Pork and Onion Meatballs With Tomato Sauce

Written by
Elaine Lemm
Elaine Lemm is a renowned British food writer, classically trained chef, teacher, and author with over 25 years of experience writing about British food and cooking.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Elaine Lemm
Updated 09/22/20
Pork and onion meatballs with tomato sauce

The Spruce
  • Total: 40 mins
  • Prep: 10 mins
  • Cook: 30 mins
  • Servings: 4 servings
Nutritional Guidelines (per serving)
631 Calories
28g Fat
45g Carbs
41g Protein
See Full Nutritional Guidelines Hide Full Nutritional Guidelines
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories 631
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 28g 36%
Saturated Fat 8g 38%
Cholesterol 151mg 50%
Sodium 180mg 8%
Total Carbohydrate 45g 16%
Dietary Fiber 8g 30%
Protein 41g
Calcium 193mg 15%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

For a delicious midweek supper, try this lovely, quick and oh-so-easy recipe for making tasty pork and onion meatballs. As if they aren't delicious enough on their own, the meatballs are served here with a delectable sun-dried tomato sauce. It's perfect on pasta or in hoagie rolls for a meatball sub sandwich.

This dish makes a great lunch or can be served as a main course at dinner. Children love meatballs and this sauce is gentle enough even for them. You can tweak the recipe by adding different herbs (basil is a good one), but use them sparingly as you do not want to overwhelm the meatballs with them. Or, for a change, try this tomato sauce.

Ingredients

  • For the Meatballs
  • 1 pound minced pork
  • 1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped
  • 25 grams/1 ounce fresh breadcrumbs (or 62 grams/2 ounces dried breadcrumbs)
  • 1 egg, lightly beaten
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 handful flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
  • Salt, to taste
  • Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • For the Sun-Dried Tomato Sauce
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed
  • 2 (14-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
  • 8 sun-dried tomatoes, finely sliced
  • 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
  • 1 cup red wine
  • 1 handful parsley, roughly chopped
  • Salt, to taste
  • Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • Freshly grated parmesan cheese, to serve (optional)

Steps to Make It

Note: while there are multiple steps to this recipe, this meatball dish is broken down into workable categories to help you better plan for preparation and cooking.

Make the Meatballs

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Meatball ingredients
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  2. Mix all the ingredients for the meatballs together in a bowl except for the olive oil. Mix thoroughly to ensure everything is well combined.

    Meatball ingredients in a bowl
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  3. Once the mixture is worked together, shape into 16 evenly-sized small balls. You will find this easier to do if you keep your hands damp with a little cold water. Try to make the meatballs as even as possible as this helps with the cooking.

    Shaping meatballs
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  4. Heat the oil in a large frying pan.

    Heating oil in frying pan
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  5. Once hot, fry the meatballs until browned, turning frequently to ensure they are evenly browned.

    Fry the meatballs
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  6. Remove the meatballs from the heat, cover and leave to one side.

Make the Sauce

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Sauce ingredients
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  2. Heat the tablespoon of oil in a large pan to hot, but not burning. Add the onions and cook gently for 7 minutes taking care not to burn.

    Frying onions
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  3. Add the garlic and cook for a further 3 minutes until both the garlic and the onions are translucent.

    Cooking garlic and onions
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  4. Add the canned tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, paprika, wine, parsley, salt, and pepper to the onion and garlic mixture.

    Adding tomatoes to the sauce
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  5. Bring the sauce to the boil, then reduce the heat to simmer and add the meatballs. Cook for another 20 minutes. Serve and enjoy!