Nonna's Baked Polpette
October 1, 2026
Tender pork and beef polpette baked in Bippi Classico Sugo under molten mozzarella — the Sunday classic, ready for a spring weeknight. Serves four.
Ingredients
for the polpette:
- 2 thick slices white bread, crusts removed
- 80ml milk
- 250g beef mince
- 250g pork mince
- 1 egg
- 40g parmesan, finely grated
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- ¼ cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
- ½ tsp salt, plus black pepper
for the bake:
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 jar Bippi Classico Sugo
- 100ml water
- 125g fresh mozzarella, torn
- 2 tbsp parmesan, extra
- fresh basil leaves, to serve
- crusty bread, to serve
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C fan-forced. Tear the bread into a large bowl, pour over the milk and leave for 5 minutes, then mash to a soft paste with a fork.
- Add the beef and pork mince, egg, parmesan, garlic, parsley, salt and a good grind of pepper. Mix with your hands until only just combined — stop as soon as it comes together.
- With wet hands, roll the mixture into 16 polpette about the size of a golf ball.
- Heat the olive oil in a large ovenproof frying pan or baking dish over medium-high heat. Brown the polpette for 2–3 minutes, turning once — they don't need to be cooked through.
- Pour the Classico Sugo and water around the polpette, turning them gently to coat, and let it come to a simmer.
- Tear the mozzarella over the top, scatter with the extra parmesan and bake for 20–25 minutes, until the sauce is bubbling, the cheese is molten and the polpette are cooked through.
- Rest for 5 minutes, scatter with basil and serve straight from the pan with crusty bread — or spoon over spaghetti.
Nonna's Tip: Soft bread soaked in milk, never dry breadcrumbs — that's what keeps polpette tender. And mix with a light hand: the moment it holds together, stop. Overworked mince makes bouncy polpette, and Nonna will notice.
Make it with
