Spaghetti and Meatballs

About This Recipe

Spaghetti and meatballs is the quintessential Italian-American dinner, a tangle of perfectly cooked spaghetti tossed in a rich tomato sauce and crowned with tender, juicy meatballs. Though it's not a traditional Italian dish, it became an icon of American home cooking and Sunday family suppers. The meatballs, a juicy blend of beef and pork bound with a milk-soaked breadcrumb panade, are browned and then simmered in marinara so they soak up the sauce. Tossing the pasta directly in the sauce, rather than just ladling it on top, ensures every strand is coated. Finished with Parmesan and basil, it's pure, soul-warming comfort.

Ingredients

Serves 6

• 1 lbspaghetti
• 1 lbground beef
• 0.5 lbground pork
• 0.75 cupbreadcrumbs
• 0.33 cupmilk
• 2 largeeggs
• 0.5 cupgrated Parmesan cheese
• 4 clovesgarlic, minced
• 0.25 cupchopped parsley
• 28 ozcrushed tomatoes
• 2 tbspolive oil
• 1 tspdried oregano
• 1 tspsalt

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the panade

   Soak the breadcrumbs in the milk until softened, then mix with the beef, pork, eggs, Parmesan, half the garlic, parsley, and salt, combining gently.

   The milk-soaked breadcrumbs keep the meatballs tender.

2. 2

   Shape and brown

   Roll into 1.5-inch meatballs and brown them in olive oil on all sides; they finish cooking in the sauce.

   Brown in batches so they sear rather than steam.

3. 3

   Build the sauce

   Sauté the remaining garlic in the same pan, then add the crushed tomatoes and oregano, scraping up the browned bits.

4. 4

   Simmer

   Return the meatballs to the sauce, cover, and simmer gently for 25-30 minutes until cooked through.

   Low, slow simmering melds the meatballs and sauce.

5. 5

   Cook the spaghetti

   Meanwhile, boil the spaghetti in well-salted water until al dente, reserving a cup of pasta water.

   Salt the water generously, it's your only chance to season the pasta.

6. 6

   Toss the pasta

   Drain the spaghetti and toss it with a few ladles of the sauce, adding pasta water as needed to coat.

   Tossing the pasta in sauce coats every strand.

7. 7

   Serve

   Plate the spaghetti, top with meatballs and more sauce, and finish with Parmesan and fresh basil.

Variations

• •

  Use a beef-pork-veal blend for classic meatballs.

• •

  Bake the meatballs for a lighter option.

• •

  Add red pepper flakes for a spicy arrabbiata twist.

• •

  Serve with a different pasta like rigatoni or bucatini.

Storage

Refrigerate for up to 4 days or freeze meatballs and sauce for 3 months; cook fresh pasta when serving leftovers.

Frequently Asked Questions