One-Pan Spaghetti and Meatballs. Meatballs and spaghetti cooked together in one pan – less washing up yay!
This post is sponsored by Bertolli - check out some of their recipes too.
If there’s one thing I can guarantee in life, it’s that my kids will never turn down a bowl of meatballs and spaghetti.
Whilst I love them too, my usual recipe involves TWO pans and a baking tray. Who can be bothered with all that washing up for a quick dinner!
Trying to make the whole thing in one pan had honestly never occurred to me, but then I got talking to Bertolli about some recipe work and I found a one-pan version on their site.
I made a few changes to their original version – the most significant being that I made the meatballs from scratch. I like to add in a few extras to my own meatballs, including:
- Parmesan - gives the meatballs a wonderful flavour
- Breadcrumbs to make the meatballs more tender
- Egg – to bind everything together
- Finely chopped onion – for a little more flavour and texture
I also used Bertolli with butter to cook the meatballs – the butter provides a lovely flavour, whilst the olive oil in the spread ensures that the butter doesn’t burn.
The meatballs are lightly browned in the pan first, then in goes the veg, followed by the liquid and pasta. You can add more or less water depending on how saucy you like it. You could also add in extra veg if you like – such as peppers or mushrooms (add them in with the onion).
Cooking the pasta in the tomato sauce means it absorbs all the flavour as its cooking so it’s extra yummy.
I managed to get this one on the table in about 30 minutes, so it makes a great mid-week meal.
One-Pan Spaghetti and Meatballs
Ingredients
- 500 g minced/ground beef
- 1 large onion - peeled and finely chopped
- 1 egg
- 3 tbsp grated parmesan
- 3 tbsp freshly grated breadcrumbs
- Salt and pepper
- 1 tbsp Bertolli with butter
- 2 celery sticks - chopped
- 2 garlic cloves - peeled and minced
- 400 g can chopped tomatoes
- 2 tbsp tomato puree
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme - or 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp light brown sugar
- 600 ml just-boiled water
- 200 g dried spaghetti or fresh pasta
To Serve:
- Freshly grated parmesan
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
INSTRUCTIONS
- Place the minced beef, half of the chopped onion, egg, parmesan, breadcrumbs and a good pinch of salt and pepper into a large bowl. Mix everything together using your hands, then form the mixture into 16 meatballs.
- Heat the Bertolli with butter in a large frying pan (skillet) and add in the meatballs. Cook for 5-6 minutes on a medium-to-high heat, turning two or three times, until the meatballs are browned all over.
- Add the rest of the onions to the pan, along with the celery and garlic. Cook for 3-4 minutes until the onions start to soften, then add in the can of tomatoes, tomato puree, fresh thyme, brown sugar and the just boiled water. Bring everything back to the boil and add in the pasta (break in half if it’s too big to fit in your pan).
- Turn the heat down to low, place a lid on and cook for 10-12 minutes, stirring once or twice, until the pasta is cooked. Add in another splash of boiling water during cooking if required.
- Season to taste, remove the thyme stalks, then dish out into 4 bowls and top with freshly grated parmesan and chopped parsley.
✎ Notes
Nutrition
Recipe adapted from Bertolli’s spaghetti and meatballs.
More Amazing Meatball Recipes:
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Minnie says
Love one pot dishes, any dish that is so yummy with less washing up gets a thumbs up from me. 👍