Ingredients

• 1 onion
• peeled
• 1 stick celery
• 2 tbsp garlic oil
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 2 x 400g/14oz tins chopped tomatoes
• plus approximately 2 full cans of water
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp sea salt flakes or ½ tsp pouring salt
• black pepper
• to taste
• 500g/1lb 2oz turkey mince
• 1 free-range egg
• 3 tbsp breadcrumbs
• 3 tbsp grated parmesan
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• ½ tsp dried thyme

Directions

• For the sauce
• put the onion and celery into a food processor and blitz to a mush. (Or you can chop as finely as humanly possible by hand.) Reserve 2 tablespoons of the mixture for the meatballs.
• Warm the garlic oil in a large
• heavy-based saucepan or casserole
• add the onion and celery mixture
• along with the thyme
• and cook at a moderate to low heat
• stirring every now and again
• for about 10 minutes.
• Add the cans of plum tomatoes
• filling up each empty can with water to add to the pan. Season with the sugar
• salt and pepper
• stir well and let the mixture come to a bubble
• then turn the heat down and simmer the sauce gently while you get on with the meatballs.
• For the meatballs
• put all the ingredients for the meatballs
• including the reserved chopped onion and celery
• and salt according to preference
• into a large bowl and gently mix together with your hands. Don’t overmix
• as that will make the meatballs dense-textured and heavy.
• When all the meatball ingredients are not too officiously amalgamated
• start rolling them into balls. The easiest way is to pinch out an amount about the size of a generously heaped teaspoon and roll it into a ball between the palms of your hands. Put each meatball onto a baking tray lined with baking parchment or greaseproof paper. You should get about 50 little meatballs.
• Drop the meatballs gently into the simmering sauce; I try to let these fall in concentric circles working round the pan from the outside edge inwards
• in the vaguest of fashions.
• Let the meatballs simmer in the sauce for 30 minutes
• or until cooked through. Serve with rice
• pasta
• couscous or however you so please.