The protein cooking time listed in this recipe has been updated.
As of December 2025, we’ve revised cooking times for all our proteins to reflect improved food safety guidance.
Check out the latest recommended times in our Cooking Guidelines.
Pork Meatballs with Tomato, Fennel & Apple
Rich tomato sauce infused with fresh tarragon
Prep in 10
High protein
1/3 daily fibre
5 of 5 a day
New
Low sat fat
Serving size
Ingredients
- 1 fennel
- 1 handful of fresh tarragon
- 1 shallot
- 1 apple
- 230g butter beans (Rehydrated butter beans, water, salt, antioxidant: ascorbic acid.)
- 80g baby spinach
- 300g free-range pork mince
- 3 garlic clove
- 1 chicken stock cube (use half) (Celery) (sea salt, potato starch*, sustainable palm oil* , sugar*, chicken fat* 3.5%, yeast extract, natural flavour, chicken meat* 1%, herbs & spices* (turmeric*, black pepper*, parsley*, rosemary*), onion powder*. * Organic ingredient)
- 1 tsp fennel seeds (use half)
- 400g chopped tomatoes (Tomatoes, Tomato Juice, Citric Acid (E330))
- 2 tsp pumpkin seeds
Nutritional Information
Calories: 632
Protein: 45g
Carbs: 35g
Fat: 33g
Ingredients
- 1 handful of fresh tarragon (use half)
- 80g baby spinach (use half)
- 150g free-range pork mince
- 1 shallot (use half)
- 1 apple (use half)
- 1 tsp fennel seeds (use a quarter)
- 400g chopped tomatoes (use half) (Tomatoes, Tomato Juice, Citric Acid (E330))
- 1 chicken stock cube (use a quarter) (Celery) (sea salt, potato starch*, sustainable palm oil* , sugar*, chicken fat* 3.5%, yeast extract, natural flavour, chicken meat* 1%, herbs & spices* (turmeric*, black pepper*, parsley*, rosemary*), onion powder*. * Organic ingredient)
- 1 fennel (use half)
- 3 garlic clove
- 240g butter beans (drained) (use half) (Dried Butter beans rehydrated, Water, Salt, Antioxidant: ascorbic acid)
- 2 tsp pumpkin seeds (use half)
Nutritional Information
Calories: 644
Protein: 44g
Carbs: 37g
Fat: 37g
Pork Meatballs with Tomato, Fennel & Apple
Rich tomato sauce infused with fresh tarragon
Getting hungry?
Find 56 recipes a week just like this one at Mindful Chef, that are all:
Delicious, high quality food - and lots of it
No stodgy refined carbs - no food comas here
Goodness from natural food - full of fibre
Cooking Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 230C / fan 210C / gas mark 8. Finely chop or crush the garlic. Peel and cut the shallot in half. Thinly slice one half and finely dice the other.
- For the meatballs; in a bowl add the pork, half the fennel seeds, half the garlic and finely diced half shallot. Season with sea salt and black pepper, combine well, then form into 8 meatballs. Heat a large oven-proof frying pan with 1 tsp oil on medium-high heat. Cook the meatballs for 3-4 mins turning regularly, until golden. Remove from the pan and set aside.
- Meanwhile, boil a half-kettle. Dissolve half the stock cube in a jug with 100ml of hot water. Trim and thinly slice the fennel. Dice the apple into 1cm cubes. Drain and rinse the beans. Pick the tarragon from its stalks and roughly chop.
- Using the same pan on medium-high heat with 1 tsp of oil, add the apple, fennel, remaining garlic and sliced shallot. Cook for 4 mins. Add the chopped tomatoes, stock, spinach, tarragon and butterbeans. Bring to a boil and simmer for 2 mins.
- Add the meatballs to the sauce, burying them slightly in the sauce and place in the oven for 8-10 mins, until the meatballs are cooked through. Sprinkle with pumpkin seeds before serving.
Looking for more recipe inspiration?
Subscribe to our newsletter and get delicious seasonal inspiration and recipes, plus 25% off your first 4 boxes with us!
By signing up to our mailing list you agree to the terms of our Privacy Policy.