Make a shallow cut in the sausage skin and remove it from the (uncooked) mild Italian sausage and cut into 4 pieces each.
1 pound mild/sweet Italian sausage
Shape each piece into a meatball, using the palms of your hands.
In a large pan or skillet or Dutch oven, heat about one tablespoon of vegetable oil until it sizzles.
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Add meatballs and brown on all sides for about 5 minutes. Stir occasionally to get all sides.
Then remove the meatballs and set aside. It’s okay if they’re not fully cooked through at this point. They’ll cook through later when being put back in with the sauce.
Add the butter to the same pan and stir in the onion. If there are any meatball bits and pieces stuck to the bottom of the pan, great, scrape them off with a wooden spoon.
3 tablespoons butter, 1 cup chopped onion (or shallots)
Season with ½ teaspoon kosher salt and ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper.
½ teaspoon kosher salt, ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked pepper
Cook onions for about 5 minutes.
Next, add minced garlic, tomato paste, anchovy paste (if using), and oregano, and stir well for 2 minutes.
3 cloves (1 tablespoon) minced garlic, 1 tablespoon tomato paste, 1 teaspoon anchovy paste, 1 teaspoon oregano (dried or fresh)
Add the can of tomatoes, 3 cups of beef stock, and pasta, and bring to a boil.
1 28-ounce can of plum tomatoes, 3 cups beef stock, 16 ounces dried pasta of your choice
Add meatballs back into the pot and stir occasionally.
Now add the uncooked pasta. It will take about 10-12 minutes (depending on the pasta) to finish the dish.
Add a cup of shredded Parmesan (or any shredded cheese you like) about 5 minutes before you think the pasta is ready.
1 ½ cups freshly grated Parmesan (or cheese of your choice)
Divide onto plates and garnish with some more shredded cheese and roughly chopped flat leaf Italian parsley.
Roughly chopped flat leaf Italian parsley for garnish