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Italian Meatballs in a Red Pepper Tomato Sauce

Italian Meatballs never tasted so good! Made in a delicious Tomato and Red Pepper Sauce. Serve over pasta or rice or like the Italians, as a Main Dish.

Italian meatballs in a red sauce


 

Meatballs have always been one of my favourite meals, from my Mom’s Meatballs to a made in Italy version.

Coming to Italy I learned to eat my Pasta first and my meatballs as a main dish, served with a side dish with a cooked veggie, such as Sauteed Chicory or even Peas.

To tell the truth I still love a bowl of Spaghetti and Meatballs sprinkled with some freshly grated Parmesan Cheese.

Italian meatballs how to make

What is the difference between Grana Padano and Reggiano Parmesan Cheese?

  1. Parmigiano Reggiano is produced totally without additives, even natural additives are prohibited, Grana Padano on the other hand uses a protein extract from egg whites to control the fermentation.
  2. Cows are fed only grass and hay for producing Parmigiano Reggiano.
  3. Reggiano is stamped at one year and Grana Padano is stamped at 9 months.
  4. Reggiano is produced in the Provinces of Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena and, in parts, of Mantua and Bologna. Whereas Grana is produced in as many as 33 different provinces.
Italian meatballs in a red sauce in a white pan

What are the ingredients in Italian Meatballs?

  • ground beef
  • and or ground pork
  • Parmesan Cheese usually Reggiano
  • freshly chopped Italian parsley
  • salt and pepper
  • oregano
  • chopped garlic
  • eggs
  • fresh bread crumbs either soaked in milk or water
  • all gently mixed by hand and rolled into the size of golf balls

I made these Italian Meatballs with a mixture of Pork and Beef which was different for me since I usually only use beef. A personal preference that it is all.

Italian meatballs in a pepper tomato sauce

But I have to say this Pepper and Tomato Sauce was the perfect compliment to these meatballs. I served them the Italian way as a main dish, but there is plenty of sauce for the addition of Pasta.

How to Make Meatballs

When making meatballs be sure to include eggs and breadcrumbs in the mix, these are what holds (binds) the meatballs together.

But too much can cause the meatballs to fall apart when cooking and too little will keep them from binding together when mixed.

Be sure to soak your bread in a little milk this helps keep the meatballs tender once they are cooked.

I always mix my meatball mixture by hand and roll into the size of golfballs, don’t worry about them being not perfectly round, that’s the joy of Italian cooking, it’s Rustic cooking at it’s best.

Italian meatballs in a red sauce

More Delicious Italian Dinner Ideas

No matter how you decide to eat your meatballs with pasta or without, be sure to include a couple of slices of Italian Crusty bread to soak up all that sauce. Buon Appetito!

up close Italian meatballs with a pepper sauce in a white pan
Italian meatballs in a red sauce

Italian Meatballs in a Red Pepper Tomato Sauce

Rosemary Molloy
Italian Meatballs never tasted so good! Made in a delicious Tomato and Pepper Sauce. Serve over pasta or like the Italians, as a Main Dish.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 45 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine Italian
Servings 12 meatballs
Calories 125 kcal

Ingredients
  

MEATBALLS

  • 5.3 ounces ground beef* (155 grams)
  • 5.3 ounces ground pork* (155 grams)
  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 cup parmesan cheese (40 grams)
  • 1-2 slices bread (without the crust) (1 ounce / 30 grams / softened in a little milk)
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1-2 dashes black pepper
  • 1-2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley

*If you prefer just ground beef then omit the pork and double the beef.

    PEPPER TOMATO SAUCE

    • 2 tablespoons olive oil
    • 1 clove garlic minced
    • 1 shallot minced
    • 1 red pepper sliced
    • 1 3/4 cups Tomato puree (passata) (400 ml)
    • 1/2 teaspoon oregano
    • 1/2 teaspoon basil
    • 1-2 pinches salt
    • 1-2 dashes black pepper or hot pepper flakes
    • 1/2 cup water

    Instructions
     

    MEATBALLS

    • In a medium bowl mix together the ground beef, pork, egg, parmesan cheese, bread (squeeze out an excess milk and break into crumb size pieces), salt, pepper and parsley. Form the mixture into 12 equal size meatballs.
    • In a medium pan add 1 tablespoon of oil and brown the meatballs, turning to brown on all sides. Remove from heat. 

    PEPPER TOMATO SAUCE

    • While the meatballs are browning start the sauce, in a large sauce pan add the 2 tablespoon of oil, minced garlic, shallot and sliced peppers (about 1/4 inch wide and 1 inch long or smaller if you prefer). Cook for 2 minutes on medium heat, then add puree, oregano, basil, salt and pepper (or hot pepper flakes) and water, mix to combine. Add the browned meatballs (remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and add to the pan), gently cover with the sauce. Cover* the pan and cook on low / medium until sauce thickens and meatballs are cooked. Approximately 25-30 minutes. Serve immediately. Enjoy!

    *Uncover after 20 minutes if sauce is still very thin and raise the temperature a little to cook and thicken the sauce.

      Nutrition

      Calories: 125kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 32mg | Sodium: 159mg | Potassium: 274mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 570IU | Vitamin C: 17.5mg | Calcium: 42mg | Iron: 1.3mg
      Did You Make This Recipe?Please leave a comment below or pin it to your Pinterest account!

      20 Comments

      1. 5 stars
        I took a risk and made this with IMPOSSIBLE BURGER (vegetarian). I followed your recipe exactly, except for the meat. This was so simple and so amazing. I tripled the recipe so there were some leftovers. The following day, we had these with melted provolone on Portuguese rolls. Thank you for sharing this.

      2. Hello, when you say tomato purée do you mean tomato passata? Tomato purée in the uk is a concentrated paste and not something I would imagine using 400ml of! Just want to check?

      3. 5 stars
        sooo tasty. I didn’t have enough bread so I replaced half with breadcrumbs. I added a lot of chili flakes, cause that’s my business. Props to you, this is delicious and I will continue to use it my whole life.

      4. 5 stars
        This recipe is so good that even my husband, who does not like pasta in any form, was going on and on about how flavorful it was and how tender the meatballs were. We’ll definitely be making this again. I did make a couple of changes to the original recipe. I doubled the amount of meat because the mixture was not coming together with the amounts listed. I also used fresh herbs from my garden rather than dried. I highly recommend you try this recipe. Its so simple to make and the end results are rave worthy.

      5. 5 stars
        This is exactly the way I make mine. My family is 100% Italian and this is my son’s favorite meal. Of course, anything Italian is his favorite meal. He is 64 yrs. old. It never ends.I love you recipes. They remind me of my grandmothers.

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