Spaghetti and Meatballs in Marinara Sauce
Servings: 8 servings
Calories: 775cal
Equipment
Ingredients
Marinara Sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ cup onion minced
- 2 cloves garlic large cloves, minced
- 28 oz diced tomatoes 2 (14-oz) cans
- 6 oz tomato paste 1 small can
- 1 cup water
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ cup red wine
- garlic salt to taste
Meatballs
- 2 lbs ground beef 85/15
- 1 lb ground pork
- 2 cloves garlic medium cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon onion minced
- ¼ cup bread crumbs
- 1 large egg
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme leaves
- ¼ teaspoon dried parsley chopped
- ¼ cup grated parmesan
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Other
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons red wine
- 1 pound dry spaghetti noodles
Instructions
For the marinara sauce
- In a Dutch oven or large pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and saute for a few minutes until softened and fragrant. Add garlic and saute another minute.1/4 cup onion, 2 cloves garlic, 1 tablespoon olive oil
- In a medium saucepan, combine all sauce ingredients and mix well. CHEF'S TIP: For chunky sauce, add all sauce ingredients to the onion and garlic. If you prefer smooth sauce, place all ingredients PLUS the garlic and onion mixture into a blender and process until smooth. Return mixture to the pan.Bring to a gentle boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season to taste with garlic salt.28 oz diced tomatoes, 6 oz tomato paste, 1 cup water, 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano, 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, 1/2 teaspoon dried basil, 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, 1/2 cup red wine, garlic salt
For the meatballs
- In a large bowl using a fork, combine all of the meatball ingredients. Gently mix with your fork so as not to smash the ingredients together. Too much working of the mixture can cause your meatballs to turn out tough.2 lbs ground beef, 1 lb ground pork, 2 cloves garlic, 1 tablespoon onion, 1/4 cup bread crumbs, 1 large egg, 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, 1/4 teaspoon dried parsley, 1/4 cup grated parmesan, 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- Once everything is mixed, use your hands to be sure everything is combined well. Work with hands for no longer than one minute. Just long enough for everything to come together.
- Use a cookie scoop to create meatballs. I don’t roll mine, just place them straight from the cookie scoop into the pan. You can roll them in your palms first, but again, only for a moment, don’t overwork the meat!
- Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat in large saute pan or skillet. Brown meatballs on both sides, creating a nice crust. Remove meatballs and drain fat. Don’t scrape out any bits of meat from the pan!CHEF'S TIP: This makes a lot of meatballs. I usually only cook about 10-12 in the marinara, and freeze the rest of the browned meatballs.2 tablespoons olive oil
- Deglaze the pan with 2 tablespoons of wine. Return meatballs to the pan, pour marinara over the meatballs and bring to a gentle boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered, for a minimum of 30 minutes. You can simmer the meatballs for up to 2 hours if you like, but you may need to add a little water throughout the process to keep the marinara from thickening too much.2 tablespoons red wine
- Serve over cooked spaghetti noodles.1 pound dry spaghetti noodles
Notes
The meatball recipe makes 65 large or about 45 medium meatballs. I usually make the meatballs then split them into 3 batches. I freeze several batches for another day. Feel free to cut the meatball ingredients in half to reduce the amount of meatballs.
You can freeze the meatballs raw or you can brown them first. You can freeze the sauce in jars as well.
To Thaw:
If you froze the meatballs raw, be sure to brown them in a skillet first. If meatballs are browned first:
- Thaw sauce in jar at room temp.
- Thaw meatballs at room temperature.
- Meatballs are partially cooked (browned). Submerge meatballs in sauce in a saucepan and bing to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 15-20 minutes.
- Serve with spaghetti and garlic bread.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 775cal | Carbohydrates: 55g | Protein: 40g | Fat: 42g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 20g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 131mg | Sodium: 374mg | Potassium: 1050mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 488IU | Vitamin C: 15mg | Calcium: 124mg | Iron: 6mg
