Gourmet Magazine Spagetti & Meatballs
Ingredients
- For tomato sauce:
- 6 (28-ounce) cans whole tomatoes in juice (preferably San Marzano)
- 2 medium onions, chopped
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 6 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- For meatballs:
- 2 medium onions, finely chopped
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 10 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 3 cups torn day-old Italian bread
- 3 cups whole milk
- 6 large eggs
- 2 cups grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (1/4 pound)
- ⅓ cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
- ¼ cup finely chopped oregano or 1 teaspoon dried, crumbled
- 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest
- 1½ pounds ground veal
- 1½ pounds ground pork
- 1½ pounds ground beef (not lean)
- 1 cup olive or vegetable oil
- For pasta:
- 2 pounds dried spaghetti
- Accompaniment: grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Instructions
- Equipment: a 12-to 16-quart nonreactive heavy pot or 2 smaller nonreactive pots; a 6-to 8-quart pasta pot with a pasta/steamer insert for cooking spaghetti in 2 batches.
- preparation
- Make sauce:
- Drain tomatoes, reserving juice in a large bowl. Crush tomatoes with your hands and add to juice.
- Cook onions in oil in pot over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 2 minutes. Stir in tomatoes with their juice, 4 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Simmer sauce, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Season with salt.
- Make meatballs while sauce simmers:
- Cook onions in extra-virgin olive oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl to cool.
- Soak bread in milk in another bowl until soft, about 5 minutes. Firmly squeeze bread to remove excess milk, discarding milk.
- Stir together cooled onion mixture, bread, eggs, parmesan, parsley, oregano, lemon zest, 51/2 teaspoon salt, and 1½ teaspoon pepper until combined. Add meats to bread mixture, gently mixing with your hands until just combined (do not overmix).
- Form meat mixture into about 70 (1½-inch) balls with dampened hands, arranging meatballs on 2 large baking sheets or in shallow baking pans.
- Heat olive or vegetable oil (1 cup) in a 12-inch heavy skillet (preferably nonstick) over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking, then brown meatballs in 4 or 5 batches (without crowding), turning frequently, about 5 minutes per batch. Return to baking sheets.
- Add meatballs to sauce and gently simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until cooked through, 20 to 30 minutes. (If pot is not large enough, divide meatballs and sauce between 2 pots.)
- Prepare pasta:
- Cook spaghetti in 2 batches in pasta insert in boiling salted water (3 tablespoon salt for 6 qt water) until just al dente, draining and tossing each batch with some of sauce in a large serving dish.
- Serve with meatballs, remaining sauce, and grated cheese.
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