Spaghetti and meatballs in a pan is not only an easy dinner option, it’s one of the ultimate comfort foods. While it seems easy to buy frozen meatballs, fresh ones still taste better, with simple ingredients that you know are good for you and your kids. This version is made with ground pork. The idea actually came to me at a Mexican restaurant, thinking of how well pork goes with cilantro – it’s a natural marriage. Add to that a little crunch from Panko and a few other usual meatball ingredients, and you have a delicious and simple meatball recipe. It’s homestyle goodness. My kids gobbled these up in minutes! The key to making a perfect meatball is browning them first in a pan and then simmering in your favorite sauce for 20 or so minutes. You can also bake them for 20 minutes at 375 after browning, though I prefer the pan version. I like Barilla marinara sauce to go with these if in a rush, but more often I make my own pasta sauce – you can find the recipe below. Food just tastes better when it’s made from scratch, and these cilantro pork meatballs are no exception.
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:
- 1 pound ground pork
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp chopped cilantro or cilantro paste
- 1/4 white onion
- 3-5 small white mushrooms or baby bella mushrooms
- 1 tsp coarse salt
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1/4 cup Panko toasted bread crumbs
- 1 tsp olive oil
Directions
1. In a large bowl, mix 1 pound ground pork (lean works just as well) with 1 egg and paprika.
2. Fine chop the quarter onion and 3-5 small white mushrooms, add to the bowl. Depending on how much you like mushrooms, add more or less – I used just 3, so the mix wouldn’t get soggy.
3. Grind cilantro into a paste or use a pre-existing paste, add to the pork bowl along with the mushrooms, onion and salt.
4. Stir in a quarter cup of panko bread crumbs (they add extra crispness to this lean recipe, which jazzes it up better than plain bread crumbs). Mix everything well.
4. Add a little bit of olive oil to a heated pan.
5. Wet your hands and start rolling the pork meatballs into 1-inch balls, placing each on the heated pan.
6. Brown quickly on medium to high heat for a few minutes, turning as soon as the balls begin browning. Don’t overcook or burn.
7. Reduce the heat to medium-low, stir in your favorite tomato sauce or use the sauce recipe below. Make sure there is enough sauce (at least a few cups) to cover the meatballs. Cover with a lid.
8. Continue cooking for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to make sure the meatballs are absorbing the sauce.
9. Serve with spaghetti topped with a bit of parmesan.
Pasta sauce Recipe
1. Brown 1/2 white onion and 2 cloves of garlic in a little bit of olive oil in a medium pan.
2. Lower the heat and add 5-7 chopped medium red tomatoes, continue simmering.
3. Once tomatoes are cooking, press and mash them down a bit. Add a teaspoon of chopped basil (or basil paste) and 1 tbsp of coarse salt and a bit of cracked pepper. Simmer, mixing well.
4. Mash into uniform sauce or run through a blender. Interestingly, basil does not play against cilantro in the meatball recipe, but rather they form a perfect duet.
