There is nothing more comforting than making a great pasta in minutes especially when your family least expects it. Give the canned tomatoes/puree a miss and prep your own with simple ingredients. All you need is a few ingredients and a big heart to cook your family and friends a dish that will make them happy.
Ingredients:–
- Minced chicken – 250 Grams (If you dont have minced chicken simply blitz your chicken breast in a food processor, until it reaches the consistency that you desire)
- Salt – To taste (For seasoning of meat balls)
- Oregano – 2 Teaspoons (I used dried , but if you have fresh even better)
- Pepper – 1 1/2 Teaspoon (Freshly crushed)
- Egg – 1
- Bread crumbs – 100 Grams
- Oil – 2 Tablespoons (To fry the chicken meat balls)
- Pasta – Half a pack ( Any pasta that you like. Half the pack fed two members in my family)
- Basil leaves – 1 Stem for garnish ( You can use as much as you like really)
- Cheese – For garnish (As much as you like)
- Olive oil – A good drizzle
- Tomatoes – 3 Medium (For the sauce)
- Garlic – 4 cloves (diced very finely)
- Chilly flakes – 2-3 Teaspoons
- Rosemary – 2 Teaspoons (I used dried, but you could use fresh too)
Directions for making meatballs
- In a large bowl, chuck in the minced chicken, oregano, pepper, salt, egg and bread crumbs and mix it all together to make small to medium sized meat balls on the palm of your hand.
- In a pan, add some oil and let the pan heat up on a medium flame. Once the oil has heated up, chuck in the meat balls and let them cook through evenly on both sides.
- Once the balls have changed to golden brown, you can take them out carefully and rest them in a dish.
Directions for making tomato sauce
- Heat water in a sauce pan and pop in the tomatoes into it for five-ten minutes. Let them rest in it.
- After a while, take your tomatoes out and peel the skin off. This should be an easy affair and if its not, this would be cue for you to stick your tomatoes longer in hot water.
- Chuck the peeled tomatoes into the food processor and blitz it until you get a fine puree.
- In a sauce pan, add some oil , add the diced garlic, chilly flakes and let it cook until you can smell the flavour.
- Now add some rosemary and after a few minutes pour in the puree.
- Let the contents of the sauce pan come to a boil and ix together for all the ingredients to marry.
- Season with salt and pepper if you please and have a taste before you make it your sauce.
Directions for making the pasta
- Cook the pasta as per the instructions given on the pack. Have the pasta drained and ready to go.
- Chuck the resting meat balls into the freshly prepared tomato sauce, add the pasta over it and give it all a good mix.
- Swirl it all around to bring all the three different parameters of the dress together.
- This dish really comes together if you have enough of everything which is the sauce, meat balls and the pasta.
- Last but not the least, garnish with some fresh basil leaves, a drizzle of olive oil and cheese of your choice.
- Dont forget to serve with a smile.
The melted cheese atop the pasta along with fresh basil leaves and olive oil elevates the pasta and all you need now is just cutlery and hungry stomachs who cant wait to gobble it all down. One glass of wine enhances the flavour. Happy eating!
aprononme 