Everyone loves a meat ball right?. .. This recipe is sure to become a family favourite. Delicious and easy oven baked fluffy meatballs in a spicy and smoky sauce… what’s not to love?
Function: Circo Therm®, Combi-microwave
Baked Pork and Veal Meatballs
Ingredients
Meatballs
500g pork and veal mince
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 cup panko breadcrumbs
2 tblspns shredded Parmesan
2 tspns dried oregano
1 egg
Salt and pepper, to taste
Spray oil
Sauce
2 tablespoons oil
1 onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tspns smoked paprika
1/2-1 tspn chilli flakes
700g bottle passata
140g can tomato paste
2 tspns dried oregano
Salt and pepper, to taste
220g bocconcini, drained and each cut into 3 slices
Pangrattato
30g butter
1 tblspn oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 1/4 cups panko breadcrumbs
2 tspns chopped rosemary leaves
Salt and Pepper, to taste
Green salad, for serving
Method
Preheat the oven on CircoTherm®, 200°C. (This recipe may be cooked in a Microwave Combi Oven to save cooking time, see notes below).
In a bowl, combine all the meatball ingredients, mix well and roll heaped tablespoons of mixture into meatballs, approx 24.
Spray a three litre enamel or Pyrex baking dish with oil and add the meatballs. Bake the meatballs for 15 minutes. Remove and keep warm. Reduce the oven temperature to 180°C.
Meanwhile, heat the oil in a saucepan on induction setting 7 or over a medium to high heat on gas and sauté the onion and garlic for 3-5 minutes until softened. Add the paprika and chilli and cook another minute. Stir in the passata, tomato paste, stock, oregano, salt and pepper, reduce to induction setting 4 or 5 and simmer for 3-4 minutes. Pour the sauce over the meatballs and bake for 20 minutes. Place the cheese slices over the meatballs and cook a further 10 minutes until the cheese is melted and golden.
Heat the butter and oil in a small fry pan on induction setting 6 or a medium heat on gas, add the garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes then stir in the panko crumbs and rosemary. Stir continually until the crumbs are golden. Cool.
Spoon the meatballs into serving bowls and top with a sprinkle of Pangrattato.
Serve with a green salad.
Notes
Microwave Combi Oven Method:
Combine all the meatball ingredients in a bowl, mix well and roll tablespoons of mixture into balls, approx. 22 (note original recipe says 32).
Spray a 3 litre Pyrex baking dish with oil and add the meatballs.
Place onto rack on shelf position 2. Select Circoroast 210°C with 360W for 7 minutes. Remove and keep warm.
Meanwhile heat the oil in a saucepan over a medium to high heat, induction setting 7 and saute the onion and garlic for 3-5 minutes until softened. Add the paprika and chilli and cook another minute. Stir in the passata, tomato paste, oregano, salt and pepper, reduce to induction setting 4 or 5 and simmer for 6 minutes. Pour the sauce over the meatballs and top with cheese slices.
Place in the oven on shelf 1, Select Hot Air 180°C with 360W for 15 minutes or until golden.
Meanwhile, heat the butter and oil in a small fry pan on induction setting 6, add the garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes then stir in the panko breadcrumbs and rosemary. Stir continually until the crumbs are golden. Cool.
Spoon the meatballs into serving bowls and top with a sprinkle of Pangrattato.
Serve with a green salad.
Authors Bio
As an experienced home economist and Food Designer Trish has worked over the span of her career in the food and home appliance industry as a demonstrator, teacher, recipe developer and food stylist. For more than 20 years she worked for and later managed the test kitchen for a large FMCG company working on some of Australia’s most trusted and iconic food brands, developing recipes and usages for their products as well as styling mouth watering images for cookbooks and websites. She has also appeared regularly as a brand ambassador on a number of well loved television cooking shows.