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    🏠Home » Recipes » Italian Recipes

    Easy Baked Meatballs

    Nov 24, 2012 · Modified: Apr 16, 2021 by Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan · 6 Comments

    Recipe Table of Contents    
    4.47 from 15 votes

    Easy baked meatballs that are tender and flavorful with a great Parmesan Italian taste. Eat them on their own, in a marina sauce or a sub sandwich. It is done in 30 minutes with these simple step by step photo instructions.

    meatballs on white plate

    Jump To:
    • ♨️Cooking Method
    • 🐄The Meat
    • 📋Other Ingredients
    • 📖Italian Recipes
    • 🖼️Step-by-Step Photo Instructions
    • 📝Recipe

    Blue ribbon divider used for visual effect

    Introduction

    This is not those little hard, tasteless meatballs but a big soft, tasty one to eat alone or add to some sauce or just make a great sub sandwich.

    I wanted a meatball good enough to eat on its own and not need to be hidden inside of sauce. And it needed to use common ingredients that I always have on hand. And lastly, I wanted to bake them in the oven. Why??? I'm LAZY.

    These are somewhat tender. I don't mean fall apart tender but not stir them around in a pot of sauce solid. Just plunk them in there, and they should be fine.

    If you want to simmer them in the sauce, cook them more, add another egg, make them a little smaller and roll them tight with wet hands.

    There are lots of meatball recipes out there. Most will claim to be the best meatballs ever. I feel the best meatball is one that meets your expectations and taste. So let’s discuss options for you.

    My Rating

    My rating system of a 4 out of 5 so very nice.

    A very nice solid 4. Now I can use them either for dinner or in a sauce. Not a 5 since it is not filet.

    ♨️Cooking Method

    A nice meatball really needs to be baked and not cooked on the stovetop. First, you want a crispy crust with a tender flavorful center that is safe to eat. By the time the center of a nice size meatball is done, the outside can be overcooked.

    The second reason to cook in the oven is the grease splatter and mess that comes with the stovetop. Plus, you need to stand there turning them over and over. Not fun. Cooking should be fun and meatballs should make you smile.

    🐄The Meat

    I’m a beef guy. So, I generally start with ground beef but you can use any ground meat you want. We love to combine Italian sausage with ground beef. But you can also add in any ground pork, veal, chicken, or turkey you want to try.

    So the base of your meatball is up to your taste.

    📋Other Ingredients

    Egg, garlic, Parmesan cheese, and onion are mandatory, I think. The ketchup is to add a bit of tomato taste I like with the beef.

    Breadcrumbs are added to help retain moisture, very much like meatloaf. You can make your own in a blender or buy them. If you do use commercial bread crumbs, account for any added spices. If you use gluten-free if you want.

    For herbs, I chose oregano here but other spices like basil, parsley, or red pepper flakes could be added.

    A touch of milk can be added but it will make a softer overall texture that will be more likely to fall apart. So if you add some, just a bit, please.

    📖Italian Recipes

    Boursin Cheese Sauce with Chicken and Pasta

    Copycat Olive Garden Pasta E Fagioli Soup

    The Best Crock Pot Baked Ziti

    Crock Pot Chicken Baked Ziti

    This recipe is listed in these categories. See them for more similar recipes.

    Italian Recipes
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    🖼️Step-by-Step Photo Instructions

    burger with spices and onion

    Preheat oven to 425° regular or 400° convection.

    mixing eggs with bread crumbs and other ingredients in white bowl

    In a medium mixing bowl, add one egg and whip it to combine the yolk and white. Add ½ medium onion chopped small, 1 clove crushed garlic, ½ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon pepper, ½ teaspoon oregano, 1 tablespoon ketchup ¼ cup each of panko bread crumbs, and grated Parmesan cheese. Mix well.

    mixing burger with other ingredients in white bowl

    Now add 1 pound of ground beef but break it apart a little while you add it. Mix until all is incorporated well, but no more.

    placing meatballs on tray with scoop

    On a nonstick baking sheet sprayed lightly with PAM. Scoop equal size meatballs of 1 ½ to 2-inch diameter.

    cooked meatballs on a tray

    Bake until 165° minimum internal temperature. 20 minutes for me.

