Beefy and Porky Meatballs Recipe

By Alison Powell

I enjoy making these, getting my hands in and squishing the mixture together. I enjoy eating them even more – rich, sweet, satisfying, happiness in a bowl.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

For the meatballs:

• 500g beef mince
• 4 pork sausages
• 80g grated cheese – parmesan works best but a good strong, mature cheddar also works well
• 2 heaped teaspoons of oregano
• 1 medium egg
• Good grind of black pepper

For the sauce:-

• 2 large onions, peeled and finely chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 1 red pepper
• 250ml red wine
• 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 heaped teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 heaped teaspoons paprika
• Salt and a good grind of black pepper

How to:

1. Squeeze out the filling from the sausages and add to a large bowl, along with all of the meatball ingredients. You will need to get your hands in to squish and squelch everything together so that it is all well-mixed.
2. Form into roughly 14-16 balls and place them on a plate.
3. In a large pan, with high sides, pour in the olive oil and then gently place the meatballs in the pan. Brown them on a medium heat, carefully turning them. This will take around 8-10 minutes. Remove them and place them on a plate.
4. Finely chop the onion, crush the garlic and soften both in the pan, on a low heat. This’ll take 5-6 minutes.
5. Chop the pepper quite small and add to the onions and garlic, then sprinkle on the oregano, paprika and splash in the red wine. Give it a gentle stir.
6. Pour over the chopped tomatoes. Half-fill the tin with cold water and add that, giving it a good but gentle stir. Bring it to the boil and sprinkle in the salt and a good grind of black pepper. Reduce to a simmer.
7. Gently add the meatballs, move them around carefully in the sauce, and then allow them to sit and slowly cook through for 30 minutes and thicken the sauce.
8. Serve with pasta or crusty bread or a nice salad – or all three.