Italian Meatballs
My grandmother would probably disown me for saying this, but sometimes the best meatballs don’t need three different kinds of meat or a day-long simmer. These take less than 30 minutes, start to finish, and they’re consistently good.
The real game-changer here is using crackers instead of breadcrumbs. Started doing this during lockdown when breadcrumbs were somehow impossible to find, and honestly? The texture is better. Plus, you always have crackers around.
Made these last week for my kid’s soccer team dinner, doubled the batch, and watched 12 teenagers demolish them in about 10 minutes flat. That’s probably the most honest review you can get.
What You’ll Need
For the meatballs:
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup milk (2%)
- ½ cup crushed crackers
- ⅓ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup finely minced yellow onion
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon fine salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
For serving:
- Fresh parsley (optional)
- Additional Parmesan cheese
- Your favorite pasta sauce
- Cooked pasta or zucchini noodles
Steps
- Start by preheating your oven to 400℉. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper – don’t skip this unless you love scrubbing pans.
- Grab a medium bowl and combine your ground beef, egg, milk, crushed crackers, Parmesan, minced onion, and all the seasonings. Mix with your hands (yes, it’s cold and messy, but it works best) until everything’s evenly distributed.
- Form into 12 meatballs, about golf-ball size. Pro tip: if you wet your hands slightly, the meat won’t stick to them as much.
- Space the meatballs evenly on your prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 16-20 minutes. You’re looking for an internal temperature of 165℉, but if you don’t have a thermometer, cut one open – it should be completely brown inside.
Substitutions That Actually Work
- Swap the crackers for gluten-free crackers 1:1 – just make sure they’re finely crushed
- Replace the ground beef with ground turkey, but increase the Parmesan to ½ cup for better flavor
- Oat milk works perfectly in place of 2% milk if you’re dairy-sensitive
Making It Diabetes-Friendly
- Replace the crackers with 1/3 cup almond flour plus 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
- Use unsweetened almond milk instead of regular milk
- Serve over cauliflower rice or zucchini noodles instead of pasta
These changes bring the carb count down to about 3g per meatball
Tips & Storage
- Make the mixture ahead and refrigerate for up to 24 hours before rolling and baking
- Cooked meatballs freeze beautifully for up to 3 months – just thaw overnight in the fridge
- To reheat, warm in sauce over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes, or microwave for 1-2 minutes
- If your meatballs are falling apart, let the mixture rest in the fridge for 30 minutes before rolling