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    📝Recipe

    meatballs on white plate

    Easy Baked Meatballs

    From Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan
    Easy baked meatballs that are tender and flavorful with a great Parmesan Italian taste. Eat them on their own, in a marina sauce or a sub sandwich. Done in 30 minutes with these simple step by step photo instructions.
    Tap to leave a Rating
    4.47 from 15 votes
    Print Email CollectionCollected
    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Cook Time: 20 minutes
    Total Time: 30 minutes
    Servings #/Adjust if desired 8 servings

    Ingredients

    US Customary - Convert to Metric
    • 1 lb ground beef - or other ground meats
    • 1 large egg
    • ½ onion - medium chopped fine
    • 1 clove garlic - minced or crushed
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • ¼ teaspoon pepper
    • ½ teaspoon oregano
    • 1 tablespoon ketchup
    • ¼ cup Panko bread crumbs
    • ¼ cup Parmesan cheese - grated
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Preheat oven to 425° regular or 400° convection.
      burger with spices and onion
    • In a medium mixing bowl, add one egg and whip it to combine the yolk and white. Add ½ medium onion chopped small, 1 clove crushed garlic, ½ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon pepper, ½ teaspoon oregano, 1 tablespoon ketchup ¼ cup each of panko bread crumbs, and grated Parmesan cheese. Mix well.
      mixing eggs with bread crumbs and other ingredients in white bowl
    • Add 1 pound of ground beef but break it apart a little while you add it. Mix until all is incorporated well but no more.
      mixing burger with other ingredients in white bowl
    • On a nonstick baking sheet sprayed lightly with PAM. Scoop equal size meatballs of 1 ½ to 2-inch diameter.
      placing meatballs on tray with scoop
    • Bake until 165° minimum internal temperature. About 20 minutes.
      cooked meatballs on a tray
    See the step-by-step photos in the post. Some recipes have an option to display the photos here with a switch above these instructions but the photos DO NOT print.

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    Recipe Notes

    Pro Tips

    1. Use the ground meat of your choice. It needs to have some fat in it.
    2. Mix just to the point of the ingredients being combined. Do not over mix or over compress.
    3. I suggest the ketchup if you are doing beef but skip if other meats.
    4. Season to your taste.
    5. You want consistent size so they cook evenly.
    6. Done is an internal temperature of 165 like all ground meat.
    7. An extra egg is a good idea if you are adding to a sauce and handle a lot.
    8. Good refrigerated for 2-3 days and will freeze well for 3-4 months.

    To adjust the recipe size:

    You may adjust the number of servings in this recipe card under servings. This does the math for the ingredients for you. BUT it does NOT adjust the text of the instructions. So you need to do that yourself.

    Nutrition Estimate

    Nutrition Facts
    Easy Baked Meatballs
    Amount Per Serving
    Calories 135 Calories from Fat 63
    % Daily Value*
    Fat 7g11%
    Saturated Fat 3g15%
    Cholesterol 65mg22%
    Sodium 274mg11%
    Potassium 208mg6%
    Carbohydrates 3g1%
    Fiber 1g4%
    Sugar 1g1%
    Protein 14g28%
    Vitamin A 72IU1%
    Vitamin C 1mg1%
    Calcium 55mg6%
    Iron 2mg11%
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
    Serving size is my estimate of a normal size unless stated otherwise. The number of servings per recipe is stated above. This is home cooking, and there are many variables. All nutritional information are estimates and may vary from your actual results. To taste ingredients such as salt will be my estimate of the average used.
    Course : Main dish
    Cuisine : Italian

    © 101 Cooking for Two, LLC. All content and photographs are copyright protected by us or our vendors. While we appreciate your sharing our recipes, please realize copying, pasting, or duplicating full recipes to any social media, website, or electronic/printed media is strictly prohibited and a violation of our copyrights.

    Originally Published November 24, 2012. Updated with expanded options, refreshed photos, and a table of contents to help navigation.

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    More Italian Recipes

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    • How to Make Pizza Dough and Cook Homemade Pizza

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    1. Brian Mooney

      July 19, 2022 at 7:58 pm

      5 stars
      Great recipe, straightforward, even simple, with little fuss mess to cleanup.

      Made minewith equal parts of 85/15 ground beef, and ground mild Italian sausage. A few tablespoons of minced fresh parsley brightened both the flavor and appearance. Plus some dried marjoram in place of oregano was added for more a more subtle flavor, with a dash of Tabasco or similar hot sauce.

      Reply
    2. Don D.

      September 08, 2020 at 10:12 pm

      4 stars
      Perfect / Easy meatball recipe to go with my recent homemade tomato sauce. I was able to make 9 - 2.5oz. meatballs and have a few left over for a sandwich tomorrow. So happy to have come across your recipe!

      Reply
    3. Lauren F

      December 11, 2016 at 4:57 pm

      This is such a great, simple recipe! I used parchment paper for easier cleanup and I love to spoon some Rao's Marinara over it. So glad I found your website, love all of your recipes for two!

      Reply
    4. Dan Mikesell

      May 10, 2013 at 9:12 pm

      I admit to a little heavy on the onion. I do like my onion but for this recipe it needs to be fine or it's scale is off. I'm not a mustard person but the Worcestershire sounds great.

      Reply
    5. Heidi Menocal

      May 10, 2013 at 8:53 pm

      I made these tonight. Very easy and delicious. I did add ground mustard and Worcestershire sauce, as I add those to mu meatloaf. I think next time I will add less onion or really dice it small.

      Reply
    6. Chris

      November 28, 2012 at 3:25 pm

      Sounds like they would be good in a meatball sub.

      Reply

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