This hearty Italian Baked Meatballs in Sauce is rich, flavorful and delicious. It is made with minced beef, onions, garlic, parmesan, tomatoes, and parsley. Serve with pasta, rice or bread.
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Meatballs are found all over the world. From Chinese soups dotted with miniature pork meatballs to meaty Swedish meatballs bathed in sauce, nearly every culture has its own take on this dish. It's no wonder too: meatballs are easy to make, can be flavored however you like, store and freeze well, and are easy to serve with any starch.
This recipe for homemade meatballs in meatball sauce is inspired by the classic Italian-American dish, which comes in a rich tomato sauce. Italian meatballs are quite versatile when it comes to flavors and ingredients. But at the most basic level, meatball recipes contain at least one kind of minced meat, a binder, and flavorings.
If you're a fan of this easy meatball recipe, then you'll love these other tasty recipes for easy dinners Microwave Jacket Potato and Minced Beef, Easy Cottage Pie and Easy Creamy Tomato Pasta.
Why You Should Try This Recipe
- This tasty restaurant-style dish is flavorful and will be hit with family and friends.
- The tomato sauce is delicious and works well with the meatballs.
- The seasoning can be adjusted to your taste. For example, change the amount of pepper depending on your preference.
- Double or triple this recipe to feed more people.
Tips and Substsitutions
- Meat: I use beef for the meatballs, but you can swap this with turkey, chicken, or pork mince, depending on your preference. Some people like to combine beef mince and pork mince for a contrasting flavor.
- Tomatoes: For this recipe, you can use fresh tomatoes instead of canned plummed tomatoes. This will add a fresher flavor to the sauce.
- Garlic and onions: I always like to use fresh ingredients; however, if you don't have any fresh ingredients, you can use garlic and onion powder instead.
- Marinara: If you are short on time, you can use shop-bought marinara sauce instead of making it from scratch.
How to Make Italian Baked Meatballs in Sauce
- Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F. Combine beef mince, eggs, milk, breadcrumbs, cheese, garlic, salt, and pepper to make meatballs. Mix everything with your hands. Be careful not to overmix the meat at this step, as it can get tricky. I like to use just my fingertips to delicately mix the flavoring agents into the ground meat without handling the tender beef too much.
2. Next, form your flavor-packed meatball mixture into evenly sized-balls. Place them on a parchment-paper-lined baking tray and bake them in a hot oven until they're cooked through.
3. Then bake them in a hot oven until the meatballs are cooked through, about 20-25 minutes. Turn the meatballs carefully halfway through cooking. This ensures that the meatballs brown evenly and maintain their round shape.
4. The rich and flavorful tomato sauce is just as important as the meatballs in this recipe. As the meatballs bake, blend one can of plummed or fresh tomatoes.
5. Then, heat a splash of oil in a pan. Add diced onions and cook for a few minutes or until fregrant. Then, add tomato puree, stir and cook for one minute on medium heat.
6. Pour in blended tomatoes, season with salt and pepper to taste, a pinch of oregano, Italian seasoning, and basil leaves, and stir. Bring to a boil and cook on low to medium heat for 7-10 minutes.
7. Once the meatballs are done, add them to the sauce and cook on low heat for 7-10 minutes.
8. Serve these delicious Italian baked meatballs in sauce with chopped parsley, Gluten-Free Focaccia Bread, Tik Tok Garlic Bread in Air Fryer and pasta!
Recipe FAQs
Serve meatballs with spaghetti, penne, linguine or tagliatelle pasta. Spaghetti is a classic option, but any past you have on hand will work.
These meatballs will also be delicous paired with creamy polenta, rice, or even a thick slice of toasted crusty bread.
Yes! This meatball recipe can easily be doubled or halved. Then on a busy weeknight, all you need to do is heat them up for a satisfying meal in minutes.
Likewise, you can easily cut all of the ingredients in half and make a half batch of meatballs and sauce to feed a smaller crowd. On a smaller scale, you can even serve these meatballs as a first course or appetizer for entertaining. Simply stick a toothpick into each meatball and there you have it: a tasty finger food that's easy to pass around and won't last long!
These oven-baked meatballs in meatball sauce are an excellent make-ahead meal. They store well in the fridge or freezer and can be used as part of your weekly meal prep plan.
To store the meatballs and sauce, let them cool, then transfer them to an airtight container. They will stay fresh in the freezer for up to 3 months and in the fridge for 3 to 5 days.
To defrost, let the meatballs and sauce thaw on the counter or in the fridge overnight before serving. Then reheat in a covered pot on the stove or a baking dish in the oven.
Do not freeze the pasta with the meatballs, as pasta does not defrost well. Instead, cook the pasta before serving for the best flavor and texture.
More Delicious European Recipes
Italian Baked Meatballs in Sauce
Equipment
- Oven tray
- Pot
Ingredients
- 750 g minced beef
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup milk
- ¼ cup breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup cheese Parmesan
- 1 onion diced
- 3 garlic cloves crushed
- 1 can tomato
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
- 2 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
- ¼ teaspoon oregano
- 2 tablespoon tomato puree
- 2 basil leaves
- A splash of vegetable oil
- A bunch of parsley chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200°C/400°F. Lightly grease an oven tray. Grab a large bowl and add minced beef, eggs, milk, breadcrumbs, cheese, diced onion, crushed garlic cloves, salt to taste, pepper to taste, a pinch of oregano and mix. Shape the minced beef mixture into equal-sized balls and add to the prepared tray. Bake for 12 minutes on each side.
- Meanwhile, add canned tomatoes to a blender and blend until smooth.
- Heat a splash of oil in a pan. Add diced onion and cook for a few minutes. Then, pour in blended tomato and tomato puree. Season with salt to taste, pepper to taste, a pinch of oregano, Italian seasoning, basil leaves and stir. Cook on medium heat for 10 minutes.
- Add the baked meatballs to the meatball sauce in the saucepan and cook on a low heat for 15-20 minutes.
- Garnish with chopped parsley and serve!
Video
Notes
- Tomato sauce: You can buy canned tomato sauce at the store or make your own using tomatoes, garlic, and olive oil.
- Meat: Depending on your preference, you can swap the beef for turkey, chicken, or pork mince. Some people like combining beef and pork mince for a contrasting flavor.
- Tomatoes: For this recipe, you can use fresh tomatoes instead of canned plummed tomatoes. This will add a fresher flavor to the sauce.
- Marinara: You can also use shop-bought marinara sauce instead of making it from scratch.
Tommy Gallina
Make meat balls, put them on baking trays . Put tray in freezer 24 hrs. Take out and put in sealed bags or Vac pack them in to your quantity.
Thaw and now you have fresh meat balls when needed. When they are vac packed they can stay in freezer for 2- 3 years with out getting freezer burnt.