Does it really get any more homey and comforting than spaghetti and meatballs? Not in my world! This classic recipe for Homemade Spaghetti and Meatballs (or “pasketti and meatballs,” if you ask my kids) is both comforting and simple, using mostly pantry ingredients and doable for even a weeknight dinner. If you can’t eat pasta, it’s also great over a bed of zucchini zoodles or roasted spaghetti squash.
Ingredients Needed
This is just a preview of ingredients and method, keep scrolling for full printable recipe.
Meatballs
- Lean ground beef
- Italian sausage
- Dry bread crumbs – Found in the baking aisle. You could sub in panko bread crumbs or finely crushed cracker crumbs in a pinch. I often just toss 2 pieces of white bread in my blender and pulse them up and it works great.
- Dehydrated onion
- Eggs
- Parmesan cheese – Freshly grated.
- Dried basil
- Dried parsley
- Fresh garlic
- Kosher salt and black pepper
Sauce
- Onion – Yellow or white.
- Fresh garlic
- Olive oil
- Canned crushed tomatoes – Since the tomatoes are what really shine here, I recommend using a good brand. I often use the cheapest can on the shelf for soups and stews, but if I’m making something like tomato soup, or spaghetti sauce, I’ll use something nicer. Muir Glen or San Marzano are always a good choice and available at most grocery stores. I’m using the fire-roasted, here, but regular is just fine.
- Tomato sauce – Just plain canned tomato sauce.
- Granulated sugar
- Dried basil
- Italian sasoning
- Red pepper flakes
- Salt and pepper
- Baking soda – This helps neutralize the acidity from the tomatoes.
Equipment
- I like meatballs to be 1-2 bite meatballs, so a standard size cookie scoop works great. With that size you’ll get about 3 dozen meatballs. If you don’t own any scoops yet, this set of 3 is great, and will you several options- I use all three of those sizes quite a bit in my kitchen.
How to Make Spaghetti and Meatballs
Meatballs
- You’ll start by mixing up your meatball ingredients. A mix of ground beef and pork sausage give these a lovely texture and flavor. That’s combined with spices, eggs, and Parmesan cheese.
- I use my standard sized cookie scoop to portion out my meat mixture, which gives me meatballs that are 1-2 bites which I think is perfect! Portion out your meatball mixture and roll into balls.
- The meatballs get a quick broil in the oven until they’re nice and brown.
Sauce
- Next you’ll put your sauce together. Onions and garlic get a quick sauté, then you’ll add in tomato sauce, crushed tomatoes, a pinch of sugar, basil, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, a pinch of baking soda, and salt and pepper.
- Add the meatballs to the pot and simmer away for about 25-30 minutes, or until your desired sauce consistency is reached.
- Serve over hot pasta with freshly shaved or grated Parmesan cheese.
Storing and Other Tips
- Store leftover spaghetti and meatballs in an airtight container in the fridge and enjoy within 3-5 days for best results.
- This recipe feeds a crowd, and also makes great leftovers. In our house, there are never any left over, but you could eat half for dinner, and put the rest of the meatballs and sauce in the freezer for another day.
- I like to keep a box of nitrile gloves on hand for things like this. I definitely recommend them if you don’t want to use your bare hands to handle raw meat.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make the meatballs ahead of time and cook later?
You sure can. Mix up the meatball ingredients and store, tightly covered, in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours before cooking. You can portion them before or after refrigerating.
Can I cook this ahead of time?
Yes. The meatballs and sauce reheat really well from both refrigerated and frozen.
Do I have to broil meatballs before adding them to the sauce?
For best results, yes. Broiling gives the meatballs a crust that holds moisture inside the meatballs, meaning a more tender, juicy finished product.
Can I just use store-bought pasta sauce with these meatballs?
Absolutely. A high quality sauce like Rao’s would work well. Much of the simmer time in this recipe is for the sauce, so if you’re using a good prepared sauce, you won’t need to simmer the meatballs as long. You just need to make sure they reach an internal temperature of 165°F.
Spaghetti and Meatballs
Flavorful Italian-style meatballs simmer in a classic spaghetti sauce that’s easy to make at home.
Servings servings
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 pound Italian sausage
- ½ cup dry bread crumbs
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 2 tablespoons dehydrated onion
- 4 eggs lightly beaten
- 4 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt See Notes section for substituting garlic bread seasoning
Sauce
- 1 large onion chopped
- 4-5 cloves garlic minced or pressed
- Olive oil
- 2 28- ounce cans crushed tomatoes
- 16 ounce tomato sauce
- 1-2 tablespoons sugar to taste
- 2 teaspoons dried basil
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 pinch baking soda to help neutralize the acid
Instructions
Make the Meatballs
- Gently combine all meatball ingredients in a medium bowl: ground beef, sausage, bread crumbs, onion, beaten eggs, Parmesan cheese, basil, parsley, garlic, salt, and pepper.
