15+ Easy Meatball Recipes

These 15 Easy Meatball Recipes perfect for appetizers, snacks, and even a main course, especially during football season or for entertaining! Here’s a roundup of my favorite ground beef, chicken, turkey, and pork meatballs!

Easy Meatball Recipes

Remember these Slow Cooker Asian Sesame Meatballs I made recently? Well, I wanted to keep the meatball fun going and share with you 15 Super Easy Meatball Recipes.

It’s no secret I love meatballs. They are not as hard to make as one would imagine and they can be made in so many ways and with so many variations. They make perfect appetizers or main dishes! Below I am sharing my favorite easy meatball recipes. Most of these recipes can be made in 30 minutes or less! Feel free to substitute either ground chicken, beef, pork or turkey for any of the meatballs. I always use what I have on hand! I have also included my tips for making the best meatballs below!

Tips for Making the Best Meatballs

• Don’t overwork your ingredients: Just like baked goods the more you work your meatball dough the tougher and chewier the cooked meatball will be. I like to mix the meatballs with my hands just until they are combined.
• Sear your meatball: I always like to brown my meatballs on all sides over very high heat. This adds so much flavor and helps to lock in the juices.
• Buy 80 / 20: When possible I like to use 80 / 20 in my meatball recipes to ensure the meatballs stay juicy and don’t dry out.
• Portion out meatballs: I like to use a cookie scoop to portion out meatballs. This keeps everything uniform and helps all of the meatballs to cook evenly and not dry out.
• Grease hands: When you are shaping the meatballs by hand I recommend lightly greasing or wetting your hands. This helps the meatball from sticking to your hands and help you to form a perfectly shaped meatball!
• Appetizer/Entree: I like to make my meatballs a lot smaller if I plan to serve the meatballs as appetizers so they are bite sized. Entree meatballs are a lot bigger and are about the size of a golf ball.
• Use different meats: I like to use a combination of meats when I am making meatballs. This adds so much flavor and helps add needed fat to leaner cuts of meats.
• Season your meatballs: Seasoning your meatballs are key! To test the seasoning of your meatballs take a small teaspoon of your meatball mixture and cook it in a hot pan. The mixture will only take 30 seconds or so to cook and you can taste test your meatballs before cooking the full batch.
• Keep your ingredients cold: This helps keep the fat from breaking down. I keep my eggs, cheeses and meats in the fridge and take them out right before I plan to use them. I also try not to overwork the dough with my hands. This will warm up the mixture as well.

Pork and Beef Meatballs

The majority of these easy meatball recipes are the classic combination of ground beef and ground pork. You can always make them exclusively beef or pork, but the combination results in a super juicy, ultra flavorful meatball every time.

Super Tender Italian Meatballs: Super Tender Italian Meatballs. Loaded with Parmesan cheese, fresh parsley and garlic. They melt in your mouth and are incredibly tender. Takes less than 30 minutes to make!

Teriyaki Beef Meatballs: Super Easy Teriyaki Beef Meatballs. Serve as an appetizer or add rice to make it a meal. Ready in less than 30 minutes!

Slow Cooker Asian Meatballs: Loaded with flavor and sprinkled with sesame seeds for the ultimate protein-packed Asian bite! Serve as an appetizer or add rice to make it a meal. This is the perfect appetizer for tailgating! These delicious meatballs are low carb and can easily be made gluten-free.

Salisbury Steak Meatballs: Tender homemade beef meatballs smothered in a delicious homemade onion beef gravy! Serve over mashed potatoes or egg noodles.

Slow Cooker Hawaiian Meatballs: This recipe packs a ton of flavor in every bite. Smothered in a tangy sweet and sour sauce then sprinkled with sesame seeds and green onions. The perfect appetizer or dinner idea!

Vietnamese Pork Meatballs: Loaded with flavor, they are made with fresh mint, cilantro, fish sauce, ginger and garlic then baked until golden brown.

Slow Cooker Sriracha Meatballs: Pork meatballs tossed in a sweet and spicy sauce. Perfect as an appetizer or for dinner!

One Pan Meatball Stroganoff: Tender meatballs, egg noodles and mushrooms tossed in a creamy rich sauce. A quick and delicious dinner that is ready in under 30 minutes!

Slow Cooker Italian Meatballs: Loaded with Parmesan cheese, fresh parsley and garlic. They melt in your mouth and are incredibly tender. Simmered low and slow for 4 hours!

Chicken Meatball Recipes

While homemade meatballs are traditionally made with a combination of beef and pork, you can lighten them up by using ground chicken. This style of easy meatball recipes pair especially well with lighter sauces, but they can also be swapped for red meat-based meatballs found in more standard recipes like spaghetti.

Thai Red Curry Meatballs: Thai Red Curry Chicken Meatballs. A quick weeknight dinner that takes less than 30 minutes to make.

Asian Style Chicken Meatballs. Baked and tossed in a sweet and spicy Asian sauce. Serve as an appetizer or add rice to make it a meal.

Slow Cooker Firecracker Chicken Meatballs: The perfect blend of spicy and sweet! They make a great appetizer or main dish! Perfect for holiday parties and meal-prep.

Turkey Meatball Recipes

Ground turkey is a healthier and lighter swap for traditional red meat or pork in meatball recipes. I recommend using either 80/20 or 93/7 ground turkey. I find 99% lean ground turkey will make the meatballs too dry.

Baked Turkey Pesto Meatballs: Stuffed with mozzarella cheese, these meatballs taste absolutely amazing and are loaded with tons of Italian flavor. Perfect to serve over polenta or pasta, or even as a filling for a sub sandwich.

Turkey Meatballs with Arugula and Mushrooms: Super easy pan fried turkey meatballs served with sautéed arugula and mushrooms. Ready in less than 30 minutes!

Easy Meatball Soup Recipes

Homemade meatballs aren’t just for sub sandwiches and entrées. They are the perfect addition to soup too!

Turkey Meatball Vegetable Soup: Quick and easy one pot Turkey Meatball Vegetable Soup. Loaded with arugula, spinach, broccoli and turkey meatballs.

Italian Meatball Soup: Loaded with vegetables, beef meatballs, and a flavorful Italian broth, you’ll never find a more satisfying and hearty soup! Perfect for meal prep and freezing, this Italian Meatball Soup recipe is ready in just over an hour. Serve with crusty bread for dipping!