Pork and Fennel Meatballs

Toast the fennel seeds in a dry pan over medium heat for 30-60 seconds, until they smell sweet and aniseedy. They scorch a few seconds after that and turn bitter.

Crush them coarsely in a mortar, or under the flat of a knife.

Tear the white bread into a bowl and pour the milk over it.

Leave it for 5 minutes, then mash it to a smooth paste with a fork.

Put the pork, the bread paste, the crushed fennel, the garlic, parmesan, egg, the 5g of fine salt, the ground peppercorns, the chilli flakes and the parsley into a large bowl.

Mix with your fingertips for about 30 seconds, until the seasonings are evenly through the meat, and no longer than that.

Stop there. Minced pork worked hard goes sticky and springy as the proteins link up, and it sets into bouncy meatballs however gently they are cooked afterwards.

Fry a teaspoon of the mixture in a little of the olive oil for a minute a side, until it is browned through with no pink left.

Taste it and correct the salt in the bowl. It is the only chance to season the mixture before it is committed.

Roll the mixture into 20 balls of about 35g with damp hands, rolling lightly rather than compacting them.

Chill the balls on a tray for 30 minutes, which firms the fat and stops them slumping in the pan.

Heat the remaining olive oil in a wide, deep frying pan over medium-high heat.

Brown the meatballs in two batches for 4-5 minutes each, turning them until they are coloured on all sides.

Leave space between them. A crowded pan steams them grey, and they tear as you try to turn them.

Take them out as they colour. They do not need to be cooked through at this stage, because they finish in the sauce.

Pour the tomato sauce into the pan and bring it to a bare simmer.

Return all the meatballs, spooning sauce over each one.

Simmer gently, partly covered, for 20-25 minutes, turning them once at the halfway point.

Keep the pan below a proper boil. Meatballs knocked about in a hard simmer break up, and the sauce catches on the base while they do it.

Cut one in half at the 20-minute mark and look at the middle, which should be evenly pale brown with no pink and should run clear juice.

Push a thermometer into the centre of the largest meatball if you have one: minced pork wants 71C/160F.

Give them another 5 minutes in the sauce if either test falls short.

Tear the basil over off the heat.

Serve with thick slices of crusty bread for the sauce.