Recipes

Faggots (Welsh-Style Pork Meatballs) with Onion Gravy

  • Serves

    serves 4-6

HELEN ROSNER

The Cwmcerrig Farm Shop in Wales serves these hearty liver-enriched pork meatballs doused in a buttery onion gravy. The name derives from the old northern British term for uncased sausage. This recipe first appeared in our Jan/Feb 2014 SAVEUR 100 issue with the article Cwmcerrig Farm Shop.

Ingredients

For the Gravy

  • 4 tbsp. unsalted butter
  • 1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced
  • 1 tbsp. flour
  • 2 cups beef stock
  • 13 cup madeira wine
  • 12 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

For the Meatballs

  • 10 slices bacon, finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp. finely chopped sage
  • 1 12 tsp. finely chopped thyme
  • 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • 1 lb. ground pork
  • 4 oz. pig's liver, finely chopped
  • 1 12 cups bread crumbs
  • 12 cup milk
  • 14 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
  • 12 cup dry white wine

Instructions

Step 1

Make onion gravy: Melt butter in a 4-qt. saucepan over medium-low heat; add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 40 minutes. Stir in flour; cook 2 minutes. Add stock, madeira, Worcestershire, salt, and pepper; bring to a boil. Cook until slightly thick, about 5 minutes; set gravy aside and keep warm.

Step 2

Make the meatballs: Heat oven to 350°. Heat bacon in a 12" skillet over medium-high heat; cook until fat is rendered and bacon is slightly crisp, 4–6 minutes. Add sage, thyme, onion, salt, and pepper; cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, 7–9 minutes. Transfer to a bowl; let cool.

Step 3

Add pork, liver, bread crumbs, milk, nutmeg, salt, and pepper to bacon mixture; mix gently to combine. Form mixture into eight 4-oz. balls. Place in a 9" x 13" baking dish and add wine; bake, basting occasionally with pan juices, until cooked through, about 25 minutes. Serve with onion gravy.

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