recipes

Ultimate Freezer Friendly Meatballs

December 15

A meal that can be made in advance, is easily frozen and tastes just as good when defrosted and cooked is absolute key for busy family life. These meatballs are super tasty and are incredibly freezer friendly

Serves 4
50 mins

Method

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients for the meatballs. Season with salt and pepper and mix until completely and evenly combined.
2. Form 32 golf ball sized meatballs by rolling them in your hands. Transfer to a large baking sheet. Keeping a small bowl of cold water for dipping your hands in after each meatball will prevent things getting too sticky if needed.
3. Repeat with the remaining mixture, cover and leave in the fridge to firm up for 30 minutes.
4. Place a large frying pan over a medium high heat and add a good glug of olive oil. If all the meatballs don’t fit in the pan at once, fry the meatballs (in batches if necessary) until browned on all sides, this will take 8-10 minutes, and then transfer to a plate lined with kitchen paper.
5. Heat the rest of the oil in the pan and add the garlic and slowly simmer until just golden but not browned.
6. Pour in the passata and white wine and stir through. Season with dried oregano, chilli flakes, salt & pepper. Bring to a steady simmer and allow to cook for 5-6 minutes before adding the meatballs to the pan and gently turning to coat them in the sauce with a tablespoon. Cover the pan with a lid and simmer for 20 minutes then remove from the heat and allow to cool completely.
7. To serve, mix some of the sauce through the tagliatelle, serve into bowls topped with the meatballs and plenty of grated parmesan.

For the Sauce:

4 tbsp olive oil

2 garlic cloves, finely sliced

24 oz passata

1/3 cup dry white wine

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried red chili flakes

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)

For the Meatballs:

1/2 lb good quality minced beef

1/2 lb good quality minced pork

3.5 oz pancetta, finely chopped

1 onion, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, grated

3 tbsp buttermilk

1/2 cup breadcrumbs

1 tbsp dried oregano, chopped

A small handful of fresh parsley, finely chopped

1 large free-range egg, lightly beaten

1.75 oz parmesan cheese, finely grated

To Serve:

10.5 oz dried tagliatelle

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper (to tast

4 tbsp olive oil

2 garlic cloves, finely sliced

700g passata

75ml dry white wine

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried red chilli flakes

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the meatballs:

250g good quality minced beef

250g good quality minced pork

100g pancetta, finely chopped

1 onion, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, grated

50ml buttermilk

50g breadcrumbs

1 tbsp dried oregano, chopped

A small handful of fresh parsley, finely chopped

1 large free range egg, lightly beaten

50g parmesan cheese, finely grated