Greek baked meatballs in tomato sauce (Soutzoukakia Smyrneika)
Ingredients
½ kg ground beef
½ kg ground pork
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 large onion finely chopped
3slices of stale bread soaked in red wine
2eggs
Cumin
3 tbsp olive oil
Salt
Black pepper freshly ground
Flour
Frying oil
Sauce
1 onion finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tomatoes grated
1 cup tomato puree
1 tbsp tomato paste dissolved in water
Cumin
1 tsp black pepper beans
Sugar
Salt
Preparation
Knead all ingredients together and leave the mixture in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Shape into oblong meatballs and shallow fry gently in oil till golden brown. Lay them on a non-stick oven tray. Drain oil from the frying pan but keep ½ cup. To prepare the tomato sauce for the soutzoukakia, sauté the onion in the olive oil you kept from frying. Add the squashed garlic and fry for 3-4 minutes until the onions are tender. Add the tomato puree, sugar, cumin, tomato paste and season with salt and the pepper beans. Bring to boil and simmer, until the sauce starts to thicken. Pour the sauce over the soutzoukakia and bake in pre-heated oven in 180οC, for approximately 30 min
Serves 6
