Italian meatballs in tomato sauce
Polpette al sugo
I first had these Italian meatballs in tomato sauce as a starter in my friend Elvira’s house, and her being a fabulous cook they made a lasting impression. This is my interpretation of the classic dish which I also serve with spaghetti as a one course dinner. And it can almost compete with the Puglian original. I have pre-fried the meatballs for 5 minutes before adding them to the tomato sauce. This gives them the dark brown colour. A lot of Italians prefer to cook them directly in the sauce, which changes the taste and the look of the dish slightly.
Ingredients
250 g minced beef
2 shallots
2 cloves of garlic
2 tbsp parmesan
2 tbsp bread crumbs
Salt and pepper
Fresh thyme
6 chopped tomatoes (or 1 can)
1 dl white wine
Fresh rosemary
Pinch of sugar
Preparation
Shred shallots and garlic and mix well with the minced meat.
Add grated parmesan, bread crumbs, thyme and salt and pepper and mix well.
Form the meat into coin sized balls and fry them in olive oil for about 5 minutes
Remove the meatballs from the frying pan and boil it off with white wine
Stir in tomatoes and rosemary, before the meatballs are returned to the sauce.
Heat the Italian meatballs in tomato sauce through for another 10 minutes before serving.
Tasty alternatives to Italian meatballs in tomato sauce
The meatballs have been fried before being added to the sauce, which explains the brown colour.
This looks so mouth watering delicious. Your photo captures all the savory goodness. In fact, I’ll have to pin it on Pinterest to remember this recipe.
Glad you like it and thanks for the Pinterest tip. I haven’t heard about it before, but I could sure use somewhere to stick the recipes I come across.
Mmmm, we just love meatballs in tomato sauce. So much so in fact that we don’t bother with the spaghetti – we’re just appreciators of meat! ;)
Julia
Same here – unless I have to stretch the meal (it does happen).
The meatballs look delicious. The recipe looks wonderful, and I’m with Turkey’s For Life. We often just have the meatballs and skip the pasta – thanks for the great idea!
Just by looking at the food, you will already know that it is delicious. I’m already wanting to try it now. The cooking instruction is simple, so even if I’m not that good in cooking I think I can make a good one.
I think cooking is all about giving it a try – and loving the process, so I try to keep the recipes simple. With good ingredients and a little passion everyone can be a good cook:)