Homemade Spaghetti and Meatballs
There are a few incredibly simple but crucial steps to making the perfect spaghetti and meatballs - once you make it this way, you'll never make it any other way again!
Servings: 4
Equipment
- Sharp Knife & Chopping Board
- Box Grater (for grating onion/parmesan)
- Large Mixing Bowl (to make meatballs)
- Large Baking Tray & Parchment/Baking Paper (to cook meatballs)
- Large Deep Pan & Wooden Spoon (combining sauce and meatballs)
- Large Pot & Tongs (for spaghetti)
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 2 thin slices Plain White Bread, crusts removed & sliced into small cubes (~40g/1.4oz)
- 1/4 cup / 60ml Milk (I use semi-skimmed)
- 1/2 medium White Onion, grated on a box grater (other 1/2 used for sauce)
- 1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 small bunch of Fresh Parsley, large stalks removed and very finely diced (1 small bunch is typically 30g/1oz)
- 1/2 cup / 40g freshly grated Parmesan
- 2 cloves Garlic, minced (or finely grated)
- 1/2 tsp Dried Oregano
- 3/4 tsp Salt
- 1/4 tsp Black Pepper
- 1 Egg
- 9oz / 250g Ground/Minced Beef (must be 20% - see notes)
- 9oz / 250g Ground/Minced Pork (must be 20%)
- Oil Spray, as needed
Spaghetti
- 1/2 medium White Onion, finely diced
- 2 cloves Garlic, finely diced
- 1/4 tsp Chilli Flakes (optional)
- 1/2 cup / 120ml Red Wine (see notes)
- 1x 690g/24oz jar of Tomato Passata (see notes)
- 1 small bunch of Fresh Basil, finely diced (typically 30g/1oz)
- 11.4oz / 325g Spaghetti
- 2 tbsp / 30g Unsalted Butter
- 1/3 cup / 30g freshly grated Parmesan, plus more to serve
Instructions
Meatballs
- Preheat the broiler/grill to high (or as high as it goes without smoking the kitchen out).
- In a large mixing bowl, use a fork to mix the bread, milk, grated onion and Worcestershire until combined. Leave to sit for a few mins for the bread to fully absorb the moisture. Mix in the parsley, parmesan, garlic and seasoning until combined, then mix in the egg until beaten.
- Add the pork and beef and use your hands to mix until everything is evenly dispersed. Don't squeeze the mixture; rather, use your fingers to gently mix it. Whilst it's important that everything is properly combined, it's more important that you don't overwork the meat and squeeze it into oblivion, otherwise the meatballs will come out tough and dry.
- Line a large baking tray with baking/parchment paper, then use a 1 tbsp measuring spoon to scoop out chunks of the mixture and spread them out on the tray (you should get 24 chunks). One by one, roll the chunks of meat into meatballs, then spray with oil (consider wetting your hands if they're sticking).
- Place the meatballs under the grill/broiler and cook until browned all over (I typically turn them once halfway). You're not looking to cook them all the way through at this point, although naturally they probably will. This is just to brown the outside and develop some flavour. Depending on how hot your grill/broiler is and how close you can get the meatballs, it'll likely take around 15 minutes (just be vigilant though, as timings may vary).
Spaghetti
- Place a large, deep pan over medium heat and pour in 2 tbsp of the fat from the meatballs (just eyeball it). Add the onion and fry until soft and golden, then add the garlic and chilli flakes and fry for another 20 seconds or so. Pour in the wine, turn the heat up slightly and simmer for 3-4 minutes to reduce it right down. This is important to burn off the alcohol.
- Lower the heat to medium again and pour in the passata. Swill the jar out with 1/4 cup water and add that too, then stir in the basil and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Stir in the meatballs, bring to a simmer, then lower the heat, just so they're gently bubbling away (nothing too aggressive). Simmer for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens.
- Around 8 minutes before the sauce is done, add your spaghetti to salted boiling water and cook until al dente.
- Once the sauce is done, stir through the butter until it binds with the sauce, then check for seasoning and adjust with salt and pepper.
Serving
- Use your tongs to transfer the cooked spaghetti right from the pot into the pan and toss to combine. Add the parmesan and toss until it melts. If your sauce dries up, toss in some of the leftover pasta water to loosen it up (discard if not).
- Serve individual portions with more parmesan if desired, then tuck in and enjoy!
Notes
a) Meat Fat - You don't want to use lean meat for this recipe. Using meat of at least 20% is crucial for flavour, but more importantly, it keeps the meatballs nice and juicy.
b) Can I fry the meatballs instead? - Sure! Just heat a drizzle of oil over medium-high heat and fry for 4- 5 minutes or until golden, shaking frequently. Again, just focus on getting colour and don't worry about being cooked right through. I go into a bit more depth on cooking methods in the blog post.
c) Tomato Passata - This is thick, pureed and strained tomatoes and is sold in all supermarkets.
d) Wine - This adds a lovely depth of flavour and works with the meatballs so beautifully. You can use any cheap brand of wine. Just make sure it's dry and not sweet. Most of, if not all of the alcohol will burn off, but if you can't use it, then just leave it out.
e) UPDATE - I have updated this recipe to make it even more delicious. Here is the old meatballs recipe if you still want to use that.
f) Calories - Whole recipe divided by 4.
Nutrition
Calories: 848kcal | Carbohydrates: 79.39g | Protein: 44.33g | Fat: 37.1g | Saturated Fat: 15.241g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3.174g | Monounsaturated Fat: 13.435g | Trans Fat: 1.238g | Cholesterol: 161mg | Sodium: 975mg | Potassium: 1201mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 5.16g | Vitamin A: 1424IU | Vitamin C: 29.4mg | Calcium: 288mg | Iron: 5.39mg