Homemade Spaghetti and Meatballs

4.67 from 6 votes

How to make the best spaghetti and meatballs from scratch! Featuring homemade meatballs baked in the oven, and a simple marinara sauce recipe.

Prep Time15

Cook Time50

Total Time1 5

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Keyword: Spaghetti and Meatballs

Servings:

Calories: 615kcal

Author: Kelly Anthony

Ingredients

1 pound spaghetti

For the Meatballs:

1 cup fresh bread crumbs or ½ cup store-bought bread crumbs (see note for fresh bread crumbs, if needed)
⅓ cup whole milk
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ yellow onion minced
3 cloves garlic minced
2 tablespoons freshly minced parsley
1 large egg slightly beaten
¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
2 teaspoons Kosher salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 pounds 80/20 ground beef

For the Marinara:

2 tablespoon olive oil
1 yellow onion finely diced
1 red bell pepper seeded, stemmed, and finely diced
3 cloves garlic minced
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 (14.5 ounce) can fire roasted tomatoes
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 ½ teaspoons Kosher salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
Generous pinch of red pepper flakes

For the Spaghetti and Meatballs:

Instructions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a roaring boil. Add the spaghetti, and cook according to package directions. Set aside until ready to use.

For the Meatballs:

Preheat the oven to 400° and have ready two rimmed baking sheets lined with nonstick aluminum foil.
In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine bread crumbs and whole milk. Stir until crumbs have absorbed the milk and set aside. Add olive oil to a small saute pan over medium heat. Stir in onions and coat with oil.
Saute for about 3 minutes, add the garlic and saute 1 minute more. Stir in the parsley, remove from the heat and set aside to cool slightly. Add egg to the moistened bread crumbs and stir to combine. Add the sauteed vegetables, Parmesan (if using), Kosher salt and black pepper. Stir once more to thoroughly combine. Gently mix in the ground beef.
With damp hands, roll about to 2 tablespoons worth of the meatball mixture into a ball and place on the baking sheets, placing each meatball at least 1" apart. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until properly cooked through. Serve with spaghetti and marinara sauce, make yourself a meatball sandwich or eat them as is, and enjoy.

For the Marinara:

For the marinara, add olive oil to a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the onion and red bell pepper, and sauté for 6-8 minutes until softened. Add the garlic and sauté 1 minute more.
Add in the cans of tomatoes, sugar, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. Stir to combine. Reduce the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Allow the sauce to simmer for 25-30 minutes, partially covered. Stir often. The sauce will reduce slightly.
If you prefer a smooth marinara, you can either purée it using an immersion blender, or ladle the sauce into a blender, and process until smooth. If using a blender, be sure to remove the cap and cover with a dish towel to avoid a build-up of pressure.
Add the baked meatballs to the prepared marinara, and stir. Gently simmer on low, covered, for an additional 15-20 minutes. Serve the meatballs and marinara over spaghetti noodles, and enjoy.

Notes

To make fresh breadcrumbs, use day-old (slightly stale) white bakery bread. Discard of the crust, and add about 1 cup of torn or cubed pieces of bread to a food processor. Process until the mixture is crumbs.

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