Sausage and mash just got a major makeover with these pork meatballs!
Herby meatballs with an apple and onion gravy, creamy celeriac mash and seasonal greens.
If you're looking for easy dinner ideas and tasty healthy recipes than you know I've got you covered. This is a go to if you're looking for comfort food but it still contains 8 different plants for a healthier gut and therefore better mood management. A perfect recipe to leave bubbling on the hob for a comforting dinner during the colder months.
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Ingredients (serves 6):
Pork meatballs recipe:
1 kg minced pork
120g stale bread
200g milk
30g parsley
1 red chilli
4 garlic cloves
2 ts fennel seeds
2 Tbs dried oregano
Sea salt
Black pepper
Apple & Onion gravy recipe:
5 onions (red, white, or a mix)
3 apples
20 sprigs of thyme
2 veg stock cubes
800mL water
2 Tbs corn starch
Celeriac mash recipe:
780g potatoes
760g celeriac
55g salted butter
80mL milk
2 tsp ground nutmeg
Seasonal greens:
2 pak choi
100g kale (or cavolo nero)
1 Tbs rapeseed oil
1 Tbs apple cider vinegar
Sea salt
Black pepper
Method:
How to make my pork meatballs and apple gravy recipe:
Tear up the stale bread into a bowl and cover with the milk. Leave to soak for 10 minutes.
Thinly dice the parsley and red chilli making sure to remove the seeds.
In a large mixing bowl, add the pork mince, chilli, parsley, fennel seeds, oregano, a few generous pinches of salt and black pepper, and the soaked bread. Finely, crush all the garlic cloves into the bowl.
Mix the aromatics into the pork mince until evenly distributed. I find it easiest to use my hands and wash them thoroughly afterwards, but you can also use a large spoon.
Warm up a large saucepan, add a bit of oil, then drop a teaspoon of the pork mix in and cook until brown all over. Taste it to see if the mix is well seasoned or needs more salt.
Once you're satisfied with the taste of the pork it's time to form the meatballs. Roll them up between the palm of slightly wet hands.
Peel and thinly slice the red onions.
Quarter the apples, skin on for extra health, then remove the cores before thinly slicing them.
Heat up 1 Tbs of vegetable oil in a large saucepan on medium low heat. Add the meatballs and brown them on 2 sides (about 5 mins/side), do this in batches so the meatballs always fit on one layer. Once browned, remove from the pan and onto a plate.
Add the onions to the pan with a pinch of salt and soften on medium high heat for 5-7 minutes or until they have caramelised evenly.
Add the apple to the onions with an extra pinch of salt, the veg stock cubes and water. Bring the mix to the boil and then back down to a simmer before adding the meatballs back in with any juice they released. Cover and cook on a low heat for 30 minutes.
Wash and slice the greens, steam them for 8 minutes or until al dente and dress them in oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.
Before serving, mix 2 Tbs of cornstarch with 1 Tbs water in a small bowl to create a slurry. Add this to the meatball saucepan and stir it in while the gravy simmers until it has thickened up. If you like it thicker, make another slurry with 1 Tbs of cornstarch.
Serve with the steamed greens on a bed of celeriac mash and enjoy, bon appétit!
How to make my celeriac mash recipe:
Peel the celeriac: slice it in half then chop off the top and bottom. Then with your knife, follow the curves of the celeriac along the side to remove its skin. Always cut it with the flat side down to avoid it moving and reduce any risk of accidents.
Dice the celeriac up into bitesized pieces.
Dice the potatoes, skin on for extra nutrients, into chunks. Make them slightly bigger than the celeriac as it cooks faster.
Put the celeriac and potatoes in a saucepan, cover with cold water and bring to the boil. Add a couple of generous pinches of salt and simmer for 15 minutes or until you can easily insert a knife into them.
Drain them and mash while it's still hot, slowly adding in the cold butter and milk.
Season with nutmeg and salt if required before serving.
More about this pork meatball and mash recipe:
Shortcuts:
Use sausage meat rather than making your own meatball mix if you're pressed for time. Just remove the casing and roll up into balls.
The sliced greens can also be cooked in the microwave with a bit of water for a few minutes. I often do this if I want less washing up.
Keys to success:
Browning the meatballs is important to keep their shape and develop deeper flavour.
Slice the onions as thinly as possible so they don't take too long to sweat down and caramelise. Getting a nice even colour will make all the difference in the septh of flavour of the gravy.
Health benefits of celeriac:
They're a good source of:
vitamin K - which is required for blood clotting to support wound healing, and is necessary to support bone health; it is also required for the synthesis of sphingolipids which play an essential role in brain cell function, recent research has linked sphingolipid health with healthy aging and reduced risk of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's;
folate which supports the formation of red blood cells and the production of serotonin;
vitamin C which acts as a water-soluble antioxidants, protects cells, enables wound healing and helps maintain healthy skin, bones, cartilage and blood vessels; and is required to convert dopamine to noradrenaline;
soluble fibre which helps lower blood cholesterol, and slows the release of energy from food. It also helps bulk stools with water and serves as a prebiotic, meaning it feeds our gut bacteria for a healthy microbiome.
insoluble fibre - helps to make you feel full, and soften stools for better digestive health. It is also associated with phenolic compounds to antioxidant properties.
Aside from the above, celeriac also contains antioxidants:
Apigenin - reduces the amount of free radicals in the body, it was shown to induce certain cancer cell death including prostate and colorectal; it was notably found to have anxiolytic properties, and in animal studies it was linked with hormonal activity by increasing the production of noradrenaline, stimulated the uptake of L-tyrosine (important for production of dopamine) and reversed stress-induced increase in cortisol. It is being studied as a treatment for depression and initial clinical trials show positive results in reducing insomnia, lowering anxiety, reducing depression and improving cognitive performance in Alzheimer's patients;
Luteolin - can prevent DNA changes caused by carcinogens, prevent neurodegenerative and cardiovascular diseases and may lower cholesterol; in combination with apigenin it has been reported to stop cytokine production aka reduce inflammation;
Caffeic acid - has been shown to have anti-carcinogenic and anti-inflammatory properties;
Ferulic acid - has been shown to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease and lower blood pressure (only in individuals with high blood pressure); it was also shown to improve liver health in animal studies;
These all scavenge free radicals, reducing oxidative stress; and may contribute to anti-tumor, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, anti-diabetic and antimicrobial properties.
Mood Food - Calm:
Folate - is linked to levels of serotonin, our good mood hormone often linked to a feeling of serenity;
Apigenin - has been found to lower anxiety and insomnia;
Vitamin K - Initial studies have shown promising results of a significant inverse relationship between vitamin K and depressive symptoms;
Hopefully this makes you excited to try this and many other celeriac recipes during its season!
You can find lots of ideas on how to cook with celeriac in my newsletter: https://felicityvincent.substack.com/
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