Pasta With Chicken Meat Balls In Napoli Sauce ( An adapted Curtis Stone recipe)

My boys love pasta,  so it's a regular at the dinner table at my home.  I saw this simple recipe by Curtis Stone, where he served pasta with chicken meatballs in Napoli sauce. He served it with fettuccine pasta but I used spaghetti instead.

As for the meatballs I  ground or rather chopped up a piece of boneless chicken piece and replaced the breadcrumbs with oatmeal. Or use half a 500g packet of ground chicken(Ayamas Brand found in some of the shops locally).


Recipe : Pasta with Chicken meatballs in Napoli sauce, a slightly modified version from Curtis Stone's Fettucine with Chicken Meatballs in Napoli sauce. check the video here

About 300g of spaghetti cooked till al dente' in a large pot of boiling salted water.
Grated Parmesan cheese (if available)

Sauce :
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic chopped
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 (400g) can of chopped or whole tomatoes (broken up)
salt
ground black pepper ( about 1/2 tsp )
(For Maldivians who love their chilli add  1/4  piece of  scotch bonnet, finely chopped after adding the tomatoes)
1 tsp of sugar
1/4 can of water

Meatballs :
350g boneless, skinless chicken breast
1/4 Quaker instant oatmeal
1 egg white
1/4 tsp  ground black pepper
1/2 tsp mustard ( I used American brand)
salt
1 tsp finely chopped fresh parsley (optional)
1 clove garlic, minced

First, prepare the sauce,  heat some olive oil in a large deep frying pan or pan, add the onions and garlic and let it soften. Add the thyme, tomatoes and the chilli if using.I like to add a little water (1/4 of the can) swirl it around and pour the contents into the pan.  Add the sugar and pinch of salt and let it simmer covered for a few minutes till nice and thick sauce. Taste and adjust seasoning.

While the sauce is cooking prepare the meatballs. I used  boneless chicken which you can chop in a food processor or chop by hand or you can use half of a 500g pack of Ayamas minced chicken.( or you can use the whole 500 and double the spices, make the meatballs,and  after browning all of them  freeze the remaining,  and use the other half for this recipe)

Place this in a glass bowl and add oatmeal,  egg white,  and the rest of the meatball ingredients.  Mix well. About 1/2 tsp of fine salt would be ok, but the best way to check the salt is to heat a frying pan add a tiny piece of mince and cook it , then taste it.
Shape into small balls. Unlike Curtis, I made mine slightly smaller not a giant size.

Heat the frying pan with a little olive oil and brown the meatballs then drop them into the simmering tomato sauce. Cover and cook for about 5-8 minutes till the meatballs are cooked through.

Cook the spaghetti according to packet instructions.

Remove the meatballs, and add the cooked spaghetti and toss through the sauce.  Pile into a plate or on to a large serving platter, arrange the meatballs on top,  add some grated parmesan ( if you have one) on top and serve.

Serving this up at this month's Potluck at the IHCC. come and check out or join us...

By the way do you watch Jimmy Falon? I normally don't but last night I happened to switch on just when Blake Shelton was trying his first sushi and it was pretty hilarious,, and his happy face when he sees the big mac LOL!!  Check it out here .