Ingredients
- 1 onion, peeled
- 1 celery stalk
- 2 tablespoons garlic flavoured oil
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 2 x 14 ounce cans diced plus approx. 3 1/3 cups (2 full cans) water
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt flakes or 1/2 teaspoon table salt
- Pepper, to taste
- 1 pound ground turkey
- 1 egg
- 3 tablespoons breadcrumbs
- 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan
- 2 tablespoons of finely chopped onion and celery (from the tomato sauce ingredients above)
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce (such as Lea and Perrins)
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
Instructions
- Put the peeled onion and celery into a processor and blitz to a mush. Or you can chop as finely as humanly possible by hand. Reserve 2 tablespoons for the meatball mixture.
- Warm the garlic flavoured oil in a heavy saucepan or Dutch oven, add the onion and celery mixture, along with the thyme, and cook at moderate to low heat, stirring every now and again, for about 10 minutes.
- Add the cans of tomato, filling up each empty can with water to add to the pan. Season with the sugar, salt and pepper, stir and then leave to come to a bubble, and then turn down to let it simmer gently while you get on with the meatballs.
- Put all the ingredients for the meatballs, including the reserved chopped onion and celery, and salt according to preference, into a large bowl and mix together, gently, with your hands, wearing disposable vinyl gloves if you feel so inclined. Don’t over-mix, as that will make the meatballs dense-textured and heavy.
- When all the meatball ingredients are not too officiously amalgamated, start rolling. The easiest way really to do this is to pinch out an amount about the size of a generously heaped teaspoon and roll into a bowl between the palms of your hands. Put the meatballs on a baking tray, lined with baking parchment or greaseproof paper, as you go. You should get about 50 little meatballs.
- Drop these gently into the simmering sauce; I try and let these fall in concentric circles working around the pan from the outside edge inwards, in only the vaguest of fashions.
- Let the meatballs cook for 30 minutes, until cooked through. Serve with rice or pasta or however you so please.
Reviews
Oh my gosh this was delicious! The meatballs were so flavorful and tender. I can’t believe it’s ground turkey
These were fantastic dinner time treats! They went together fast and were tender, and full of flavor. I have seen a lot of comments on the sauce being to thin. The brand of tomatos you use can make a big difference, as some can be very watery and do not need extra water. Also, it helps if you avoid a non stick pan, they tend not to reduce sauces well. This is a tasty, versatile dish (serve it with rice, gnocchi, or pasta that comes together quick and is very satisfying to eat.
While I appreciate the simplicity of this recipe, the flavor of the meatball was completely lacking. The sauce was good, but as the previous reviews say, don’t add all of the water the recipe calls for (I added a little tomato paste to kick up the tomato flavor and thicken the sauce a bit). I think this recipe has a lot of potential if the meatballs are kicked up a bit.
Amazing meatballs! Light and juicy, not something that comes to mind with turkey meatballs. I agree the sauce is thin, but I also added less water when I saw how much was called for and added a little more tomato sauce. The only other thing I changed was mincing the onions a little larger so there were little bits instead of mush in the meatball. Added a different texture.
Tasty. Healthy. Easy. What more could you want? I increased the tomatoes slightly (used additional fire-roasted diced, added about a 1/4 c. tomato paste… adjusted water as needed. Only rinsed the cans, and added that, and then added maybe total of 2 c, as the sauce simmered. Delicious at a seasonal cocktail party with an Italian there! Presto… :-
I thought these little tasty bits were delectable. I was so surprised at how light and juicy they were. My husband doesn’t like turkey, so I didn’t tell him that was what he was eating until he was finished and he was amazed at how delicious they were. So, great recipe. I served them over buttery egg noodles.
I love Nigella’s food — always flavorful, simple, and enjoyable. But this was awful. The sauce was watery and thin, lacked flavor, and was uninspiring. The meatballs were also fairly bland and, since they cooked by the steam of the sauce, also lacked an appetizing texture. I would not make this again.
Please try this recipe (in particular…my husband and I enjoyed the flavor and texture) and consier serving for holiday parties. Thanksgiving Day and foods as one influence…we found this recipe enjoyed not only by ourselves but the majority of invited folks in Silicon Valley,CA. Try this one and make your own decision. Annie, Fremont, CA