Basic Low-fat Meatballs in Tomato Sauce
This basic low-fat recipe can be adapted to suit your taste preferences. Spicy, herby, plain… you choose!

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  Serves:  4       Print   

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Ingredients
For the meatballs
  • 400 g (14 oz) lean minced meat (beef, lamb, chicken…)
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 tbsp tomato puree
  • Your choice of herbs or spices
For the tomato sauce
  • 400 g (14 oz) tin of chopped tomatoes
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • ½ tsp vegetable oil
  • Your choice of herbs or spices
Instructions
  1. Place the meatball ingredients in a food processor or meat mincer. Process well to get a smooth “dough”.
  2. Take pieces of dough and create firm meatballs the size of golf balls.
  3. Prepare the sauce: Heat the oil in a large pan and sauté the onions for 2 minutes.
  4. Add the tomatoes and your choice of herbs/spices together with 100 ml water. Season with salt & pepper, cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
  5. Add in the meatballs into the sauce. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes.
  6. Remove the lid from the pan, raise the heat to a brisk simmer and allow the sauce to reduce (about 10 minutes).
  7. Serve!
Titli's Tips
Serve with a small amount of rice or mashed potato, and a green salad.

You can try all sorts of combinations of herbs and spices for this dish. For red meat try adding spices such as cumin, chilli, paprika, cinnamon, coriander, or garam masala. For herbs use oregano, thyme, rosemary, basil or parsley. Season with salt and pepper according to your taste.

For chicken, you can add use the same herbs and spices with the additional options of herbs such as tarragon.

Nutrition Facts
Amount Per Serving       % Daily Value
Calories 200 10%
Calories from Fat 89
Total Fat 9.9g 15%
Saturated Fat 3.0g 15%
Unsaturated Fat 5.4g
   
Amount Per Serving       % Daily Value
Total Carbohydrate 9.4g 3%
Dietary Fibre 2.2g 8%
Sugars 5.2g
Protein 20.1g 40%
Cholesterol 75.2mgs 25%
Percent Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet.