Name: Pork & harissa meatballs
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 1 h 40 min
Total time: 1 h 55 min
Yield: Makes 3 batches (each batch serves 4)
Ingredients: 150g soft white breadcrumbs; 150ml whole milk; 1kg pork mince; 2 tbsp harissa (we used rose); 1 lemon zested; 30g parmesan finely grated; 3 anchovies finely chopped (optional); small handful of parsley finely chopped; 3 tbsp olive oil plus a drizzle; 2 onions finely chopped; small bunch of basil leaves picked and roughly torn, stems finely chopped; 4 large garlic cloves crushed; 2 tbsp tomato purée; 1 tbsp golden caster sugar; 1 tbsp red wine vinegar; 2 x 400g cans plum tomatoes; 25g butter

Home
Recipes
Pork & harissa meatballs

Pork & harissa meatballs

Ailsa Burt

Save recipe

Makes 3 batches (each batch serves 4)

Easy

Prep: 15 mins

Cook: 1 hr and 40 mins

A star rating of 5 out of 5.1 ratingRate

loading...

Transform a base of spicy meatballs into three simple dinners for busy weekdays. The dish will make three batches of meatballs, which will keep chilled

Freezable

Skip to ingredients

Alternatives

Complete the dish

Showing items 1 to 3 of 3

Crispy meatball pizza

A star rating of 5 out of 5.1 rating

Spring meatball soup

A star rating of 5 out of 5.2 ratings

Honey-glazed meatballs with turmeric giant couscous

A star rating of 3.3 out of 5.8 ratings

Ingredients

Nutrition

Units:

MetricUS

150g soft white breadcrumbs
150ml whole milk
1kg pork mince
2 tbsp harissa

(we used rose)
1 lemon

zested
30g parmesan

finely grated
3 anchovies

finely chopped (optional)
small handful of parsley

finely chopped
3 tbsp olive oil

plus a drizzle
2 onions

finely chopped
small bunch of basil

leaves picked and roughly torn, stems finely chopped
4 large garlic cloves

crushed
2 tbsp tomato purée
1 tbsp golden caster sugar
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 x 400g cans plum tomatoes
25g butter

Keep the screen awake with cook mode on the Good Food app.

Nutrition: Per serving

kcal263
fat14g
saturates5g
carbs13g
sugars7g
fibre2g
protein20g
salt0.7g

Method

step 1

Tip the breadcrumbs into a mixing bowl and pour over the milk. Stir then set aside for 5 mins until the bread has absorbed the milk. Mix in the pork, harissa, lemon, parmesan, anchovies and parsley, season with a good few cracks of black pepper and ½ tsp fine sea salt. Form into 60 meatballs, around 25g each. Transfer to a baking tray. If not using right away, cover and set aside in the fridge until needed. Uncooked meatballs will keep covered and chilled for up to two days.
step 2

Heat the oil in a large ovenproof casserole dish or pan over a medium-high heat, add the onions and basil stems with a pinch of salt. Cook for 10 mins until beginning to soften, then mix in the garlic. Cook for a further 2 mins. Stir in the tomato purée, sugar and vinegar. Cook for 3-4 mins, stirring regularly, until caramelised. Tip in the tomatoes, breaking them up with the spoon. Bring to a gentle simmer, then mix in the basil leaves and butter. Cook for 20 mins, until reduced and thickened, season to taste. Will keep chilled for up to three days. Leave to cool first.
step 3

Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Transfer the tomato sauce to a baking dish, if needed, and dot the meatballs evenly over the top. Drizzle a little olive oil over, cover with foil and bake for 25 mins. Remove the foil and bake for a further 25 mins, until the meatballs are cooked through and browned. Will keep chilled for up to four days.

Recipe tip

To freeze, cool the sauce, dot the meatballs over the top and cover. Cook straight from frozen in a baking dish in the oven at 180C/160C fan/gas 4, covered in foil for 1 hr, then uncover and cook for 20-30 mins.

Recipe from Good Food magazine, April 2025

Comments, questions and tips

Rate this recipe

What is your star rating out of 5?1 star out of 52 stars out of 53 stars out of 54 stars out of 55 stars out of 5

Choose the type of message you'd like to post

CommentQuestionTip

Overall rating