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Home » Appetizers / Starters » Big Italian Meatballs with Nonna-Approved Tomato Sauce

Big Italian Meatballs with Nonna-Approved Tomato Sauce

June 9, 2015 by Nelson Cardoso 2 Comments

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Big Italian Meatballs with Nonna-Approved Tomato Sauce I think I was switched at birth–even my parents used to joke about that with me as I was growing up. It’s just that I’ve always loved Italian food sooooo much my parents wondered if I was missing the Portuguese gene.

Seriously, if you recall from our Nonna-approved tomato sauce post, we said it was the foundation of so many recipes. Here’s an example of where we use that delicious sauce–meatballs.
With Nelson there’s no messing around. He said he was going to make meatballs and he made them alright–he made 1/2 pound meatballs. Wow! These meatballs are slow cooked in our Nonna-approved tomato sauce so they’re moist and packed with flavour.
This wasn’t always the case. Nelson’s first attempts (a few years ago) were not so successful. He called it a fail but thankfully he’s resourceful and doesn’t give up. He learned that a meatball is actually not just a ball of meat (*mind-blown*). For instance, He learned that adding milk-soaked bread helps to moisten the meat. Simple trick…but it makes a world of difference.
We enjoyed these with fettuccine and freshly shaved parmigiano reggano. Even our little guy managed to eat the entire meatball. Way to go kid! Maybe there’s an Italian gene in all of us.
Buon Appetito! We hope you enjoy!
Big Italian Meatballs with Nonna-Approved Tomato Sauce
Big Italian Meatballs with Nonna-Approved Tomato Sauce
 
Print
Prep time
25 mins
Cook time
40 mins
Total time
1 hour 5 mins
 
This Italian meatball recipe is spectacular! These meatballs are slow cooked in our nonna-approved tomato sauce and make a wonderful addition to any pasta meal.
Author: Nelson Cardoso
Recipe type: Main
Cuisine: Italian
Serves: 7 to 8 meatballs
Ingredients
  • 2 litres of your favourite tomato sauce
  • 4 slices of soft white sliced bread (like Dempsters or Wonder Bread) with the crusts removed
  • 1¾ cups of milk
  • 4 egg yolks
  • 2 lbs ground chuck
  • ½ medium onion diced
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 1½ tbs fresh basil diced
  • 1½ tsp salt
  • 1 tsp freshly ground pepper
  • 1½ tbs chopped Italian parsley
Instructions
  1. In a medium bowl, soak the bread in the milk for 15 minutes.
  2. Pour the egg yolks on the bread mixture and stir with a fork until you have a soup-like consistency.
  3. In a large bowl, add all remaining ingredients plus the bread mixture.
  4. With clean hands, mix well making sure all the ingredients are well incorporated.
  5. Bring the sauce to a simmer (medium heat) in a large soup pot.
  6. Pickup a portion of the meat mixture (roughly ½ pound) and form into a ball. Repeat until all the meat is used.
  7. Gently drop each meatball into the simmering tomato sauce and cover.
  8. Turn the meatballs over in the sauce every 10 minutes.
  9. Cook for a total of 40 minutes.
  10. Serve hot with your favourite pasta and enjoy!
3.3.3077

Filed Under: Appetizers / Starters, Main Course Tagged With: Beef, meat

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Comments

  1. AvatarDennis says

    June 11, 2015 at 9:47 am

    This looks super tasty and reminds me of my vacation to Italy last year 😀

    Keep it up Nelson & Liz!

    Reply
    • Nelson Cardoso Nelson Cardoso says

      June 14, 2015 at 1:31 pm

      Thanks so much for the kind feedback Dennis. They turned out very tasty and the family enjoyed it a lot. Take care.

      Reply

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Nelson and Liz Cardoso

Simple delicious recipes for home cooks, often with a Portuguese twist. Make yourself at home. read more

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