The Best Baked Meatballs we have tried! They are a blend of ground beef, ground Italian sausage, Romano cheese, and Italian bread crumbs. So easy to make, and much healthier than the fried version!
These baked meatballs are full of flavor and can be eaten on their own, or used in a variety of other dishes!
How to Make The Best Baked Meatballs:
Start by pre-heating the oven to 425ºF, and spray a large foil-lined Sheet Pan with non-stick cooking oil. Then follow the steps below:
- In a large bowl, combine all of the spices, garlic, romano cheese, bread crumbs, and eggs.
- Add in the ground beef and ground italian sausage, then mix with hands or a spoon until just combined.
- Pour in the water, and mix again until just combined.
- Using a small cookie scoop, scoop out meat mixture, and form into balls by lightly rolling between your hands. Place each meatball onto the prepared baking sheet, leaving a little space between each one.
- Using a basting brush, lightly coat the top of each meatball with olive oil (this is optional, but it helps with browning).
- Bake meatballs in the pre-heated oven for 20-25 minutes, depending on the size of your meatballs. (Mine took 23 min. for 2" diameter.)
Ways to use The Best Baked Meatballs:
Here are some of our favorite ways to eat them:
- Meatball subs or Spaghetti using our Simple Marinara Sauce (<---click for instructions on both dishes).
- Sweet & Spicy meatballs using our Sweet & Spicy Apricot Glaze .
- Crumbled and used as a topping on our Perfect Pizza Crust with our Easy & Thick Pizza Sauce.
- Served over a bowl of steamed rice and veggies.
Making these for a party? They hold up well in the crockpot on the warm setting with Marinara Sauce, or sauce of your choice!
Storage & Reheating:
If we have leftovers (which is rare), I store the meatballs in a ziplock bag in the refrigerator or freezer, and just take a few out as needed.
To Freeze:
- Before placing them in the ziplock bag, freeze them laid out on a tray without touching, for about an hour. This will allow them to freeze without sticking together!
- To reheat, wrap them in a paper towel and warm them on a plate in the microwave on High, for about 30 seconds, or until warmed completely in the center. You can also reheat them in the oven at 350˚F, for about 15-20 minutes.
Enjoy! 🙂
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The Best Baked Meatballs {Easy, No-fry Meatballs}
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound ground italian sausage (or hot italian sausage, or can use all ground beef)
- ½ teaspoon salt (or 1 teaspoon salt, depends on sausage, see notes)
- ½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon dried sage
- ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1 cup italian bread crumbs
- 1 cup romano cheese ,freshly shredded
- 2 large garlic cloves, minced (or use 4 small)
- 2 whole eggs
- ½ cup water
Optional:
- 2 tablespoon olive oil (for basting)
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 425°F, and prepare a large baking sheet by lining it with foil and coating it with non-stick cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, combine all of the spices, garlic, romano cheese, bread crumbs, and eggs.
- Add in the ground beef and ground italian sausage, then mix with hands or a spoon until just combined.
- Pour in the water, and mix again until just combined.
- Using a small cookie scoop, scoop out meat mixture and form into balls by lightly rolling between your hands.
- Place each meatball onto the prepared baking sheet leaving a little space between each one.
- Using a basting brush, lightly coat the top of each meatball with olive oil (this is optional, but it helps with browning).
- Bake meatballs in the pre-heated oven for 20-25 minutes, depending on the size of your meatballs. (Mine took 23 min. for 2" diameter)
- Serve them as Meatball Subs or Spaghetti & Meatballs using the --> Simple Marinara Sauce recipe. Or make them into Sweet & Spicy meatballs using the Sweet & Spicy Apricot Glaze !
Video
Notes
- For this recipe I used an organic grass-fed italian sausage. The sodium content was lower than the store-bought kind, which is why I used 1 teaspoon of salt.
- If using store-bought Italian or Hot Italian sausage, use only ½ teaspoon salt.
- If using regular ground pork, use 1 teaspoon salt.
- If you don't care for pork, just use all ground beef (so 2lbs ground beef).
Watch the VIDEO on how to make the Best Baked Meatballs. Make sure to subscribe to my YouTube Cooking Channel so that you never miss a recipe video! 🙂
