Sicilian Turkey Meatballs

The first batch of meatballs I rolled as an apprentice were the size of cricket balls and about as much fun to eat. A grumpy old chef pulled one off the pass, dropped it on the bench, and let it bounce. Lesson learned. A good meatball is light, well seasoned and cooked just to the point where it is set through and no further.

These Sicilian turkey meatballs are the ones we put on the table at the Golden Door kitchen when people want something hearty without the heaviness of a beef and pork mix. Turkey breast keeps them lean, chicken thigh keeps them juicy, and a handful of green olives and fresh herbs carries the flavour. I am not a fan of a dry meatball, so the chicken thigh in here is doing real work. Do not swap it all out for breast and then tell me they came out tough.

The ragu is a separate job and worth the hour it sits on the stove. You can run the two side by side and have the whole lot ready in an afternoon. Roll the meatballs while the sauce ticks over, and the timing falls into place on its own.

One thing before you start. Mix the mince gently and only as much as you need to. Work it too hard and the protein tightens up, which is how you end up with the rubbery meatballs that bounce. Cold hands and a light touch are your friends here. If your kitchen runs warm, give the rolled meatballs a proper rest in the fridge so they hold their shape when they hit the tray.

Ingredients

Meatballs

• 250g turkey breast mince – skinless
• 250g chicken thigh mince – skinless
• 2 tbsp. chopped Sicilian green olive
• 2 tbsp. chopped fresh Thyme or Oregano
• 2 tbsp. chopped Fresh parsley
• 2 fresh garlic cloves minced finely
• 20g grated parmesan or Pecorino grated
• 20g rice bread crumbs
• 1 whole eggs lightly whisked
• Season to taste with a couple of pinches of salt and pepper

Tomato Ragu

• 25ml coconut oil
• 125 grams brown onion finely diced
• 125 grams carrot finely diced
• 125 grams celery finely diced
• 70 grams tomato paste
• 2 tspn garlic crushed
• 1 anchovy fillet (optional)
• 125ml vegetable stock
• 1lt fresh tomatoes roasted and blended
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme finely chopped
• 1 tbsp oregano finely chopped
• 1/4 bunch basil left whole
• 20ml balsamic vinegar
• Season to taste

Method

Meatballs

1. Place mince, olives, herbs, garlic, parmesan into a bowl and mix by hand to combine.
2. Lightly whisk egg, gently mix into mince by hand until combined
3. Add rice crumbs, making sure everything is mixed through
4. Roll the mixture into balls and refrigerate until oven is ready
5. Preheat oven to roast at 180c – 200c
6. Lay meatballs on baking paper lined tray and place tray into hot oven
7. Depending on your oven and what size you rolled the balls the cooking time can vary, it will be around 8 – 15 minutes and they will be cooked through
8. Once you pull them from the oven, let them rest a couple of minutes and serve

Tomato Ragu

1. Saute onion, garlic and carrot in coconut oil
2. Add celery, thyme and tomato paste and stir to combine
3. Deglaze with stock
4. Add tomato sauce , herbs and chopped anchovy fillets and bring to boil
5. Turn down to simmer for 1 hour
6. Add balsamic vinegar, season to taste
7. Balance with maple if needed

Serves 6.

A word on the anchovy, since someone always asks. It does not make the sauce taste of fish. It melts away and leaves a savoury depth behind that you cannot quite name. Leave it out if you must, but you are leaving flavour on the table.

The roasted tomatoes are doing the heavy lifting in that ragu, so use the ripest you can find. Roasting them first concentrates the sweetness and takes the raw edge off, which is why we blend them rather than reaching for a tin. If your tomatoes are a bit flat, that is where the maple at the end comes in. A teaspoon is usually plenty. You are balancing the sauce, not making it sweet, so taste as you go and stop the moment it sits right.

Serving, making ahead and a few variations

Spoon the ragu onto a warm plate, sit the meatballs on top, and finish with a little grated pecorino and a few whole basil leaves. We serve them over wilted greens or a pile of steamed broccolini more often than over pasta, which keeps the plate lighter and lets the meatballs do the talking. A bowl of brown rice underneath works a treat too, and pairs well with the brown rice we keep on hand for other dishes through the week.

Both elements make ahead beautifully. The ragu is better on day two, once the herbs have had a night to settle in, so cook a double batch and freeze half. Raw rolled meatballs hold in the fridge overnight or freeze on a tray before bagging, which saves you the rolling on a busy night. Cook them straight from frozen and add a few minutes to the oven time.

If you want to play around, swap the green olives for capers, or fold a pinch of chilli flakes through the mince for a bit of heat. Pecorino brings more bite than parmesan, so reach for that when you want a sharper finish. Roasted red capsicum stirred through the ragu at the end is another one worth trying, and a scatter of toasted pine nuts over the top brings a nice crunch if you are feeling fancy.

Building meals around lean protein, vegetables and herbs is a simple habit, and the team at Nutrition Australia has plenty of sensible guidance on balancing a plate. If you want to read more on portions and what a well-rounded plate looks like, the Better Health Channel covers it well too. For more ideas in this vein, our golden coconut chicken curry leans on the same approach, the mushroom, chicken and quinoa skillet is another weeknight favourite, and the poached salmon with fennel is what I cook when I want something lighter. You will find the rest of them over in the recipe collection.

— Dave Forsythe, Golden Door Living kitchen