Polpette di Pane al Sugo (Bread Patties in Tomato Sauce)

 

“Di necessita` virtu`”, or “to make a virtue out of necessity”, is a well-known proverb most commonly used in the kitchens of days gone by, where original dishes were whipped up at the last minute and with little ingredients on hand.

This is a family recipe that my maternal nonna would make on a meatless Friday; made to recycle left-over stale bread and make the most of the ingredients they had on hand. I grew up loving this dish that mamma prepared for us as children and she still makes it to this day as a light lunch for the two of them.

This very poor meatless ‘meatball’ dish is present throughout Southern Italy. It is very simple to prepare, uses minimal ingredients, and most delicious fried as part of an aperitivo spread or cooked in the sauce for a light lunch or tapas. They can be shaped as meatballs or slightly flattened patties as mamma makes them.

The tomato 'sugo' that they are cooked in has the addition of peas; an additional ingredient that both my nonna and mamma liked to include.  The passata or good quality canned minced tomatoes can be used according to preference. I used a can of minced tomatoes, keeping the sugo very light.

Polpette di Pane al Sugo (Bread Patties in Tomato Sauce)

Ingredients serve 4

400 g stale bread

3 medium eggs

150 g grated pecorino or parmigiano cheese

1 clove garlic minced

chopped parsley

salt & pepper

vegetable oil for frying

For the tomato sauce:

500 ml of passata or for a light sauce 400 ml can minced tomatoes

1 spring onion finely chopped

olive oil

salt 

 Cut the stale bread into small pieces, place in a bowl of water and let it soften for a few minutes. Then squeeze out excess water. Crumble the bread with your hands and transfer to a large bowl.

Mix the bread, grated pecorino cheese, chopped garlic and finely chopped parsley.

Add one egg at a time, stirring constantly, until the mixture is smooth and homogeneous. Add just a pinch of salt and pepper.

Using your hands make 5-5 cm diameter size ’meatballs’, and flattern slightly.

Put enough vegetable oil in a pan to shallow fry and turn up the heat. Add the meatballs and cook on each sides by pressing with a fork until they are cooked through and golden. Drain the meatballs on paper towels.

To prepare the sauce, chop the onion and fry in a little olive oil. When the onion is soft, add the passata or tinned tomatoes, basil or parsley and simmer. Add the peas and continue to cook until tender.  Transfer the meatballs into the tomato sauce and let them cook over a medium heat with lid on for about 10 minutes. Garnish with parsley or basil and serve hot.

Be warned, they are very addictive and "uno tira l'altro! 

 Enjoy!