Mum’s Mexican Meatballs
This is another dish of my Mum’s from the late 1960s. Casserole cookery was all the rage then, it was a new and innovative method of cooking the entire meal in one dish in the oven. Splayds (a sharp edged spoon) and sporks (a spoon with tines at the tip) were subsequently invented so you could easily eat with just one hand while sitting in front of the TV, or standing at a buffet party.
Mum generally chose to make casserole recipes when she entertained. She’d do all the preparation work well ahead of time, then gently reheat the casseroles in the oven. Sadly most of Mum’s casserole recipes have dated badly, at least to my taste. They are all flavoured with commercial soup mixes, a large proportion of them with tomato soup and this recipe in it’s original form is no exception.
I’ve used chorizo instead of bacon and crushed tomatoes and tomato concentrate instead of soup. I also added some herbs, spices and chilli to enhance the complexity of the flavour. Unfortunately I overlooked the fact that even par cooked pasta would be over cooked after an hour in the oven so in the future I will cook it at the last minute and then spoon the meatballs and sauce over the pasta into a serving bowl, or forego the pasta altogether.
Mum’s Mexican Meatballs was a blast from the past, an enjoyable family meal despite the over cooked pasta.
500g minced steak
4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
60g chorizo, minced
1 red onion, diced
1/2 green pepper, cut into 1cm dice
1/2 red capsicum, cut into 1cm dice
400g can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 tablespoon tomato concentrate
400g can chopped tomatoes
1 cup water
1/2 teaspoon crushed red chilli
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon sweet paprika
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
Sea salt, freshly ground black pepper, sugar
125g macaroni par cooked
Pre heat the oven to 160C
Par boil the pasta for 3/4 of the manufacturers recomended cooking time. Drain then refresh in iced water. Oil a deep casserole dish, then tip in the pasta so it covers the base.
Season the minced steak well with sea salt, pepper and 1/2 of the garlic. Knead the seasoning into the minced steak then then roll it into 12 meatballs of equal size. Lay the meatballs on top of the pasta.
Heat the oil in a sauté pan, add the capsicums, onion, chorizo and remaining garlic, and sauté until soft. Add the tomatoes, tomato concentrate, water herbs, spices and red kidney beans. Bring the pan to the boil, taste and season. Pour the sauce over the meatballs. Cover the casserole dish and bake for 1 hour.
Sprinkle the surface generously with chopped parsley, then serve.
Serves 4
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15 comments on “Mum’s Mexican Meatballs”
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Please Pass the Recipe by Sandra Gay is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 Unported License.
Please Pass the Recipe 
I’m with Mum and love a good casserole, especially now that our temps are struggling to get above freezing. This one, with that great spice list, would be very welcome here.
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Mum never considered herself much of a cook, or eater, it was Dad who passed the love of food on. It’s kind of ironic that I’m re cooking Mum’s recipes, my childhood favourites!
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Lovely revamping of a ’60’s dish Sandra. And what vibrant colours!
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This looks so, so good! Haha, I am so glad that you’re sharing your mother’s old recipes with this new generation. I love meatballs, fusion food, Mexican… everything about this. The meatballs look awesome! x
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Thanks Laura. I’m having a great time reinventing, and the dishes are none the worse for it!
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Oh my gosh, does this look yummy. I’m totally crazy over casseroles.. and I have never heard of splayds and sporks before this.. lol. That cracks me up!! I love how you changed the recipe adding your own touch using tomatoes and chorizo… very cool. ❤
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Thanks!
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I love casseroles! They are my go-to for no fuss no muss comfort food that’s delicious. What a great recipe. Thanks for sharing!
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Thanks Azita, It’s always a pleasure to share!
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There are certain recipes that we will always associate with our mother’s meals. This sounds like a good one.
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Thanks Karen, yes, a nostalgic trip down Memory Lane
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I love casseroles! Using chorizo was inspired. This will go down well with my family, so it looks like we’ll be having Mexican Meatballs for dinner tonight.
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Enjoy!
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Another fabulous recipe from your Mum. I really like the idea of using a splayd and spark…fun!
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Thanks Seana, yes with a bit of adjustment everything old is new again!
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