Name: Dining solo? Make this 30-min pork meatball pasta
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 1
Ingredients: 100g dried fusilli pasta; 2 Italian-style pork sausages; 1 Tbsp olive oil; 1/2 small onion, diced; 1/2 tsp fennel seeds; 1 stalk celery, diced; 1 garlic clove, crushed; 1 tsp dried Italian herbs; 2 tsp tomato paste; 2 Tbsp red wine; 1/2 x 400g can diced tomatoes; 1/4 cup beef stock; Sea-salt flakes and freshly grated black pepper, to season; Chopped parsley, finely grated parmesan, to serve

You’ve come home after a long day at work, and the last thing you want to do is make dinner. Or, you’ve spent the whole day in the garden with no breaks, and an easy dinner is just what you need.

Introducing the ultimate meatball pasta. Using simple ingredients, including sausages, tomato paste and a touch of wine (after all, who doesn’t need a touch of wine after a hard day’s work), this pork meatball pasta is all you need for an enjoyable solo night. With minimal prep, you’ll have dinner ready in just 30 minutes!

Ingredients

100g dried fusilli pasta

2 Italian-style pork sausages

1 Tbsp olive oil

1/2 small onion, diced

1/2 tsp fennel seeds

1 stalk celery, diced

1 garlic clove, crushed

1 tsp dried Italian herbs

2 tsp tomato paste

2 Tbsp red wine

1/2 x 400g can diced tomatoes

1/4 cup beef stock

Sea-salt flakes and freshly grated black pepper, to season

Chopped parsley, finely grated parmesan, to serve

Method

Step 1

Cook pasta in a saucepan of boiling salted water following packet instructions.

Step 2

Meanwhile, squeeze meat from sausage casings and roll into small balls.

Step 3

In a medium frying pan, heat oil on medium heat. Cook meatballs, turning, until browned. Add onion, fennel seeds and celery and cook, stirring, for 2–3 minutes, until tender. Add garlic and herbs, cook 1 minute. Stir in tomato paste and red wine, cook 1–2 minutes, until wine evaporates.

Step 4

Stir in tomatoes and stock. Bring to boil on high heat. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, for 1–2 minutes, until sauce thickens. Season.

Step 5

Serve pasta with meatball sauce and a sprinkle of parmesan and parsley.

pork and fennel meatball pasta with parsley and parmesan on top in white bowl — *(Photography: Tim Roberts, Styling: Michele Cranston)*

What pasta do you put with meatballs?

While the classic choice is always ‘spaghetti and meatballs’, there’s really no limit on which pasta shape to put with meatballs. If you’ve got a heavier sauce then spaghetti or a shape with ridges, like rigatoni works best. For this pasta, we’ve used fusilli, so all that yummy sauce can get caught in the spiral shape.

Food editor Sarah Murphy Food editor

Sarah began her career in the Australian food media industry 14 years ago. She is now the Food Editor for Better Homes and Gardens, Woman’s Day and Take 5 and loves creating clever and achievable recipes for readers (that will still impress too!)