Tuna balls pasta

Kids love spaghetti. That’s a given. Spaghetti is a staple in children’s parties and in fastfood chains like MacDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s. Even Jollibee has something they pass off as spaghetti. I’m not a great fan of fastfood spaghetti because from experience, they have too much food coloring and extenders. Wendy’s used to have chili macaroni which was really good though a bit more expensive, but they have discontinued serving it for some time now. The point is, most Filipino kids don’t know spaghetti beyond fastfood spaghetti. Which is really a pity.

Ingredients :

150 g. of uncooked pasta
1/2 c. of grated cheddar cheese

For the tuna balls :

1 can (184 g.) of tuna in brine, drained and brine reserved
2 slices white bread
3 tbps. of evaporated milk
1/2 tsp. finely chopped fresh parsley (1/4 tsp. if using dried)
1/2 tsp. of iodized salt
1/4 tsp. of ground black pepper
1 egg, beaten
1/2 c. of cooking oil

For the sauce :

1/4 c. of olive oil
1/8 c. of tomato paste
1 tsp. of minced garlic
1 onion, diced
1 bell pepper, diced
reserved brine
fish stock
1 tsp. of sugar
pinch of dried basil
salt and pepper to taste

How to :

Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

Mix brine with enough fish stock to measure 1/2 cup.

Chop or tear bread into very small pieces. Place them in a glass bowl. Add milk. Mash them with your hands until very well mixed and no coarse bread pieces are visible. To the bread-milk mixture, add the drained tuna, parsley, salt, pepper and beaten egg. With your hands, mix everything thoroughly. Form into balls (I was able to make 20).

Heat a small skillet. Add cooking oil. When oil is very hot, fry tuna balls in batches (around 5 at a time). Roll them around to brown evenly. Remove balls as soon as they turn a golden brown. Drain in paper towels and keep warm.

In a deep saucepan, heat olive oil. Saute garlic until it starts to brown. Add onions and stir until onion turns transparent. Add bell pepper and cook for 1 minute. Stir in tomato paste and brine-water mixture. Bring to a boil. Lower heat and add basil. Season with salt, pepper and sugar. Add pasta to sauce and toss to coat pasta evenly. Transfer to a serving plate and arrange tuna balls on top. Sprinkle with cheese. Serve hot.