June 10, 2024

Easy, Homemade Meatballs

Do you need an easy food to take to a potluck or to make a quick dinner? Well, this meatball recipe is perfect for those occasions. You can add BBQ sauce or leave it off. Whatever your preference these meatballs are sure to please.

In this blog post, you will learn how to make some Easy Homemade Meatballs.

Why Should I Make Homemade Meatballs?

Making homemade meatballs offers several advantages over buying pre-made ones. Here are some reasons to make your own meatballs:

Control Over Ingredients

Quality: you can choose high-quality meats and other ingredients, ensuring there are no unwanted additives, preservatives, or fillers.
Customization: tailor the meatballs to your taste preferences by adjusting the seasoning, herbs, and spices. You can also incorporate different types of meat (beef, pork, turkey, chicken, or a combination).

Healthier Option

Nutritional Control: control the nutritional content, including fat, salt, and sugar levels, making them healthier than many store-bought versions.
Freshness: homemade meatballs are made with fresh ingredients, which can be more nutritious and flavourful than processed options.

Better Flavour and Texture

Taste: homemade meatballs tend to be more flavourful because you can season them to your liking and use fresh herbs and spices.
Texture: achieve the perfect texture by controlling the grind of the meat and the amount of breadcrumbs or other binders used.

Versatility

Recipe Flexibility: experiment with different recipes and cooking methods (baking, frying, simmering in sauce) to suit various cuisines and dishes.
Dietary Needs: easily adapt the recipe to meet dietary restrictions or preferences, such as gluten-free, low-carb, or vegetarian meatballs.

Cost-Effective

Economical: making your meatballs at home can be more cost-effective than purchasing pre-made ones, especially when buying meat in bulk.
Batch Cooking: make large batches and freeze them for future use, saving time and money.

Does This Recipe Call for Breadcrumbs?

This recipe has breadcrumbs as optional. Breadcrumbs can often expire before you use them which can be really frustrating. While breadcrumbs are useful for bulking up the meatballs so that your batch yields more from it, you can sometimes forget them, the breadcrumbs that you intended to use have expired, or you are gluten intolerant or someone you are preparing them for is gluten intolerant.

This recipe has been tried with and without breadcrumbs and the recipe down below will have them excluded. If you want to add breadcrumbs, these are the measurements that you will need to add and change.

Add 1/2 c. breadcrumbs

Increase milk from 1/8 c. to 1/4 c. if using breadcrumbs.

What Fat Percentage in my Ground Beef Should I Use?

The recipe down below is using 10% fat/extra lean ground beef, and the meatballs are quite juicy. Where I live, there is a ground beef option of 5% fat, but these meatballs do not turn out as flavoursome, and they can be quite dry. So try to use ground beef that has fat content of 10% or higher for juicy meatballs.

5% fat – extra, extra lean

10% fat – extra lean

17% fat – lean

23% fat – medium

30% – regular

When making meatballs, you generally want a balance of flavour, moisture, and texture. Here are some tips for choosing the right fat percentage for your meatballs:

Flavour and Moisture: if you prefer juicier and more flavourful meatballs, opt for 80/20 or 85/15 ground beef. The extra fat will ensure that they remain moist and rich.
Leaner Option: for a healthier alternative, you can use 90/10 ground beef, but consider adding other moistening ingredients like grated onions, eggs, milk-soaked breadcrumbs, or even a bit of olive oil to prevent them from becoming too dry.
Combining Blends: some cooks prefer to mix different blends of ground beef to achieve the desired balance. For instance, combining 80/20 with 90/10 can provide a middle ground between flavour and healthiness.
Mixing Meats: another option is to combine ground beef with other meats like pork, veal, or turkey, which can add flavour and moisture. For example, a common blend for meatballs is equal parts ground beef (80/20) and ground pork.

By selecting the appropriate fat percentage for your ground beef and incorporating additional ingredients, you can create meatballs that are flavourful, moist, and suited to your dietary preferences.

Note: In the U.K. and Ireland, ground beef is called mince.

Baking the Meatballs

This recipe calls for baking the meatballs in the oven. The best way to prevent your meaetballs from becoming soggy is to have them sitting on a rack in the oven tray.

Line your oven tray with parchment paper, for easier cleaning, and place the rack on the tray. Place your meatballs on the tray. After 15 minutes of baking, flip the meatballs over to prevent soggy bottoms and have them crispy evenly.

Putting the Meatballs in a Slow Cooker

If you are wanting to take these meatballs to a party or potluck with power outlets, the slow cooker is the way to transport them. Put a tiny drop of water into the bottom of the slow cooker and put the slow cooker on the Keep Warm setting. Bake your meatballs and transfer them to the slow cooker. If you are putting BBQ sauce on them, put it on here and make sure that it is distributed evenly.

Transport the meatballs in the warmed slow cooker and when you arrive at your destination, immediately plug the slow cooker in and put it back on to the Keep Warm setting.

This is an easy non-hassle way of bringing a warm dish and keeping it warm at a party with no stress!

What If I Ran Out of Eggs?!

We have all been there. Eggs are the main binder for this recipe so that the meatballs stick together. This recipe has been tried without the egg, and they are much more likely to fall apart without them. However, the shredded cheese in this recipe does also help to bind them together.

If you do run out of eggs and still have shredded cheese to use, it is possible to not use eggs and use the shredded cheese to bind them together. Obviously it will not be as good as using an egg, but if you are in a pinch, it will do the job well enough.

Ingredients

Ground Beef: ground beef is the basis for this meatball recipe. It is beef that has been finely chopped or ground and comes in various fat percentages, commonly ranging from 70% lean to 95% lean. Ground beef is the primary protein in meatballs, providing the base flavour and texture. The fat content affects the juiciness and flavour of the meatballs.

Milk: milk is often added to meatball mixtures to moisten the breadcrumbs and help bind the ingredients together. This ensures that they remain tender and juicy.

Salt: salt enhances the flavour of the meat and other ingredients. It also helps to draw out moisture and distribute flavours evenly throughout the meatballs.

Worcestershire Sauce: Worcestershire sauce adds a complex, savoury umami flavour to the meatballs, enhancing their overall taste; however, it is used sparingly because of its strong flavour.

Black Pepper: black pepper adds a subtle heat and enhances the flavour profile of the meatballs, complementing the other spices and seasonings.

Onion (diced): onion adds moisture, flavour, and a slight crunch to the meatballs. Cooking the onions before adding them to the mixture can mellow their sharpness and bring out their sweetness.

Egg: the egg acts as a binder in the mixture, helping to hold the ingredients together and maintain the meatball shape during cooking.

Mozzarella Cheese (shredded): shredded mozzarella can be added to the mixture or stuffed inside the meatballs to add a creamy, melty texture and mild cheesy flavour. It enhances the richness and can make the meatballs more decadent.

Breadcrumbs (optional): breadcrumbs help to bind the mixture, absorb moisture, and provide a tender texture. Breadcrumbs can bulk up the mixture which will make more meatballs from the same amount of meat. They are particularly useful for keeping them from becoming too dense.

Tips

Using a higher fat content for your meatballs will give them a nicer flavour and make them juicier.
Breadcrumbs help to bulk up the meatballs so that your yield is higher.
Shredded cheese can bind the meatballs together if you are stuck and ran out of eggs.