Welcome to a taste of pure comfort! Tefteli are beloved meatballs from Eastern Europe, a heartwarming dish that evokes cozy family dinners and cherished childhood memories. Unlike their Italian-American cousins, these tender pork meatballs are gently simmered in a luscious, velvety sauce made from ripe tomatoes and sweet bell peppers. This recipe is all about creating deep, savory flavors with simple ingredients. The result is a wonderfully satisfying meal that's both rustic and incredibly delicious, perfect for pairing with creamy mashed potatoes or your favorite grain.
Tefteli with tomato and sweet pepper sauce
For the sauce:
- 200 g sweet bell pepper
- 300 g tomatoes
- 2 cloves garlic
- salt, sugar, ground red pepper to taste
For the meatballs:
- 700 g ground pork
- 100 g onion
- 100 ml milk
- 100 g white bread
- spices for meat, oil for frying
- green onion for serving
How to cook Tefteli with tomato and sweet pepper sauce
Let’s start with the sauce. We’ll use a blender or a food processor to make it – it’s quick and easy. First, remove the seeds from the sweet pepper, slice it, and place it in the bowl.
Deseed, slice the sweet pepper, and place it in a blender bowl
Add ripe tomatoes and a few garlic cloves to the pepper. The tomatoes for the sauce can be overripe; it will still be delicious!
Add tomatoes and garlic to the bowl
Add the seasonings. Ground red pepper will give the sauce a vibrant color. In addition to the pepper, add table salt and granulated sugar to balance the acidity of the tomatoes.
Add salt, sugar, and spices
Blend the vegetables until smooth. If you wish, you can strain the puree through a sieve to remove the seeds, but this is optional.
Then, pour the sauce into a saucepan and simmer over medium heat for 10 minutes.
Blend the vegetables and pour the resulting puree into a saucepan to simmer
Now, let’s make the tefteli (small, tender meatballs, often simmered in sauce). Place ground pork, or pork loin if you prefer to make your own mince, into the blender.
Place the ground pork in the blender
Add a coarsely chopped onion to the meat. If you’re not a fan of onion, you can substitute it with a little white cabbage, grated raw potato, or finely chopped fresh herbs (parsley, cilantro, dill).
Add the onion
Slice the white bread, soak it in milk, and add it to the ground meat and onion. Pour any remaining milk into the bowl as well.
Add the bread soaked in milk
Season the mixture with salt and spices to your taste, blend until smooth, and then chill the bowl in the refrigerator for 20 minutes. This will make the mixture easier to shape.
The spice mix for tefteli is simple: black pepper, grated nutmeg, or an Indian curry powder for meat, which contains a variety of spices.
Add spices and blend the ingredients for the minced meat
With hands moistened in cold water, form round meatballs about the size of a ping-pong ball. Heat two tablespoons of refined, odorless vegetable oil in a frying pan and fry the meatballs on each side until golden brown.
Form the tefteli and fry them until golden brown
Pour the hot tomato sauce over the tefteli in the pan, cover with a lid, and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes.
Pour the hot tomato sauce into the pan, simmer over low heat
Serve the tefteli with tomato and sweet pepper sauce hot, sprinkled with green onions before serving.
Before serving, sprinkle the tefteli with tomato and sweet pepper sauce with green onions
And there you have it—a pan full of tender, juicy tefteli swimming in a rich and aromatic sauce! This dish is the epitome of comfort food, perfect for gathering the family around the table. Serve them hot over a bed of mashed potatoes, fluffy rice, or pasta to soak up every last drop of the delicious sauce. They also pair wonderfully with traditional sides like buckwheat kasha. We hope this recipe brings warmth and joy to your kitchen. Enjoy every savory bite!
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