Tarragon chicken with creamy white beans
Tender chicken in a creamy white bean sauce with fresh tarragon.
About 30 min · 375 kcal · 43 g protein per serving
One pan
Air fryer turkey meatballs with tomato sauce and spaghetti
Turkey and parmesan meatballs browned in the air fryer, then simmered briefly in a tomato and spinach sauce and served over spaghetti. A family favourite with a measured portion of pasta, so the meatballs do most of the work on the plate.
By The foodose editorial team. Nutrition calculated from USDA FoodData Central. Checked on paper on 16 October 2026; not yet cooked in a test kitchen or photographed, so the times and yield are estimates. How we develop our recipes
What still needs a real kitchen
- Confirm 3.5 cm turkey meatballs reach 74°C in 10 to 12 minutes at 200°C
- Confirm the mixture makes 20 meatballs
- Photograph the finished plate
- Time
- About 45 min
- estimated
- Serves
- 4
- see below
- Energy
- 545 kcal
- per serving
- Protein
- 39 g
- per serving
Ingredients for 4 servings
Check off ingredients as you go.
Contains eggs, gluten, milk. Check the labels on packaged ingredients:
- dried breadcrumbs. Breadcrumbs can contain soya or milk; check the label.
- Parmesan. Parmigiano Reggiano is made with animal rennet, so it is not vegetarian. Vegetarian Italian-style hard cheeses are widely sold.
- passata. Some passata is salted; check the label.
- spaghetti. Most dry pasta is just wheat and water, but some contains egg; check the packet.
Cooking steps
Mix the turkey, breadcrumbs, two thirds of the finely grated parmesan, the beaten egg, one grated garlic clove and the oregano with your hands until just combined. With wet hands, roll into 20 balls, each about 3.5 cm across.
Brush the basket with a little of the oil and air fry the meatballs at 200°C / 400°F for 10 to 12 minutes in a single layer, shaking the basket halfway, until browned and the centre of the largest reads 74°C.
Cooked when: 74°C / 165°F in the thickest part. A food thermometer is the reliable way to tell.
Meanwhile, warm the rest of the oil in a wide pan over medium heat and cook the finely chopped onion for 6 minutes until soft, then add the remaining garlic for 1 minute. Pour in the passata, bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes.
Boil the spaghetti in salted water for 10 to 12 minutes, or as the packet says, until just tender. Drain, keeping a mugful of the cooking water.
Stir the spinach into the sauce until it wilts, add the meatballs and simmer for 2 minutes, loosening with a little of the cooking water if needed. Tear in the basil and serve over the spaghetti with the rest of the parmesan.
The useful detail
Mix only until the meatballs come together, and roll them with wet hands. Lean turkey tightens into springy balls when it is worked hard; a light hand, the egg and the breadcrumbs keep them tender, and the air fryer browns them all over without the turning and spitting of a frying pan.
Make it work for you
One serving is Five meatballs in sauce over 50 g (dry weight) of spaghetti. You can switch to a smaller portion in the ingredients above; it is three quarters of this, and it contains correspondingly less energy and protein. It is an option, not a goal.
Chicken mince instead of turkey
Softer and slightly richer. Same times.
Per serving: about 10 kcal less, about 2 g less protein, about the same fat.
Courgette ribbons instead of spaghetti
Much lighter. Shave the courgettes into ribbons and warm them in the sauce for 2 minutes.
Per serving: about 160 kcal less, about 5 g less protein, about the same fat.
Allergens: Removes the gluten in the pasta; the breadcrumbs still contain it.
Rolled oats instead of breadcrumbs
Slightly denser. Blitz them fine first.
Per serving: about the same energy, about the same protein, about the same fat.
Allergens: Oats are listed among the cereals containing gluten in UK law.
Estimated nutrition
Per standard serving, calculated from the ingredients above. Nutrition changes with substitutions, brands and how much oil stays in the pan.
A family plate of spaghetti and meatballs where lean turkey, parmesan and egg carry the protein, so the pasta portion can stay modest.
| Energy | 545 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 39 g |
| Fat | 18 g |
| of which saturates | 5 g |
| Carbohydrate | 60 g |
| of which sugars | 9 g |
| Fibre | 6 g |
| Sodium | 320 mg |
Show calculation notes
Each ingredient’s weight is multiplied by its USDA FoodData Central values per 100 g. The whole recipe is added up and divided by 4. Raw weights are used for meat, fish and vegetables; beans and lentils are drained weights. All of the oil is counted as eaten. Added salt is not included; sodium from stock, bread, cheese and tinned food is.
| Ingredient | Weight used | Source | Energy | Protein |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| turkey mince | 500 g | FDC 172850Turkey, ground, 93% lean, 7% fat, raw | 750 kcal | 93.7 g |
| dried breadcrumbs | 30 g | FDC 174928Bread, crumbs, dry, grated, plain | 119 kcal | 4.0 g |
| Parmesan | 30 g | FDC 170848Cheese, parmesan, hard | 118 kcal | 10.7 g |
| eggs | 56 g | FDC 171287Egg, whole, raw, fresh | 80 kcal | 7.0 g |
| garlic | 15 g | FDC 169230Garlic, raw | 22 kcal | 1.0 g |
| dried oregano | 1 g | FDC 171328Spices, oregano, dried | 3 kcal | 0.1 g |
| olive oil | 9 g | FDC 171413Oil, olive, salad or cooking | 80 kcal | 0.0 g |
| onion | 100 g | FDC 170000Onions, raw | 40 kcal | 1.1 g |
| passata | 500 g | FDC 170460Tomato products, canned, puree, without salt addedCalculated with FoodData Central's unsalted tinned tomato purée record, the closest match to sieved passata. | 190 kcal | 8.3 g |
| spaghetti | 200 g | FDC 169736Pasta, dry, enrichedFoodData Central records dry pasta as one entry rather than by shape. | 742 kcal | 26.1 g |
| spinach | 150 g | FDC 168462Spinach, raw | 35 kcal | 4.3 g |
| fresh basil | 15 g | FDC 172232Basil, fresh | 3 kcal | 0.5 g |
| Whole recipe | Divided by 4 | 2182 kcal | 156.7 g |
Per serving the energy is rounded to the nearest 5 kcal, grams to the nearest whole gram and sodium to the nearest 10 mg. Calculation method 1.0, September 2026. How the calculation works.
Storage and reheating
- In the fridge
- Cool, cover and refrigerate within 2 hours of cooking. Eat within 3 to 4 days. Store the spaghetti separately if you can.
- In the freezer
- The FDA chart gives cooked poultry dishes 4 to 6 months in the freezer for best quality. Freeze the meatballs in their sauce, without the spaghetti.
- Reheating
- Reheat until it reaches 74°C / 165°F, steaming hot throughout.
Checked against US Food and Drug Administration, Refrigerator and Freezer Storage Chart, USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service, Leftovers and Food Safety, FoodSafety.gov, Safe Minimum Internal Temperatures and FoodSafety.gov, Cold Food Storage Chart. UK guidance from the Food Standards Agency is shorter, at two days for most leftovers.
Try another recipe
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About 40 min · 585 kcal · 42 g protein per serving