by Mar on
The best and easy sauce for meatballs is quickly put together with tomato puree or passata and a few aromatic herbs.
Half of those fried meatballs I made yesterday will go into this delicious sauce.
This is another staple Romanian recipe from my childhood called “chiftele marinate”.
Just a few ingredients cooked together and we can enjoy leftover meatballs at another level with different flavors infused.
🍅 Ingredients For This Meatball Sauce
Besides fried meatballs, there are just a few ingredients needed that you probably already have at hand in your pantry.
- Fried meatballs (made here)
- Tomato sauce – puree or passata (good quality recommended)
- Garlic – just a few cloves
- Dried thyme & bay leaves – gives intense aromatic flavor
- Salt and black pepper – for seasoning
- Sugar – corrects acidity and increase tastiness
- Vinegar – for just a bit of tartness
- Vegetable oil – few tablespoons
🧄 How To Make The Best Meatball Sauce
Step 1: Prepare sauce
In a large enough pan, heat the oil and let the chopped garlic cloves infuse their aroma for about 2 minutes. Add the passata, stir, cover and simmer for another couple of minutes.
Add salt, black peppercorns, dried thyme and bay leaves. Add sugar and stir again.
Let it simmer partially covered on low flame another 10 minutes to reduce more and absorb all aromatic herbs into it.
Step 2: Add fried meatballs
Add some more warm water (one or 1 1/2 cup) to have enough sauce for the meatballs to cook in. Have a taste and correct with salt and sugar if needed.
Add vinegar and carefully place those fried meatballs into sauce.
Stir so they are all covered in this delicious sauce and let them cook for another 15-20 minutes.
🍽️ Serving
Turn off the flame and serve immediately with mashed potatoes or rice and your favorite seasonal salad.
They are delicious even cooled. Keep leftovers covered in the fridge up to 3 days and add a little water when reheating. Enjoy!
Other must try ground meat recipes:
- Romanian Cabbage Rolls (traditional recipe)
- Romanian Stuffed Peppers (best stuffed peppers you ever tried)
- Romanian Meatball Soup (hearty, soul food recipe)
Best Easy Sauce For Meatballs
Ingredients
- 16 fried meatballs
- 3 cups (700ml) tomato puree or passata
- 4 garlic cloves (chopped)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black peppercorns
- 1 tbsp dried thyme
- 4-5 bay leaves
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp vinegar
- 4-5 tbsp cooking oil
Instructions
- Heat the oil on middle-low flame and infuse it with the chopped garlic cloves. Add tomato passata and simmer for 2 minutes. Add salt, pepper, sugar, peppercorns, thyme and bay leaves. Stir, cover partially and let it reduce for about 10 minutes.
- Add more warm water and the vinegar. Stir, taste and correct the salt and sugar level if necessary. Add the meatballs, cover them in sauce and cook together for another 15-20 minutes. Serve immediately with mashed potatoes or rice and your favorite salad. Enjoy.
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