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Meatballs with tomato and green olive sauce

Name: Meatballs with tomato and green olive sauce
Total time: 45 min
Ingredients: lean pork mince 500g; red onion 1 small, grated or very finely chopped; dried chilli flakes a pinch (optional); fennel seeds ½ tsp, crushed in a pestle and mortar; parmesan grated to make 4 tbsp; olive oil; garlic 3 cloves, sliced; plum tomatoes 2 × 400g tins; cloves 4; green olives 12, pitted and quartered; basil a small bunch, shredded; tagliatelle 300g; butter a knob

45 minutes
serves 4
Easy

Cooked meatballs in a rich tomato, garlic and olive sauce and serve with pasta, rice or mash for a budget family meal

By Janine Ratcliffe

Published: December 19, 2014 at 2:30 pm

Try these meatballs in tomato sauce, then check out more meatball recipes, such as our baked Italian meatballs and vegetarian meatballs.

Ingredients

lean pork mince 500g
red onion 1 small, grated or very finely chopped
dried chilli flakes a pinch (optional)
fennel seeds ½ tsp, crushed in a pestle and mortar
parmesan grated to make 4 tbsp

TOMATO AND OLIVE SAUCE

olive oil
garlic 3 cloves, sliced
plum tomatoes 2 × 400g tins
cloves 4
green olives 12, pitted and quartered
basil a small bunch, shredded
tagliatelle 300g
butter a knob

Method

Step 1

To make the sauce heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a non-stick pan. Add the garlic and sizzle gently for a couple of minutes. Tip in the tomatoes and cloves, then simmer for 15 minutes until the sauce has thickened a little, squashing down the tomatoes as you cook.
Step 2

Meanwhile, to make the meatballs, put the rest of the ingredients in a bowl, season and mix well with your hands. Form into walnut-sized balls (you’ll get about 20).
Step 3

Heat a non-stick frying pan with 1 tbsp olive oil. Brown the meatballs all over – do this in batches to avoid overcrowding the pan.
Step 4

Scoop the cloves out of the tomato sauce, then add the meatballs and olives. Simmer for another 20 minutes. Stir in the basil to finish. Serve with buttered tagliatelle.