Family & Education

How To Make Meatballs In Tomato Sauce

Most children love meatballs, and young children especially like small ones that they can pick up with their fork. What they don't realise, however, is that it encourages them to chew! Sian Blunos will show you how to make tasty meatballs in tomato sauce. Enlarge

How To Make Meatballs In Tomato Sauce

Most children love meatballs, and young children especially like small ones that they can pick up with their fork. What they don't realise, however, is that it encourages them to chew! Sian Blunos will show you how to make tasty meatballs in tomato sauce.

Serves:
6 to 8 portions

Step 1: You will need

  • 50 g bread crumbs
  • 2 small onions, peeled and chopped
  • 350 g minced beef
  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 30 ml sunflower oil
  • 400 g chopped tin tomatoes
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • 280 ml unsalted beef stock
  • 1/2 tsp italian herbs
  • 1 bay leaf

Step 2: Make the meatballs

Mix the minced beef, breadcrumbs and 1 chopped onion together in a bowl, and add the beaten egg, bit by bit until you have a nice, bound ball of mixture. Alternatively you can use a food processor to mix these ingredients.
Take a small amount of the meat mixture at a time and shape into several small meatballs.
Heat the 15ml (1 table spoon) of sunflower oil in a pan and add the meatballs, gently frying them for about 5 minutes.

Step 3: Make the sauce

Heat 1 table spoon of vegetable oil or a small knob of butter in a saucepan and fry the garlic and onions without colouring. Add the unsalted beef stock and the tinned tomatoes, herbs and bay leaf to the saucepan. Bring to the boil, pour in the meatballs and simmer for 20-30 minutes.

Serve with rice, small pasta shapes or even mashed potato. For really young children you can even blend the final dish in a food processor and serve as a puree.