This Italian meatball recipe is very easy to make, and since we skip the messy step of pan-frying the meatballs, it becomes downright simple. Here I use a standard half-beef/half-pork mixture. Once the meatballs are baked, add them to your favorite prepared tomato sauce and simmer for 1 to 2 hours.
Chef John’s Italian Meatballs Recipe
This Italian meatball recipe is very easy to make, and since we skip the messy step of pan-frying the meatballs, it becomes downright simple. Here I use a standard half-beef/half-pork mixture. Once the meatballs are baked, add them to your favorite prepared tomato sauce and simmer for 1 to 2 hours.
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup plain bread crumbs
- ½ cup milk
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 onion diced
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound ground pork
- 2 eggs
- 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
- ¼ bunch fresh parsley chopped
- 3 cloves garlic crushed
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian herb seasoning
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Gather all ingredients.
- Cover a baking sheet with foil and spray lightly with cooking spray. Soak bread crumbs in milk in a small bowl for 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add onion; cook and stir until onion has softened and turned translucent, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to low and continue cooking and stirring until onion is very tender, about 15 minutes more.
- Gently stir beef and pork together in a large bowl. Add onions, bread crumb mixture, eggs, Parmesan cheese, parsley, garlic, salt, black pepper, Italian herb seasoning, and red pepper flakes; mix together using a rubber spatula until combined. Cover and refrigerate for about one hour.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
- Form mixture into balls about 1 1/2 inches in diameter; arrange in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake in the preheated oven until browned and cooked through, 15 to 20 minutes.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Chef’s Notes
Some recipes use equal portions of beef, veal, and pork, which is also nice, yet more expensive. These days you can find all sorts of lean-to-fat ratios for ground beef. Most stores sell 90% lean, 10% fat, but I prefer the 80% lean, 20% fat ratio for this recipe.
You can substitute water or beef broth for the milk if preferred.
Serve with homemade tomato sauce and polenta.
