Chicken Meatballs Stuffed with Cheese in Tomato Sauce

Cooking method

1. Step 1:

   

   Ready to make chicken meatballs stuffed with cheese in tomato sauce? First, gather all your ingredients.

2. Step 2:

   

   Cut the chicken fillet into rough pieces.

3. Step 3:

   

   Grind it together with 1 to 2 cloves of garlic through a meat grinder.

4. Step 4:

   

   I always grind my own meat and hardly ever buy it pre-ground — it only takes a couple of minutes, and this way you always know exactly what's in it.

5. Step 5:

   

   Salt the ground chicken.

6. Step 6:

   

   Add pepper.

7. Step 7:

   

   Add the basil.

8. Step 8:

   

   Now the breadcrumbs.

9. Step 9:

   

   Then the sour cream.

10. Step 10:

    

    Crack in the egg.

11. Step 11:

    

    Mix the meat well with your hands — you can even slap it against the bowl a few times so it firms up and shapes better — then let it rest in the fridge for at least 20 minutes.

12. Step 12:

    

    Take the meat out of the fridge and scoop up a little more than half a tablespoon.

13. Step 13:

    

    Press a hollow into the meat.

14. Step 14:

    

    Tuck a mozzarella ball into it.

15. Step 15:

    

    Gather the meat around it into a ball, sealing the edges.

16. Step 16:

    

    And there's your meatball, ready to cook.

17. Step 17:

    

    This amount of meat made 21 balls for me.

18. Step 18:

    

    Prep the sauce ingredients right away — finely chop the onion.

19. Step 19:

    

    Crush the garlic with the flat side of a knife and mince it.

20. Step 20:

    

    Now fry the meatballs in preheated vegetable oil over medium heat. They cook fairly quickly, about 4 to 5 minutes per side.

21. Step 21:

    

    Turn the meatballs and fry the other side, shaking the pan now and then (gently, of course) so they cook evenly.

22. Step 22:

    

    Transfer the fried meatballs to a plate.

23. Step 23:

    

    In the oil left behind by the meatballs, fry the onion and garlic for 2 to 3 minutes, until soft.

24. Step 24:

    

    Add a little herbes de Provence, or other spices to taste.

25. Step 25:

    

    At this point Italians would add canned tomatoes in their own juice, but I'm using homemade tomato juice from tomatoes grown in my own garden.

26. Step 26:

    

    Simmer for about 5 minutes over medium heat to cook off the excess liquid.

27. Step 27:

    

    Return the meatballs to the pan.

28. Step 28:

    

    Warm through for 4 to 5 minutes, covered.

29. Step 29:

    

    Spoon the fragrant sauce over the meatballs.

30. Step 30:

    

    Enjoy!