tomatoes
• salt, pepper (to taste)
• 1-2 Tablespoons fresh parsley, basil, chopped

Instructions

1. Pour the milk over the breadcrumbs and set it aside for a few minutes for the milk to soak into the crumbs.
2. Combine the ground meat, minced onion, the breadcrumbs, milk, egg, salt and pepper. Mix until all the ingredients are well dispersed.
3. Form the meat mixture into 1 Tablespoon sized meatballs.
4. Heat about 1 Tablespoon of oil in a dutch oven or another heavy bottomed pot or a high rimmed skillet. Cook the meatballs in 2-3 batches, on medium heat, covered, about 2-3 minutes per side, until golden on both sides. Set the meatballs aside.
5. In the same dutch oven, remove all the excess oil, leaving about 1 Tablespoon behind. Add the minced onion, season with salt, and cook for about 5 minutes, until the onions are softened. Add the minced garlic and the red pepper flakes. Cook for another minute, until the garlic is fragrant.
6. Pour in the crushed tomatoes. Season with salt. Bring the sauce to a boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for about 15 minutes.
7. Add the fresh herbs to the sauce. Return the meatballs to the marinara sauce. Serve the meatballs with pasta or as a submarine sandwich. Garnish with more fresh herbs and freshly grated Parmesan cheese.

Notes

Use dampened hands when shaping your meatballs, it really helps for the meat mixture not to stick to your hands and also for the meatballs to be in a nice even shape, not jaggedy and rough.

You can use any ground meat that you like for the meatballs.

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