Easy Baked Meatballs
These Easy Baked Meatballs are tender, juicy, and full of incredible flavor - and there's NO FRYING! Make them with your favorite ground meat and use them in all your favorite recipes (mine is Meatball Subs - recipe included)!
Servings: 4 (4 meatballs each - recipe makes 16 meatballs total)
Estimated Calories: 360
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground meat with 10 to 20% fat content (beef, meatloaf mix, turkey, etc.)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ cup finely diced onion
- 1 large egg
- ¼ cup Italian seasoned Panko breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
- 2 tablespoons milk
- salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Place all ingredients in a large bowl and gently mix (I use my hands) just until everything is combined and evenly distributed. Note: Don't over-work the meat mixture, as this can make the meatballs tough. If the mixture is too wet and won't nicely hold the shape of a meatball, add a little more breadcrumbs. If the mixture is too dry, add a bit more milk.
- Roll into 16 balls, each about the size of a golf ball, and place on the baking sheet.
- Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or just until the meatballs are cooked through (minimum safe temperature for ground beef, pork, veal, and lamb is 160°F; for ground turkey and chicken, it's 165°F). Note: Overcooking the meatballs can make them dry and/or tough.
- The meatballs are now ready to use in your favorite recipes!
Recipe Notes
- For the most juicy, flavorful, tender meatballs, I recommend using ground meat that is as close to 20% fat content as you can get. Leaner meat can result in drier meatballs.
- You can substitute ½ teaspoon garlic powder and ½ teaspoon onion powder for the garlic and onions.
- Calorie estimate shown is for the meatballs only using 80/20 ground beef. Estimated calories per serving using 85/15 ground turkey is 324.
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- Place 16 meatballs in a medium saucepan with one jar of your favorite marinara sauce; heat through.
- Lightly toast 4 sub rolls.
- Place 4 meatballs on each sub roll with some sauce (not too much, as it could make the bread soggy).
- Top with Parmesan and mozzarella cheese (put on as little or as much as you like!).
- Broil until the cheese is melted.
- ENJOY!
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