The Best Meatballs You'll Ever Make

ground beef

🥗Healthier: ground turkey

💰Cheaper: ground pork

Ground turkey is lower in fat, while ground pork is often more affordable.

parmesan cheese

🥗Healthier: nutritional yeast

💰Cheaper: grated pecorino

Nutritional yeast is lower in calories and provides a cheesy flavor, while pecorino is usually less expensive.

Hone your knife to ensure a nice cutting edge.

Dice a large onion by chopping off the ends, peeling off the skin, making horizontal cuts, then vertical cuts, and finally dicing it.

Flatten and peel the skins off of 2-3 cloves of garlic.

In a large bowl, mix 3 lbs of meatloaf mix with 1 and 1/4 cups of Italian seasoned breadcrumbs and 1 cup of milk. Let it soak.

Add about 1/4 cup of chopped fresh basil and 4 eggs to the meat mixture as a binder.

Use a 3 tablespoon portion scoop to form meatballs, each about 2 oz in size.

Heat olive oil in an 8-quart saucepan until warmed.

Add the diced onions to the saucepan and sweat them until soft and tender, avoiding color.

Add the minced garlic and stir until fragrant.

Pour in about 1 cup of dry red wine and cook off the alcohol.

Add 4 cans of whole tomatoes to the saucepan, crushing them to your desired consistency.

Add a little water to the sauce to prevent it from being too thick.

Season the sauce with salt and freshly cracked pepper, stirring to incorporate.

Add a good bunch of fresh basil (including the stems) to the sauce and stir.

Taste the sauce and adjust seasoning if necessary, stirring again to incorporate.

Carefully add the raw meatballs to the sauce, placing them in one by one without stirring too much.

Let the meatballs simmer in the sauce for about 1 hour to 1 and a half hours.

Serve the meatballs with a bit of sauce, fresh basil, and freshly grated cheese.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Allergens