Turkey Meatballs and Rigatoni
August 24, 2008
I’ll admit it – I grew up eating spaghetti sauce from a jar. This is to be expected from a first generation immigrant like my mother who thought Ragu was how spaghetti was supposed to be prepared (well, that along with kimchi. Can I get a witness from my Korean-American peeps?) I was set straight by my husband, who grew up eating macaroni and gravy prepared by his Italian family from the Bronx (that would be pasta and marinara sauce).
I’ve been making turkey meatballs even since I my son was born, trying to shed those baby pounds. While low-cal substitutions usually mean a less tasty result, I truly feel these meatballs are just as tasty as ground beef meatballs.
Turkey Meatballs
(yields about 18 1½” meatballs)
1 1/3 lb. ground turkey
1 small onion
2 cloves garlic
1/2 C. breadcrumbs
1/4 C. grated parmesan cheese
1 egg
1 tsp. salt (or more to taste)
fresh ground pepper
Puree onion and garlic in a mini-chopper or food processor. Combine pureed onion, garlic, ground turkey, breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, egg, salt and pepper in a medium bowl until well combined.
Roll mixture into 1½” balls. Heat mium skillet on medium high and brown meatballs on all sides, about 3 minutes per side.
Add to pot of hot marinara sauce (see below) and cook on medium low for 15-20 minutes. Serve with pasta of your choice with grated parmesan cheese.
Marinara Sauce
28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
2 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp. sugar
2-3 tsp. dried basil
Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan on medium high. Add minced garlic and saute until golden. Add can of crushed tomatoes, sugar and basil. Mix and cook on medium low for 15-20 minutes.
August 25, 2008 at 3:00 am
That is making me hungry for lunch. I’m putting this on my “what-to-make-for-dinner” list!
August 25, 2008 at 9:53 am
I am sorry I didnt do your meme. TIme gat away from me. I came back to check how to do it and could not find it. While I was here I saw all your delicious looking food with amazing pics. Would love to have that bag of crabs.
August 25, 2008 at 1:13 pm
I shouldn’t be looking at this before lunch – now my tummy is growling!
August 25, 2008 at 4:05 pm
Kochujang on spaghetti is da bomb!
August 26, 2008 at 1:29 am
That dish looks so yummy! I think I’ll bookmark this one to make later this week. 🙂
August 26, 2008 at 10:26 pm
Oh my I really have to give this a try! You sure makes it look really easy and simple! But I won’t be able to get my hands on ground turkey, so i will have to go with ground beef. Is there anything I should look out for for using beef instead? Thanks!
August 27, 2008 at 11:37 am
No, just more clogged arteries. 😛
August 28, 2008 at 8:44 pm
My kids would love this. Can same meatball recipe be used for ground bison? I usually have ground bison in the refrigerator.
April 1, 2009 at 9:05 pm
Angel:
I haven’t tried this recipe with ground bison, but I have made bison meatballs. They are FAB-U-LUS!
Peace
April 8, 2009 at 9:58 pm
I’ve made this a couple of times, its fast and soo yummyy!!
March 3, 2010 at 10:33 pm
I made these for dinner tonight, and I must say they they are the best meatballs and marinara sauce I have ever eaten. I made a few changes to the marinara though, I added onion powder, a sprinkle of sage, and parsley, plus a dash of garlic powder for the extra garlic kick. It was INCREDIBLE