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The Ferguson Recipes – Recipes, Plain & Simple
The Ferguson Recipes

Jacques Pépin's Meatballs With Tomato Sauce 🌄 💤 ⏳
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🖨 🖨
Jacques Pépin's Meatballs With Tomato Sauce
Jacques Pépin's Meatballs With Tomato Sauce
{Serving suggestion only*}
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Transform your leftover roast meat into something extraordinary with Jacques Pépin's ingenious meatball recipe. These tender, flavorful meatballs are simmered in a rich, homemade tomato sauce brightened with green olives for a Mediterranean touch. What makes this recipe special is its clever use of already-cooked meat, eliminating the worry of undercooked meatballs while creating a convenient second-day meal that tastes completely fresh. Perfect for busy weeknights or casual entertaining, this dish demonstrates the legendary chef's knack for practical, delicious cooking. - Claude
No Jump Zone
Ingredients
Meatballs
12 ounces leftover roast beef, veal or pork (coarsely chopped)
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
½ cup minced onion
¼ cup minced celery
1 garlic clove (minced)
¼ teaspoon dried thyme
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 large eggs (beaten)
Vegetable oil (for frying)

(continued in the next column ↗️)



Sauce
¼ cup vegetable oil
3 garlic cloves (minced)
½ cup minced onion
½ teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon dried oregano
28 ounce can diced tomatoes with their liquid
⅓ cup pitted green olives (coarsely chopped)
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Directions
Meatballs
Toss the meat into a food processor and process until it's finely chopped.
In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt.
Add the chopped meat, onion, celery, garlic, thyme, pepper and eggs and get in there with your hands until everything is thoroughly blended.
Form the mixture into 16 meatballs and flatten them slightly.
In a large skillet, heat 1/4 inch of oil until shimmering.
Add the meatballs and cook over high heat until they're browned on the bottom.
Turn the meatballs, reduce the heat to moderate and cook until browned on the second side, about 3 minutes.
Transfer the meatballs to a large plate.
 
Sauce
In a medium saucepan, heat the oil.
Add the garlic, onion, thyme and oregano and cook over moderate heat until softened, about 4 minutes.
Add the tomatoes, cover and cook over moderate heat for 6 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Using an immersion blender, puree the sauce until it's slightly chunky. If you don't have an immersion blender, puree the sauce in a food processor and return it to the saucepan.
In a small saucepan, cover the olives with water and bring to a boil over high heat; drain well.
Add the olives to the tomato sauce, season with salt and pepper and bring to a simmer.
Add the meatballs, simmer until heated through and serve.
Servings\Yield
Serves 4
Nutrition Facts
Nutrition Per Serving - Calories: 495; Total Fat: 33g (Saturated Fat: 7g); Cholesterol: 220mg; Sodium: 910mg; Total Carbohydrates: 21g (Dietary Fiber: 4g, Sugars: 7g); Protein: 28g
*Nutrition information is provided as a general estimate only. Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients, and is based on available nutrient data. Variations may occur based on ingredient brands and preparation methods.
💬 Uncle Dave says...
Make Ahead: The meatballs can be refrigerated overnight in the sauce. From Food & Wine
🧑‍🍳 The Cook:  Jacques Pépin 🔑 Keywords: meatballs, leftovers, beef, tomato sauce, olives, jacques pépin
🗂️ Categories: 🥩 Beef, 🐖 Pork, 🦌🐇🐐🦍 Other Meat
📚 Collections: Uncle Dave's Cookbook, The TFR Cookbook, Our Favorite Jacques Pépin Recipes
Jacques Pépin's Meatballs With Tomato Sauce was added on April 18, 2025 and last updated on September 25, 2025.
*Serving suggestion only. 😂 If a food photo doesn't look like it was taken by a monkey named Frank, it was most likely AI generated and not the result of Frank's minimal culinary or photographic skills. Unless you failed the "I'm not a robot" test, your recipes will probably not look like the ones in the pictures. See Creamy Turkey Veggie Soup to read more about AI images.
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