Porcupine Meatballs with Cooked Rice in Tomato Sauce Recipe
Porcupine Meatballs are a comforting and flavorful dish made with ground meat and cooked rice, giving them their signature texture. Simmered in a rich tomato sauce, these tender meatballs soak up delicious flavors, making them juicy and satisfying. Serve them over mashed potatoes, pasta, or with crusty bread to enjoy every last drop of the savory sauce!
Servings 6 servings
Calories 178kcal
Ingredients
- 500 g minced meat (ground pork or beef)
- 100 g raw rice
- 2 onions
- 2 carrots
- 2 tbsp. olive oil
- 1 egg
- 2-3 garlic cloves
- 4 tbsp. sour cream
- 2 tbsp. tomato paste
- 250 ml water (or broth)
- 1 tsp. sugar
- salt, pepper to taste
Instructions
- Let’s cook rice first. We do not need it to be fully cooked for the recipe so take 1 cup of water for 1 cup of rice. Add a small pinch of salt when boiling rice.
- Combine rice with minced meat in a large mixing bowl (let rice cool down to room temperature, you also can rinse it under cold running water for this purpose).
- Grate carrots and chop onions.
- Sauté vegetables until tender in the skillet on medium heat.
- Half of the sautéed vegetables are added to the bowl (as always let them cool down a bit). Beat an egg into the bowl.
- Season with salt and pepper and mix ingredients thoroughly.
- Add tomato paste and sour cream to the remaining sautéed vegetables in the skillet. Pour broth or water into the mixture and combine everything. Do not forget to stir the sauce while it’s heating up. Let it simmer for 5 minutes at least. Season the sauce to your taste by adjusting the amount of added sugar, salt, and pressed garlic.
- Shape meatballs from the mixture using your hands or a meatball maker. Put them on the baking tray. Place them not so close to each other.
- Pour tomato sauce into the tray carefully, try not to touch the meatballs while adding sauce as it can deform the balls.
- Bake porcupine meatballs uncovered for 50 minutes at 180°C/350°F.
- Garnish with chopped fresh herbs before serving. Enjoy!