Name: Italian Meatballs Recipe
Prep time: 360 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 385 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: italian
Ingredients: 500 g sausage beef mince; 2 bacon rashers; 1 brown onion large; 5 garlic clove; 2 cm root ginger; 12 stuffed green olives; 1 tbs light soy sauce; 1 tbs Worcestershire sauce; 1 pinch coriander; 1 pinch oregano; 1 pinch tarragon; 2 tbs olive oil; 425 g canned crushed tomatoes

by singlets Last updated on 04/21/2021

This recipe came from a need to deal with a large quantity of "fat" beef sausages. The ingredients were good but the sausage itself was very blah! This recipe was essentially a whatever was in the fridge that day and has stood the test of time. - singlets

Ingredients

500 g sausage beef mince
2 bacon rashers
1 brown onion large
5 garlic clove
2 cm root ginger
12 stuffed green olives
1 tbs light soy sauce
1 tbs Worcestershire sauce
1 pinch coriander
1 pinch oregano
1 pinch tarragon
2 tbs olive oil
425 g canned crushed tomatoes

Method

Step 1

Peel and finely dice onion.
Step 2

Slice bacon into fine strips.
Step 3

Crush and finely chop garlic and ginger.
Step 4

Chop olives roughly.
Step 5

In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients except the oil and tomatoes. Mix thoroughly.
Step 6

Place a 45-60 cm sheet of plastic wrap on a bench.
Step 7

Cover the plastic wrap with the same length of aluminium foil.
Step 8

Form the mince mixture into a line along the centre of the foil. Leave about 5 cm at each end of the foil to twist up.
Step 9

Roll the foil over the mince to form a cylinder about 5-6 cm round.
Step 10

Lightly twist the end of the foil, then roll the cling wrap over the foil sausage and twist both the foil and plastic until the sausage is firm and even.
Step 11

Refrigerate for 6 to 24 hours in the fridge, or 30 to 60 minutes in the freezer.
Step 12

Remove the cling wrap, slice the sausage into 1 cm patties then remove the foil.
Step 13

Mould the patties into meat balls. Each patty makes one large or two smaller bite-sized meatballs.
Step 14

Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan. Drop the meatballs in and cook until brown.
Step 15

Add the canned crushed tomatoes to the pan, cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes.

Recipe Notes

from Australia’s Best Recipes team

Garlic and ginger amounts can be varied to personal taste. Serve with spaghetti (or any other pasta), or boiled rice and vegetables. Can be served on hamburger buns or bread rolls for fast food (not the neatest serving solution but great for al fresco events). Ham can substitute bacon. You can also use canned whole tomatoes.