Swordfish Meatballs with Ragù, traditional recipe in a pan or with the Bimby.
The swordfish meatballs with ragù are a signature dish here in Messina.
This is considered a Sunday dish, and we also use it to dress pasta.
The swordfish meatballs with ragù were the first dish I ate at my mother-in-law’s, who was the wife of a swordfish fisherman, yes, that typical harpoon fishing in the Strait of Messina done with particular feluca boats equipped with spotting antennas and a walkway where the “allanzatore” precisely “throws” the prey with the harpoon.
My husband, following in his father’s footsteps, still captains one of these boats today and acts as a lookout.
But let’s get to the recipe: to make Swordfish Meatballs with Ragù, you use the fish, which must be fresh, as if it were meat, it must be finely chopped with a knife and then kneaded with the indispensable Sicilian seasoned breadcrumbs.

It is typical of some fishmongers to give, along with the slices, pieces of fish with bone; these parts are excellent for the ragù, and I will prove it to you.
Fish should never be missing from your table: it is easy to digest and rich in good fats, vitamins, and minerals.

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Difficulty: Medium
Cost: Medium
Preparation time: 30 Minutes
Portions: 4
Cooking methods: Boiling, Frying
Cuisine: Regional Italian
Region: Sicily
Seasonality: Autumn, Winter and Spring, Summer

434.25 Kcal

calories per serving

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Energy 434.25 (Kcal)
Carbohydrates 28.30 (g) of which sugars 2.47 (g)
Proteins 25.74 (g)
Fat 24.01 (g) of which saturated 5.40 (g)of which unsaturated 11.23 (g)
Fibers 3.44 (g)
Sodium 786.75 (mg)

Indicative values for a portion of 233 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA^* and FoodData Central^** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.

^* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ^** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov

Ingredients

let’s go shopping

1.1 lbs swordfish (already weighed net plus if you have a part with bone.)
2 eggs
1.25 cups breadcrumbs
0.25 cup Pecorino Romano (grated)
1 clove garlic
1 bunch parsley
0.5 cup water
to taste pepper
1.75 oz onion
1.75 oz carrot
1 stalk celery
0.25 cup white wine
0.25 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups tomato sauce
0.5 cup water
to taste wild fennel (chopped)
to taste seed oil

Tools

What we need to make

Chopping Board
Knife
Plate (or serving dish)
Food Processor
Pan

Preparation

To prepare

First, we need to ensure that the fish is very fresh.
Have them cut you some nice slices, from which you need to remove the skin and any bones. The net weight should be as indicated in the recipe.
Cut it into coarse pieces, then…
With a cleaver, chop it with a knife and reduce it as if it were minced meat.
Set aside 1/3, and with the rest, we will make the meatballs.
Prepare the seasoned breadcrumbs, which is the base element of many Sicilian recipes; add the grated Pecorino Romano, parsley, salt, minced garlic, pepper, and follow my recipe, click here.
In a bowl, combine the 2/3 of the minced fish with the eggs.
The breadcrumbs
Knead like traditional meatballs; if needed, add a little water, but be careful not to add too much, or the meatballs will be mushy.
Form the meatballs, moisten your hands, and make meatballs about 0.6 inches in diameter.
Now you have to decide whether to fry them first, as in the original recipe, and then immerse them in the ragù, or for those who want a lighter cooking, the meatballs can be cooked directly immersed in the ragù when it’s boiling.
If you have decided to fry the meatballs, take a pan with hot seed oil, lightly fry the meatballs on all sides, they should only change color. Do not overcook them, or they will become hard.
Then set them aside and move on to the ragù
If, besides the swordfish slices, they gave you some bony parts, now is the time to use them: after removing the meatballs from the pan, you should also do a light frying of these pieces and then set them aside.
Let’s make the ragù in a pan:
Peel the carrot and onion and remove the strings from the celery.
Chop them coarsely and chop them.
Transfer the chopped vegetables to a pan, add the extra virgin olive oil, and sauté for 3 minutes
add the minced fish we set aside. Sauté for 2 minutes,
Then deglaze with the wine
Add the fish pieces, those with the bone if you had them, and..
When all the alcohol has evaporated, you can add the tomato sauce; I used the one I prepare at home, but you can also use commercially available tomato sauce, season with salt,
Add some chopped wild fennel
and cook for 5 minutes, with a splatter guard on top.
then immerse the meatballs and continue cooking for another 30 minutes on low heat.
From now on, do not stir anymore; you can only shake the pan; otherwise, the meatballs could break. Lower the heat further, cover with a splatter guard, and let it cook for another 15 minutes
In the meantime, you can set the water for the pasta on the stove; once it’s cooked, drain it and dress it with the ragù.
Serve the meatballs as a main course. Welcome to Messina.
Prepare the Sicilian seasoned breadcrumbs as per the recipe, click here.
Remove the skin and central bone from the fish, cut the slices into pieces, and chop for 10 sec. speed 5. Then repeat the operation until reaching the ideal consistency like minced meat. Gather with the spatula.
Now add the eggs, the Sicilian seasoned breadcrumbs, and mix for 1 minute, counter-clockwise speed 4.
Gather with the spatula. If the mixture seems a bit dry, you can add a few tablespoons of water.
At this point, moisten your hands and make the meatballs, which should be at most 0.8 inches in circumference.
Place the meatballs between the Varoma tray and its container; if you also have fish with bone, put it together with the meatballs and close the lid.
Wash and dry the jug, peel the onion, celery, and carrot, chop coarsely, and chop for 12 sec speed 5.
Then add the evo oil, and sauté for 3 minutes counter-clockwise at 230°F speed spoon with the basket instead of the measuring cup.
Add the minced swordfish and sauté for 3 min. with the basket instead of the measuring cup at 230°F counter-clockwise speed 1.
Deglaze with wine and cook at 230°F for 2 minutes at speed 1 counter-clockwise with the basket instead of the measuring cup.
Pour the sauce, 0.5 cup of water, half a teaspoon of flat salt, and the chopped wild fennel into the jug.
Place the Varoma with the tray closed with its lid on the cover, and cook for 20 min at Varoma counter-clockwise speed 1.
When the cooking time has expired, carefully open the Varoma, extract the meatballs, and place them on a serving plate, then pour half of the ragù over them,
with the rest, you can dress the pasta.