Spicy meatballs in homemade tomato sauce

Spicy meatballs in homemade tomato sauce make the perfect family supper. Pile them up high on a plate of rice or on a bed of freshly cooked spaghetti then smother them in a delicious tomato sauce. I guarantee lots of empty plates!!!!

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Back in the day

School in South Africa, back in the early ’60s, was a very stereotyped affair. For 2 hours every Friday afternoon the girls and boys were separated into 2 different classes. Girls were taught Domestic Science, and the luckier boys got to do Woodwork.

Domestic Science was the low-light of my week. The curriculum covered all aspects of home-making – cleaning, needlework and cookery. We had a textbook that we had to work through, covering how to clean a house. To this day, the one thing that sticks in my mind was being taught the correct way to sweep a floor. There it was, written down in black and white, “Step 1 – Stand behind the broom”. Riveting stuff!

I’m going to gloss over the needlework part of the curriculum. Suffice it to say that the blouse I painstakingly handstitched ended up being used as a duster!

The cookery lessons were marginally better. However, looking back, I do feel sorry for the teacher whose job it was to instil the basics of cooking into 20 or so unwilling 14-year old girls. We were given the raw ingredients and had to follow along, as she patiently demonstrated how to make macaroni cheese and scones that turned out like rocks as we enthusiastically overmixed them.

My first attempt at meatballs

One of the things she taught us that does stick in my mind was how to make meatballs. It was a very basic recipe consisting of just minced beef, grated onions, egg and breadcrumbs, which we fried in cooking oil (no health considerations in those days). Surprisingly, mine turned out to be quite edible and I remember going home and making them for supper for the family that night.

I think it was those meatballs that started my love affair with cooking. The fact that I suddenly realised that taking ingredients and turning them into something worth eating, actually provided quite a sense of achievement.

A lot of water has passed under the bridge since those days and I like to think the flavour of my meatballs has improved somewhat. Here is my recipe for spicy meatballs in homemade tomato sauce. I hope you enjoy it!

Ingredients for spicy meatballs in homemade tomato sauce

Whenever I read a recipe I like to have a look at the ingredients to see whether I have everything I need. To make it easy for you – I’ve listed the ingredients below. You can get the full list of ingredients and instructions to make this recipe on the printable recipe card further down in the post.

This recipe is sufficient for 4 people.

For the meatballs

• Beef mince or ground beef – I like to use mince with a 12% fat content. Anything more and the meatballs produce too much fat when they are cooked; anything less and the meatballs are inclined to be dry.
• White bread soaked in 1/4 cup milk – this helps to bind the meatballs together. Cut the crusts off the bread first though or you will run the risk of getting lumps of crust in your meatballs.
• Egg – this also helps bind the meatballs.
• Onion – grated or finely chopped in a food processor. The pieces of onion should be quite small – you don’t want any large pieces of onion in the meatballs.
• Dried chilli flakes – for a touch of heat
• Worcestershire Sauce – for extra flavour
• Dried mixed herbs
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper – to taste
• Sunflower oil – for frying the meatballs.

For the tomato sauce

• Fresh tomatoes and onions – which should be finely processed in a food processor. This is quite a smooth sauce so we don’t want large pieces in there.
• Mushrooms – sliced
• White wine vinegar – you could also use red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar.
• Brown sugar – to counteract the tartness of the vinegar
• Dried chilli flakes – for heat (but because there is already chilli in the meatballs, this is optional)
• Garlic – finely chopped
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• Tomato puree or tomato passata – I like to use tomato passata which is made from whole fresh tomatoes, which have been sieved to remove the seeds and skins.

How to make spicy meatballs with tomato sauce

For the spicy meatballs

• Soak the bread in milk. Leave it to stand until all the milk has been absorbed and the bread is soggy.
• Place the meat in a mixing bowl and add the rest of the ingredients.
• Gently squeeze the milk from the bread and add the bread to the meat.
• Grate in one large onion and add all the seasoning ingredients.  Season with salt and pepper and mix all together thoroughly (images 1 and 2 above).
• Form the mixture into 16 evenly-sized balls (image 3 above).

Tip – To stop the meatballs from sticking to your hands whilst forming the meatballs keep a bowl of cold water close by for dipping your hands into. The meat will not stick to wet hands.

• Heat a little sunflower oil in a frying pan and fry the meatballs gently for about 8 minutes. Turn them often, until they are nicely browned on all sides (image 4 above).
• Test that the meatballs are properly cooked, by cutting one in half. There should be no pink showing. If the meatballs are still pink, fry them for a minute or two longer.
• Remove from the pan and set aside.

For the tomato sauce

• Peel the onions, cut them into quarters. Peel the garlic. Place the onions and garlic in a food processor and blitz them until they about the size of cooked grains of rice.
• Heat the olive oil in a saucepan and add the onions. Let them sweat, covered, in the saucepan for 2 minutes.
• While the onions are sweating, blend the tomatoes in the food processor and then add them to the onions. Increase the heat and bring the tomato and onion to a boil. Then cover with a lid and reduce the heat to a simmer. Leave for 5 minutes.
• While the tomatoes and onions are simmering, wipe the mushrooms with a clean damp cloth and either slice or cut into quarters (depending on the size)
• Add the mushrooms remaining ingredients, stir well and cover with a lid. Reduce the heat and allow to simmer for 30 minutes until you have a lovely mushy sauce.
• If the sauce seems too thin, leave the lid off the pan for the last 5 to 10 minutes of cooking time.

Take care when adding the chilli. Dried chilli flakes can be quite hot so if you don’t want the sauce to have too much of a bite add the chilli flakes gradually and taste as you go.

• Add the meatballs and leave them in the pan for another 5 minutes until they are heated through.
• Serve the meatballs and sauce with either rice or spaghetti.

And there you have it – spicy meatballs in a homemade tomato sauce. A quick and easy mid-week dinner.

Can I freeze spicy meatballs in homemade tomato sauce?

You can freeze these spicy meatballs, either cooked or uncooked.  Just arrange them, untouching, in a suitable container, and they will keep in the freezer, uncooked for up to 3 months, or cooked for up to 1 month.

I would let these defrost in the fridge, or you can defrost them in the microwave if you are in a hurry.  Then just cook them according to the recipe.

If you want to cook these from frozen you will have to add about 5 minutes extra onto the cooking time.

You can also freeze any leftover tomato sauce. Just ladle it into a suitable freezer container or ziploc bag and place in the freezer. This sauce will keep will for up to 6 months.

To defrost, tip the frozen sauce into a saucepan and heat gently until defrosted, then increase the heat and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat and serve.

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Make miniature meatballs for a quick party snack

If you are looking for a quick party snack, you could make marble-sized meatballs. 

Fry the meatballs in batches for about 5 minutes until nicely browned. They will take less time to cook than the larger meatballs.

Stick them onto cocktail sticks and serve with a bowl of  Thai Sweet Chilli Sauce (Nam Chim Kai) for dipping.  This recipe will make 40 – 50 miniature meatballs.

The recipe

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