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My homemade Sunday Italian Meatballs are easy to make and perfect for a Sunday Supper. I love using the leftovers for a quick weeknight dinner! Ready in 30 minutes and so tender, these great Italian meatballs are packed with flavor and practically melt in your mouth.
Jump to:
- Recipe for Italian Meatballs
- Beef and Pork Meatballs Ingredients
- How to Make Italian Meatballs
- Helpful Tips for Juicy Italian Meatballs
- Meatballs Temperature
- Can you prepare Italian Meatballs ahead of time?
- What can you Make with Italian Meatballs?
- Storing and Reheating Italian Meatballs
- Homemade Italian Meatballs FAQ
- Homemade Italian Meatballs
- Reviews
Recipe for Italian Meatballs
What could be better than a hot plate of classic Italian meatballs paired with tomato meat sauce, spaghetti noodles, and a slice of garlic bread? If you ask me, it's one of the best family dinners you can make for how easy and tasty it is.
Growing up, my kids never got tired of this recipe for Italian meatballs. I have made this recipe at least a million times. It is the perfect Sunday dinner idea!
I'm a meatball lover, and over the years, I have experimented with making a variety of meatball recipes, from air-fried meatballs to chicken meatballs, stuffed meatballs, Instant Pot meatballs, and cocktail-style meatballs not to mention all the meatball recipes you can make with them, like meatball soup or meatball subs!
But I'm always returning to these classic beef and pork meatballs. It's a simple recipe, and the meatballs turn out melt-in-your-mouth tender. They're seasoned perfectly and ready to serve in 30 minutes, so you can't go wrong!
These meatballs are amazing. They remind me of the meatballs my grandmother used to make. Great easy to follow instructions too.
Merry on Pinterest
Beef and Pork Meatballs Ingredients
- Ground Beef and Ground Pork: My recipe for Italian meatballs uses a mix of ground beef and pork. This creates the perfect blend of flavor and texture for classic Italian meatballs. I recommend using an 80/20 beef chuck blend for the ground beef for all that yummy fatty flavor.
- Italian Breadcrumbs: The Italian-style breadcrumbs are key to this recipe. If you use plain breadcrumbs, you can add Italian seasoning mix.
- Milk and White Bread: Bread soaked in milk is part of the secret that keeps these meatballs moist and tender. Ground meat can dry out quickly, so you want an element like milk-soaked bread to solve that problem.
- Garlic Powder: This allows you to get a little bit of garlicky flavor without the risk of burning that comes with fresh garlic.
- Salt: I recommend kosher salt or sea salt flakes for best results.
- Pepper: Freshly cracked black pepper will give you the best meatball flavor.
- Italian Seasoning: I have a recipe for homemade Italian seasoning that works deliciously with this meatball recipe. Give it a try!
- Parmesan Cheese: Use your favorite grated Parmesan for flavor and texture and as an additional binding agent.
How to Make Italian Meatballs
Mix meatball filling
Preheat the oven to 400℉. Combine ground beef, pork, Italian breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, pepper, garlic powder, salt, and Italian seasoning in a large bowl. Mix well until thoroughly combined.
Soak bread in milk
Set meat mixture aside. Place 2 slices of bread onto a plate and pour milk over top. Let the bread soak up all the milk for about 5 minutes.
Squeeze the milk out of the bread
After your bread has soaked up most of the milk, gently squeeze the bread until all the extra liquid is released.
Add the bread to the mixture
Add soaked bread into the meat mixture and give it a good mix.
Roll the meatballs
Tightly roll the meat mixture into 1-inch balls using your hands. Place rolled meatballs onto a baking sheet, evenly spaced apart so none of them are touching.
Bake Italian meatballs
Place in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes. Once meatballs are done, remove them from the oven and sprinkle them with sea salt to taste. Enjoy!
Helpful Tips for Juicy Italian Meatballs
- Working with damp hands will prevent the beef mixture from sticking to your fingers, so I recommend washing and then rinsing your hands so they're still a little damp when mixing the meatballs.
- Bake the meatballs on a wire rack on a large baking sheet to ensure all the fat drips down during baking. This will give you the best Italian meatball texture.
- You can use a store-bought sauce if you don't have time to make my Sunday Gravy.
