It is so important for me to cook homemade, from scratch meals for us every single night. That’s one of the reasons I love making easy homemade meatballs, so I could provide more variation using ground meats. Mix up this quick and easy homemade meatballs recipe for homemade pasta, chili, and more!
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It is so important for me to cook homemade, from scratch meals for us every single night. That’s one of the reasons I came up with this homemade meatball recipe, so I could provide more variation using ground meats. Mix up this quick and easy beef meatball recipe for homemade pasta, chili, and more!
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A few nights ago we made these meatballs to put on top of pasta. We really love pasta, and the ground beef just gets old after a while (and by a while I mean years… we eat a good spaghetti dish at least once a week for years!)
Before that though, it was our turn to host the football game on Sunday and we were having several people over to watch. I was trying to think of what to make for that. So I wanted something easy to serve, healthy, delicious, and football-appropriate.
My mind went to chili of course, but I wanted to keep practicing this meatball recipe so I decided on a meatball chili. When that turned out well, I decided to go ahead and share the meatballs on my blog since we were now putting meatballs into everything. Beef, lamb, you name it, we were having meatballs!
WHY WE LOVE THIS EASY HOMEMADE MEATBALLS
Because you can actually just eat meatballs on their own! They are so flavorful that they can be eaten alone or with a pasta or soup.
They refrigerate well. You can make the beef mixture a day ahead and then bake them only when you want to eat them. And if you have leftovers, leave them in the fridge for up to a week and they’re still great.
Nice variation on pasta. We get tired of ground beef, and a meatball is more packed with other food than just plain beef. You’ve got herbs, sauce, cheese, egg, and sourdough bread in the meatball so it’s kind of a meal on its own.
It’s fancy. People think you’re a real cook when you bring out meatballs on a serving tray. What they don’t know is it’s really not that difficult… but you don’t have to tell them that 😉
Lastly this recipe uses sourdough bread! If you’ve been around here a while you know how much I love making bread. You can find my rustic sourdough loaf recipe here.
HOMEMADE MEATBALL RECIPE INGREDIENTS
One pound grass fed ground beef (you could also use lamb or venison, whatever you want for your meatballs)
Half cup sourdough bread crumbs (approximately 1 to 2 slices of bread, with crust removed). Note: if you do not have bread crumbs, you can use 1/4 cup einkorn flour instead (or about 1/8 cup regular flour).
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Teaspoon garlic powder
1 large egg
2 tsp Italian herbs
1-2 tsp Worcestershire sauce (or your favorite BBQ or hot sauce)
1/2 tsp each salt and pepper
One drop oregano essential oil (optional)
TOOLS NEEDED
Mixing Bowl
Food Processor (if making homemade breadcrumbs)
Baking sheet
Parchment Paper
HOW TO MAKE MEATBALLS
Add all the ingredients to a mixing bowl and combine with your hands.
Roll meatballs into 1 or 2 inches in diameter onto a baking pan lined with tin foil or parchment paper.
Bake at 425 degrees F for 12 minutes. We use a digital meat thermometer to check that the meatballs are done.
Add to pasta with homemade tomato sauce or to your Instant pot for meatball chili.
TIPS FOR MAKING MEATBALLS
Let your meat come to room temperature before mixing with the ingredients. Otherwise, your hands will get cold from mixing cold beef. Plus the meat won’t absorb your spices and seasonings as well if it’s not room temp.
Mix up your cheeses! My favorite cheese to use for meatballs is parmesan, but I’ve also used different kinds of cheddar. It’s all delicious!
Sometimes if your meat contains a high fat content, the meatballs may spill a little bit on the baking tray. So use a try with border edges or simply build up a little border with aluminum foil to catch any spill.
Use different meats when you can. We use lamb to change things up when we’re tired of beef. Lamb is so good for you too!
Keep your spices nicely organized with these mini spice storage jars. We’ve been using them quite some time now, and it’s the easiest thing to just write on there with a washable pen what the spice is and then buy our spices in bulk. I always hated running to the store at the last minute to buy garlic powder, so now I don’t have that problem!
Read more about our farmhouse spice cabinet organization here.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH EASY HOMEMADE MEATBALLS
Of course, pasta. Top with tomato sauce or try this homemade creamy pumpkin carrot pasta sauce.
Or if you’re shooting for a lighter, less carb-heavy meal, serve these a la carte with some cast iron Brussels sprouts. Delicious!
Meatballs also go really well in soup. If you’re in a hurry, grab your Instant Pot and make this pumpkin chili with meatballs. Soooo cozy.
Meatballs from Scratch
It is so important for me to cook homemade, from scratch meals for us every single night. That's one of the reasons I came up with this homemade meatball recipe, so I could provide more variation using ground meats. Mix up this quick and easy beef meatball recipe for homemade pasta, chili, and more!
Ingredients
- One pound grass fed ground beef (you could also use lamb or venison, or whatever you have on hand)
- Half cup sourdough bread crumbs (approximately 1 to 2 slices of bread, with crust removed). Note: if you don't have breadcrumbs, you can quickly substitute with about 1/4 cup flour instead.
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 large egg
- 2 tsp Italian herbs
- 1-2 tsp Worcestershire sauce (you can also use favorite BBQ or hot sauce of choice)
- 1/2 tsp each salt and pepper
- One drop oregano essential oil (optional)
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients to a mixing bowl and
combine with your hands. - Roll meatballs into 1 or 2 inches in diameter
onto a baking pan lined with tin foil or parchment paper. - Bake at 425 degrees F for 12 minutes. We use a
digital meat thermometer to check that the meatballs are done. - Add meatballs to sauce and serve over pasta, or add them to your favorite soup or chili recipe.
Notes
Change up the meats! You can make these with beef, lamb, venison, or whatever you have on hand.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 4 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 279Total Fat: 15gSaturated Fat: 6gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 113mgSodium: 904mgCarbohydrates: 6gFiber: 0gSugar: 1gProtein: 30g
PIN THIS MEATBALL RECIPE FOR LATER!
What a simple, delicious recipe! I love smaller meatballs for my family, especially for the kiddos. Will definitely give this a try!
These look delicious! I cannot wait to try these.
These look delicious! I bet you could freeze them, too, and thaw them for a quick throw-together last minute dinner.
I am so glad you posted this recipe! My kids were literally asking me yesterday if I could make meatballs from all the Grassfed beef we just purchased. Now I have a trusted recipe to try! Thanks!
Looks delicious!looks so easy to.make too! Thanks for sharing!
These look AMAZING! I love the idea of a meatball meal on on its own. They’re so tasty!!
These look amazing! My kids love meatballs so I will have to save for later.