Baked Meatballs

Get ready to put this easy Baked Meatballs recipe on repeat. It's one the whole family can get down with, and it never disappoints. Not only is this dish super wholesome and satisfying, but it is also incredibly simple to make!

These things are so much better than any of those pre-packaged, frozen meatballs you could find at the grocery store. With each bite of our Baked Meatballs, you will get big, beef flavor and a perfectly tender, juicy texture. None of that bland, tough, and chewy stuff in this kitchen! For more perfectly cooked beef, try our delicious Beef Recipes! 

Not only do these taste superior but cooking meatballs in the oven as opposed to frying them on the stovetop actually makes for a lighter, healthier option as well. I'm sure we'd all love to forego any unnecessary grease in our diets, much less having to deal with the popping and the messy countertops.

Whether you serve them with homemade marinara sauce or over a bowl of creamy mashed potatoes, your people will be singing your praises and begging for seconds. And if they can't get enough meatballs, try changing it up a bit with our Meatball Casserole or Healthy Turkey Meatballs.

HOW TO MAKE BAKED MEATBALLS

The first thing you want to do to kick off your baked meatballs is preheat your oven to 400°F, and you also want to get your baking sheets ready.

It is best if you use a rimmed baking sheet for baking meatballs. Grease will inevitably escape from the meatballs, and you don't want it dripping into your oven, creating a smoky mess.

You also want to line your rimmed baking sheets with nonstick aluminum foil. This ensures easy removal and meatballs that stay perfectly intact!

Rather than using onion and garlic powder, this recipe calls for fresh chopped garlic and onions, which intensifies the flavor of your Baked Meatballs and makes them extra irresistible. But don't worry. This recipe is still straightforward, and you'll find no pre-cooking or sauteeing necessary! For another super easy meatball recipe, check out our turkey meatballs!

But because we are skipping the stovetop work, your knifework is exponentially more important when cutting your onions and garlic. Unless you love the raw onion and garlic flavor, you want to be sure that you are mincing these ingredients and not throwing them in after a quick rough chop.

Mince the onion, garlic, and parsley, set them aside and move on to the breadcrumbs.

Add Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs and milk to a large mixing bowl and stir the two together. Allow the breadcrumbs to absorb the milk. You can use whole milk or 2% milk for this recipe. As for the bread crumbs, if you only have plain breadcrumbs on hand, that is a fine substitute for Italian breadcrumbs.

This mixture will add moisture to your oven Baked Meatballs. Add your onions, garlic, parsley, ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, egg, salt, and pepper to the breadcrumb mixture and stir to combine. If you like your meatballs spicy, feel free to sub in a half teaspoon of red pepper flakes in the place of black pepper.

Once all of these ingredients are mixed well with one another, you'll add in your ground beef. This recipe calls for 80/20 ground beef, but if you'd prefer lower-fat ground beef, that will work too! Add 2 pounds of ground beef to your breadcrumb mixture and use your hands to mix everything gently. You should see the breadcrumb mix evenly distributed throughout all the beef.

When it comes to scooping your meatballs, you have options. You can work your meat mixture into balls by scooping about 2 tablespoons of the meat mixture with your hands and rolling it into a ball. This will work best if your hands stay slightly damp throughout the process. Damp hands will keep the ground beef from getting too sticky to roll.

My go-to method for uniformly sized and shaped Baked Meatballs is to use a large cookie scoop or a small ice cream scoop. I especially appreciate a tool with a lever handle for this job, which makes it easy to get the meatball out of the scooping vessel! When using a scoop, you will still need to use damp hands to roll the meatballs into a ball shape. 

Take care as you place your meatballs on the pan to space them at least a half inch to 1 inch apart. You want the hot air within the oven to circulate over and around the meatballs. This will help significantly when it comes to browning! If your meatballs go into the oven smooshed together, they will steam rather than brown.

Once your meatballs are in place on the pan, spray them with a light spritz of cooking oil. Again, the oil will help your Baked Meatballs to brown up beautifully in the oven.

Transfer your meatballs to the oven and bake for about 25 to 30 minutes, or until the internal temperature of your meatballs registers 160°F. 

If you're going the spaghetti and tomato sauce route, ready the marinara and simply drop your Baked Meatballs in the sauce and cook on low for about 15 minutes. Serve over pasta, and enjoy! For more dinners that will wow your family, check out our Dinner Recipes!

For another delicious meatball recipe, try our easy chicken meatballs!

CAN I MAKE BAKED MEATBALLS IN ADVANCE?

The answer to the above question is yes! Here is how you would do that.

The first option is to roll the meatballs, place them on the pan, cover the raw meatballs with plastic, and store them in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours before baking, then bake as usual.

You can also bake the meatballs in the oven as directed, allow them to cool, transfer them to a gallon-sized freezer bag, and store for up to two months. 

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• Baked Spaghetti Casserole
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