This 6-ingredients Baked Meatball recipe is an easy, delicious, and incredibly versatile recipe.
Enjoy these tender and flavorful meatballs as an appetizer, in a sandwich or hero, served with marinara sauce over spaghetti. You can also use them in our classic Tater Tot and Meatball Casserole.
About Baked Meatballs
Everybody should know a good recipe for meatballs. Why? Because they are popular with guests, incredibly easy to make, and can be used in lots of dishes.
One of the things I love about this recipe is that prep takes just about 10 minutes. Afterward, simply pop the meatballs in the oven. And 20 minutes later you'll have the most perfect baked meatballs.
Read below for meal prep tips and storage suggestions.
Ingredients
- 1 pound GROUND BEEF - I use 90/10 or 85/15
- 1 large EGG - lightly beaten
- 1 cup PECORINO CHEESE - grated
- ½ cup ONION - finely diced
- ⅓ cup PARSLEY - finely chopped
- ½ cup BREAD CRUMBS - traditional, plain
How To Make The Easy Baked Meatballs
For detailed, printable instructions, please check the recipe card below.
- Combine all ingredients. Wet your hands and shape meatballs.
TIP: Use a (lightly wetted) retractable ice cream scoop to quickly make the meatballs. - Transfer meatballs onto a baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes at 400º Fahrenheit.
Recipe Sucess Tips and Tricks
The secret of this recipe lies in the cheese. Pecorino Romano.
Pecorino Romano cheese is similar to Parmesan, both in taste and texture. And while Parmesan is made with cow's milk, Pecorino is made with sheep's milk.
The taste is a bit sharper, more pungent than in Parmesan cheese. Pecorino has a nutty, salty taste with a hint of tanginess.
And yes you can substitute traditional Parmesan cheese.
Where To Buy Pecorino?
You'll find Pecorino in the cheese aisle of most larger supermarkets. But my absolute favorite place to buy it is Costco.
Costco has delicious Pecorino at a great price. One log lasts my husband and me for several months and we often use it instead of Parmesan.
TIP: Because Pecorino Romano is saltier than Parmesan, you'll need to add less salt to whatever dish you'll use it in.
Silpats
- Use a Silpat instead of covering your baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil. I've was late in discovering Silpats.
But over the last 6+ months, I've used them for meatballs, cookies, salmon. You can use them at high temperatures (up to 500 Fahrenheit), use them again and again. Bonus: they are super easy to clean.
More Delicious Meatball Combinations
- Ground Meat + Ground Pork - 50% Beef + 50% Pork = 100% delicious meatballs.
- Ground Turkey - Makes for a leaner meatball.
- Ground Chicken - another great option for making delicious meatballs. Especially when you want to cut down on red meat.
RELATED RECIPE: BBQ Chicken Meatloaf.
Fridge Storage
You can store meatballs in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Although I love glass containers, I've recently become obsessed with these containers. They are hands down the best storage containers I've ever owned. I'm not sure what the secret is, but they keep everything fresh for just a couple of days longer.
So if you're meal prepping you can make a batch of baked meatballs on Sunday. Make Meatballs and Spaghetti on Monday, and enjoy the leftover meatballs with sauce in a sandwich on Tuesday.
How To Freeze Meatballs
Freezing meatballs is easy! Once you finished baking them in the oven all of them cool down completely.
Cover the baking sheet with plastic wrap and store them in the freezer until they harden about 1 hour.
Transfer the lightly frozen meatballs into a freezer-safe ziplock bag for easy storage. Properly stored meatballs will last 3-4 months in your freezer.
More Easy Recipes
- Baked Ziti - easy recipe that's perfect for parties or weeknight dinners
- Lasagna Roll Ups - a fun twist on classic lasagna
- Frikadellen - German meatball/burger recipe
- Beef Stroganoff - one of my favorite comfort food recipes - ever!
- Sausage and Hash Brown Casserole - go-to recipe when I don't know what to cook
Baked Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef 90/10
- 1 large egg lightly beaten
- 1 cup Pecorino grated
- ½ cup onion finely diced
- ⅓ cup parsley finely chopped
- ½ cup bread crumbs traditional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° Fahrenheit.
- Combine all ingredients. Wet your hands and shape meatballs.
- Transfer meatballs onto a baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes at 400° Fahrenheit.