- I like to prep ahead. I usually make these meatballs a day ahead of time and store them in the fridge. It makes my Sunday dinner supper easy!
- Heat your tomato sauce in a slow cooker and let the meatballs cook in there. This is especially helpful when entertaining a large crowd.
- If you like larger meatballs, you will have to cook them longer. Always check the internal temperature with a meat thermometer.
- You can use my Italian meatball seasoning in this recipe.
Meatballs Temperature
I cook my homemade meatballs at 400 degrees. Always cook your meatballs until the meatballs reach an internal temperature of 160°F on an instant-read thermometer.
Can you prepare Italian Meatballs ahead of time?
Yes! To prepare Italian-style meatballs, they are perfect for make-ahead dinners. They store well in the fridge or freezer and last for several days. I recommend doubling or tripling the meatballs to freeze them so you have them on hand whenever you're craving Italian meatball dishes like spaghetti.
What can you Make with Italian Meatballs?
- Meatball Sandwich
- Sunday Gravy
- Baked Ziti with Meatballs
- Meatball Pizza Dip
- All my favorite meatball sauces!
For more fun meatball recipes, try my Korean Meatballs!
Storing and Reheating Italian Meatballs
- Storing meatballs: Let the meatballs completely cool. Then, transfer them to an airtight container and store them in the fridge for 3-5 days.
- Freezing meatballs: Cook as instructed and let them cool completely. Store in an airtight container and freeze for up to 3 months.
- Reheating frozen meatballs: Thaw meatballs overnight in the fridge and reheat in sauce. You can also place them in the oven at 350°F for 8-10 minutes, or until fully heated through, or in the microwave for about 2-3 minutes.
Homemade Italian Meatballs FAQ
My Italian meatball recipe uses a combination of ground beef and ground pork, Italian breadcrumbs, milk, white bread, garlic powder, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and Parmesan cheese. This creates a moist and juicy meatball with the perfect texture and Italian flavor.
The secret to making great Italian meatballs is to use bread soaked in milk. This keeps them very moist. Use a mix of beef and pork for the perfect meat consistency and plenty of seasonings for flavor.
Italian meatballs use Italian breadcrumbs, are usually larger than other types, and are typically served over pasta or marinara sauce.
Regular Meatballs can be served over rice, with potatoes, in soups, or a sandwich.
Homemade Italian Meatballs
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef 80/20
- 1 pound ground pork
- 1 cup Italian breadcrumbs
- 1 cup milk - of choice
- 2 slices white bread
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese
- Sea salt to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400℉ degrees. In a large bowl combine ground beef, ground pork, Italian breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, pepper, garlic powder, salt, and Italian seasoning. Mix well.2 pounds ground beef 80/20,1 pound ground pork,1 cup Italian breadcrumbs,1 teaspoon garlic powder,½ teaspoon salt,½ teaspoon pepper,1 Tablespoon Italian seasoning,1 cup Parmesan cheese,Sea salt to taste
- Set meat mixture aside. Place 2 slices of bread onto a plate and pour milk over top. Let the bread soak up all the milk, for about 5 minutes.1 cup milk,2 slices white bread
- After your bread has soaked up most of the milk, gently squeeze the bread until all the extra liquid is released.
- Add soaked bread into the meat mixture and give it a good mix.
- Tightly roll the meat mixture into 1-inch balls using your hands. Place rolled meatballs onto a baking sheet, evenly spaced apart so none of them are touching.
- Place in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes. Once meatballs are done, remove them from the oven and sprinkle with sea salt to taste. Enjoy!
Notes
- Working with damp hands will prevent the beef mixture from sticking to your fingers, so I recommend washing and then rinsing your hands so they're still a little damp when mixing the meatballs.
- Bake the meatballs on a wire rack on a large baking sheet to ensure all the fat drips down during baking. This will give you the best Italian meatball texture.
Sharon says
This worked exactly as written, thanks! It made a huge batch so I froze half of them to use at a later date.
Isabel Laessig says
This is awesome to hear, Sharon! Thank you!
Alex says
Thank You. They're in the oven now. I used a 1/4 cup to measure size of meatballs I wanted, I usually use chopped onions and garlic. They look amazing.
Isabel Laessig says
Thanks so much, Alex!