- Shape into balls, whatever size you like, but I prefer using my standard cookie scoop (about 1 tablespoon) to shape meat into balls and then roll it between my hands to make them even more round. Place on a large cookie sheet and broil until the meatballs start to brown. Remove from oven and set aside until ready to use (or freeze for later use).
Make the Sauce
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add onion and garlic and cook until onions are translucent and garlic is fragrant. Add remaining sauce ingredients: crushed tomatoes, tomato sauce, granulated sugar, basil, Italian seasoning, red pepper flakes, salt, pepper, and baking soda.Combine well.
- Bring to a simmer and add meatballs. Simmer on low, uncovered, until desired consistency is reached–about 25-30 minutes for a sauce that's of medium consistency.
- Serve over hot pasta and top with fresh Parmesan if desired. Makes about 3 dozen meatballs and enough sauce to feed 6-8 people (or more if some of those people are kids).
FREEZER MEAL INSTRUCTIONS
- Prepare meatballs as directed, but divide the meatballs among two freezer-safe containers. Prepare sauce through adding all ingredients to the pan, but don’t simmer; rather, divide the sauce among the two containers. Freeze until ready to use. When ready to use, place in slow cooker and cook on low for about 5-6 hours, although you’ll want to keep an eye on the sauce and make sure it’s not burning if you go for the whole 6 hours.
Notes
- Store leftover spaghetti and meatballs in an airtight container in the fridge and enjoy within 3-5 days for best results.
- This recipe feeds a crowd, and also makes great leftovers. In our house, there are never any left over, but you could eat half for dinner, and put the rest of the meatballs and sauce in the freezer for another day.
- I like to keep a box of nitrile gloves on hand for things like this. I definitely recommend them if you don’t want to use your bare hands to handle raw meat.
- If desired, you can replace the Parmesan, basil, parsley, garlic, and salt in the meatballs with 3 tablespoons homemade garlic bread seasoning found here.
- Nutrition information calculated for 1/8th recipe, without pasta.
Nutrition
Calories: 442kcal, Carbohydrates: 28g, Protein: 29g, Fat: 25g, Saturated Fat: 9g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g, Monounsaturated Fat: 11g, Trans Fat: 0.2g, Cholesterol: 162mg, Sodium: 1576mg, Potassium: 1208mg, Fiber: 6g, Sugar: 14g, Vitamin A: 825IU, Vitamin C: 26mg, Calcium: 174mg, Iron: 7mg
Calories: 442kcal
Cost: $25
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Questions & Reviews
I made these last night (from your cookbook) and they blew my mind! 🙂 so great. Today my little boy and I are enjoying meatball subs for lunch–he said they are his new favorite! Thanks ladies, love the site!
Absolutely amazing! We had it tonight and I love this sauce so much. It’s hearty and flavorful…it reminds me of my uncle who had a pizza shop…his sauce used crushed tomatoes…..oh, and I used this sauce earlier this week on grilled pizza…..so awesome. And these meatballs rock. Seriously rock. Try this…we all loved it.
Where do I find Dehydrated Onion?
It’s just at the store in the spice aisle, should be really easy to find.
I tried this one last night and my husband was thrilled that it compared so well to the recipe his Mom used to make all the time when he was a kid. Of course he didn’t tell her it was good as hers, but he let me know. 😉
So, this may seem like a lame question, but here it goes…My store sells either sweet italian sausage or spicy italian sausage. Which one do I want?
Totally not a lame question Tera! In pretty much any of the recipes on our site that call for Italian sausage, or Italian turkey sausage, you can use either hot/spicy or sweet. It’s just a slightly different flavor profile. Some people like one more than the other, and some recipes taste better with one over the other, but they’re pretty interchangeable. I’ve used both for this particular recipe, and they’re both good. If there’s a price difference, go for the cheaper one! lol If you have to choose, I’d say go spicy. (And it’s not like super hot spicy, it’s just got a little kick to it.)
I made this for dinner last night and it was so good! I have been looking for a good spaghetti sauce recipe for a while now but hadn’t been able to find one I loved. My hubby and 6 kids loved it too! Thanks!
Why 2 eggs?
Aidan, eggs are a common ingredient in meatballs. They act as a binder, holding the mixture together and keeping it moist!
Made 4 pounds of these the other night for the WHOLE family for a birthday celebration, and they were AMAZING!!! Loved the trick about putting them under the broiler first, super easy clean-up, and leaves the pork fat on the tin foil. Spiced up our sauce with extra red pepper flakes and used jalapeno olive oil. Thank you!
Im a beginner cook and had a couple of questions. I feel kind of dumb asking but how do you broil them? Do i set the broil on high or low? Which rack do I put the pan on? Do I have to let the oven heat up or just turn it on and stick them in there. Thanks :/
Another meal we love! I am always searching for the best spaghetti sauce that is NOT Ragu, or anything like it, but that I can make from canned tomatoes. This might be the best yet. It’s simmering right now, and I just stole a taste:-) The meatballs are awesome too! I have been using the “Meatball Nirvana” recipe from allrecipes, but I think these just took first place. THANK YOU, as always!