I’ve always craved the classic spaghetti and meatballs but with the fewest steps possible, while keeping the same flavor and freshness.

After many years as a hospitality student, juggling schoolwork and work, I worked for a restaurant called Da Mamma in Chur, Switzerland, which served some of the best pasta I’ve had. The recipes were never written down, but working closely with the family made me fall in love with Italian cuisine while helping me develop an easy version of Spaghetti with meatballs.

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Recipe Details

Ingredients

• 500g ground beef
• 4 slices of toast
• 1 cup of water
• 300 ml of chicken broth
• 8 garlic cloves (finely minced, use ½ for meatballs)
• 3 onions (finely diced, use ⅓ for meatballs)
• 4 Roma tomatoes (medium, diced)
• 2 cans of crushed tomatoes (800g)
• 3 stalks of celery (finely diced, use ⅓ for meatballs)
• 1 carrot (finely diced)
• Handful of fresh coriander leaves (⅔ for meatballs, ⅓ for topping)
• ½ cup of all-purpose flour
• 1 large egg
• 5 tbsp olive oil
• 280g Spaghetti

Seasonings

• 3 tsp garlic powder
• 3 tsp black pepper
• 1 tsp mild paprika powder
• 2 tsp chicken bouillon powder
• 3 tsp salt
• 1½ tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp dried oregano

Steps

1. Prep all the ingredients listed and place them in separate bowls. In a medium-sized bowl, add 4 slices of toast along with 1 cup of water, ensuring that the water has fully soaked the toast. Afterward, try to squeeze as much water out as possible with your hands and break up the pieces of wet toast in a separate bowl. Set aside.
2. Roughly chop ⅔ of the fresh coriander to add to the meatballs; the rest will be used as a topping.
3. In a large bowl, mix 1 tsp each of garlic, black pepper, mild paprika, chicken bouillon powder and salt along with the ground meat, a beaten egg, chopped coriander, ⅓ of the diced celery and onions, ½ of the minced garlic and the wet toast. Hand-mix all the ingredients well and form 1-inch balls.
4. Heat up a large, heavy-bottomed pot on medium heat and add 2 tbsp of olive oil. On a plate, add ½ cup of flour and coat each meatball, letting the excess fall off. Add the meatballs to the pot, making sure to fry in batches so they are not stacked on top of each other.
5. Fry for 2 minutes, then flip to let the meatballs develop color. Continue frying for another 2 minutes, then remove the meatballs from the pot.
6. In the same pot, add another 2 tbsp of olive oil and allow the oil to heat up. Toss in ⅔ of the diced celery and onions, along with ½ of the minced garlic. Saute for about 40 seconds, before adding in the carrots. Cook for another 3 minutes, stirring consistently.
7. Pour in the diced Roma tomatoes and let cook for another 3 minutes, allowing the tomatoes to disintegrate into a thick sauce. Add in 2 cans of crushed tomatoes, and stir well. Pour in half the chicken broth and let cook for another 10 minutes, covered with a lid.
8. In a separate pot, add in water 2 inches away from being full and let it simmer along with a drizzle of olive oil (⅓ tbsp) and a sprinkle of salt. When the water is at a simmer, add about 280g of spaghetti and boil for 8 to 10 minutes, until al dente.
9. Drain the pasta and drizzle with some olive oil; set aside. Keep about ½ a cup of the pasta water and add it to the sauce pot. To the sauce pot, add in the 2 tsp of salt, 2 tsp of garlic powder, 2 tsp of black pepper, 1 tsp of chicken bouillon powder, along with dried thyme and oregano.
10. Stir the sauce pot well and break apart 6 meatballs into the pot, stirring it well. Pour in the rest of the chicken broth and stir again. Add in all the meatballs and let cook for another 8 minutes, until cooked through.
11. Now, add in the pasta and serve with fresh coriander on top! I didn’t have any basil on hand, so I went with coriander, but basil is the classic and recommended choice.

Practical Tips

• Coat your hands with some olive oil to help shape the meatballs; the meat will be sticky to work with, so this helps you form the balls more easily.
• If you like a touch of sweetness in your pasta sauce, add ⅓ tsp of sugar to the salt added with the spices at step 9.
• I only had coriander on hand, but basil is the classic and best choice for this recipe, so I highly recommend using basil instead.

Chelsea Aye

Spaghetti & Meatballs

A homemade spaghetti and meatballs dish with pan-fried, toast-bound meatballs simmered in a tomato-celery-carrot sauce and served over spaghetti.

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Servings: 3 servings

Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients

  

• 500 g ground beef
• 4 slices toast
• 1 cup water for soaking toast
• 300 ml chicken broth
• 8 cloves garlic finely minced, use ½ for meatballs, remainder for sauce
• 3 onions finely diced, use ⅓ for meatballs, remainder for sauce
• 4 Roma tomatoes medium diced
• 2 cans crushed tomatoes 800g total
• 3 stalks celery finely diced, use ⅓ for meatballs, remainder for sauce
• 1 carrot finely diced
• 1 handful fresh coriander leaves ⅔ for meatballs, ⅓ for topping
• ½ cup all purpose flour for coating meatballs
• 1 large egg
• 5 tbsp olive oil divided for frying meatballs, sauce, pasta water, and drizzling
• 280 g spaghetti
• 3 tsp garlic powder divided between meatballs and sauce
• 3 tsp black pepper divided between meatballs and sauce
• 1 tsp mild paprika powder used in meatballs
• 2 tsp chicken bouillon powder divided between meatballs and sauce
• 3 tsp salt divided between meatballs and sauce
• 1½ tsp dried thyme added to sauce
• 1 tsp dried oregano added to sauce
• water for boiling pasta, fill pot about 2 inches from the top
• salt for pasta water

Method

 

1. Prep ingredients in separate bowls. Soak 4 toast slices in 1 cup water until fully soaked. Squeeze out as much water as possible; tear into pieces.
2. Roughly chop ⅔ of the coriander for meatballs; reserve the rest for topping.
3. In a large bowl, hand-mix meat, beaten egg, chopped coriander, ⅓ of the celery and onions, ½ of the garlic, wet toast, and 1 tsp each garlic powder, black pepper, mild paprika, chicken bouillon powder, and salt. Form 1 inch balls.
4. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Flour meatballs, shaking off excess; add in batches without stacking.
5. Fry meatballs 2 minutes, flip, and fry another 2 minutes until colored; remove.
6. Heat another 2 tbsp olive oil in the same pot. Sauté remaining celery, onions, and garlic about 40 seconds. Add carrots; cook 3 minutes, stirring consistently.
7. Cook Roma tomatoes 3 minutes until they break down. Stir in crushed tomatoes and half the chicken broth. Cover and cook 10 minutes.
8. Fill a separate pot with water to about 2 inches below the top. Add a drizzle of olive oil and sprinkle of salt; simmer. Add spaghetti; boil 8 to 10 minutes until al dente.
9. Reserve about ½ cup pasta water for the sauce. Drain pasta, drizzle with olive oil, and set aside. Add reserved water, remaining salt, garlic powder, black pepper, chicken bouillon powder, thyme, and oregano to sauce.
10. Stir sauce well. Break 6 meatballs into it and stir. Stir in remaining chicken broth, then all remaining meatballs. Cook another 8 minutes until cooked through.
11. Add pasta to sauce; serve topped with fresh coriander.

Notes

Coat hands with olive oil to help shape sticky meatballs. For a touch of sweetness, ⅓ tsp sugar can be added with the salt and spices in step 9. Basil is the classic and recommended topping choice instead of coriander.

Total time: about 1 hour 15 mins.