One-Pot Pork Meatball Orecchiette with Fresh Tomato

Steps

1. Prepare first: mince the garlic, chop the tomatoes, beat the egg and tear the basil leaves.
2. In a bowl, mix the pork-ground, breadcrumbs, egg, two-thirds of the Parmesan, half of the garlic, half of the salt and the black pepper. Roll into about 20 small meatballs.
3. Heat the olive oil in a wide, deep pot over medium-high heat. Brown the meatballs on all sides, about 6 minutes (they finish cooking later), then move them to a plate.
4. Lower the heat to medium. Add the remaining half of the garlic, the tomato paste and the red pepper flakes and cook 1 minute.
5. Add the chopped tomatoes and cook 5 minutes, stirring and scraping up the browned bits, until they start to break down.
6. Pour in the chicken broth and water, add the remaining half of the salt, and bring to a boil.
7. Stir in the orecchiette pasta and return the meatballs to the pot. Simmer uncovered, stirring often, for 12 to 14 minutes, until the pasta is al dente, the sauce has thickened and the meatballs reach 160°F (71°C) in the center.
8. Off the heat, stir in half of the basil. Serve topped with the remaining one-third of the Parmesan and the remaining half of the basil.