This pan-fried Italian Meatballs recipe is so delicious you’ll be finding excuses to make them every day of the week.
Serve these fantastic meatballs with tomato sauce over your favorite pasta for a delicious meal everyone will love.
Meatballs are a staple in all Italian households and I grew up making these every Sunday with my grandmother.
This recipe is foolproof and I am so pleased to be able to share it with you. It’s so versatile that you can serve them with spaghetti sauce, cream sauce, or even plain with mashed potatoes.
Why This Recipe Works
- Adding baking soda keeps the beef moist. It enhances the PH levels and stops proteins from binding too quickly and drying out the meat.
- Fresh herbs and freshly grated parmesan cheese give these meatballs a unique mouthwatering flavor.
- Using eggs and breadcrumbs bind the meatballs and keeps them moist and tender.
- Fresh garlic gives them a flavor kick you just don’t get with garlic powder.
Using a Panade
A panade is a mixture of milk (or water) bread, breadcrumbs, or sometimes even ground crackers. It’s used to bind and add moisture to ground-meat dishes. It also helps to bind the mixture and hold it’s shape in dishes like meatballs or meatloaf.
I use a mixture of milk and seasoned breadcrumbs, but soaking bread or ground plain crackers in milk also works great too.
Mixing Ground Meat
Overmixing ground beef can make it tough so it’s important to avoid handling it too much. A good shortcut is to use a stand mixer to mix your meatballs, but if you do, be sure to use it on a low speed to not overwork the beef.
How to Make Italian Meatballs
- Mix ground beef, breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, garlic, and herbs.
- Roll into balls around an inch and a half in diameter.
- Pan-fry and serve with sauce and pasta.
Step by Step Instructions
This recipe calls for pan-frying the meatballs. For information on oven baking, see my Spaghetti and Meatballs recipe.
In a bowl mix baking soda and water. Set aside.
Mix breadcrumbs with milk and baking soda slurry.
Mix the ground beef, garlic, parmesan cheese, soaked bread crumbs, and fresh herbs until combined.
Form into balls using a scoop.
Before you assemble your meatballs it is worth taking the extra time to taste test. Make a mini patty and pan fry in olive oil until cooked. Taste and check if you should add more seasoning.
Pan fry until cooked through.
When cooking make sure your meatballs are about 2 inches apart. Pan fry until brown and crisp. Do this in batches rather than crowding the pan.
Place on a paper towel to get rid of any excess oil.
Add some sauce. Serve and enjoy.
Top Tips For Perfect Meatballs
- Use fresh ingredients. Fresh herbs and aromatics have the best flavor.
- Avoid low-fat ground meat Fat helps make the meatballs tender and keep them moist. I recommend 80% lean beef.
- Don’t skip moistening the breadcrumbs this step ensures the meatballs tender and moist.
- Be sure to use the eggs. This recipe calls for 2 eggs to bind the meatballs. If you skip the eggs the meatballs could fall apart in the sauce.
- When rolling your meatballs by hand try oiling your hands so that the mixture doesn’t stick when handling.
- After mixing your meatball mixture, it’s worth taking the extra time to taste test by making a mini hamburger and pan-frying it in some olive oil until fully cooked. Then taste it. It should taste delicious! If it doesn’t, it probably needs salt. Season the raw mixture and repeat if you want to be 100% sure.
- If making to serve with sauce, you’ll either a big batch of Homemade Tomato Sauce, Marinara Sauce, or at least two 24oz jars of store-bought.
- When cooking in tomato sauce, stir often. Tomato sauce sticks easily to the bottom of the pan which can ruin your sauce if burned.
Make ahead and Freezing Instructions ❄
This recipe makes about 30 meatballs so there are always leftovers. You can save them for another day or freeze them for an easy meal when you need it.
- Meatballs can be made a day in advance, and you can cook them up to 24 hours later. Alternatively, fry them and refrigerate for up to three days before you reheat them.
- To freeze, arrange the meatballs in a single layer on a baking sheet. Try to keep them from being too close or they will stick together when freezing. Then transfer them to a freezer-safe container and keep frozen for up to two months.
- To freeze your meatballs in sauce, cool and place in a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months. Defrost thoroughly before reheating.
FAQs
It may be that your meatballs are overworked and packed to tightly. Try to be gentle when forming your meatballs. Consider oiling your hands so the mixture won’t stick to them, and then gently and quickly form the meat into evenly sized balls.
No, you should make sure your meatballs and ingredients you are adding to the meatballs is cold so the fat doesn’t break down before cooking.
Yes, you can use water instead of milk when making the panade (breadcrumb mixture) for meatballs.
Other Italian Dishes You’ll Love
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Let’s Make Italian Meatballs
Ingredients
- 5 oz bread crumbs about 2 cups
- ½ cup milk or water – plus more if needed
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon water
- 2 lb ground beef 80-85% lean
- 2 large eggs
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- fresh parsley a good handful, chopped
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese fresh grated
- Salt to taste (I use at least a tablespoon of salt)
- freshly ground black pepper about 15 turns of the grind
- olive oil For frying
Instructions
- In a small bowl mix the baking soda with the water until well combined. Set aside.
- Mix the baking soda slurry into the breadcrumbs and mix well. Add the milk and stir together while adding more milk 1 tablespoon at a time to moisten the breadcrumbs fully. Let rest while you prep the rest of the ingredients (or at least 5 minutes).
- In a large mixing bowl add the beef, breadcrumb mixture, garlic, parsley, and parmesan cheese and season with about a teaspoon of salt and freshly grated pepper (if using jarred sauce, it may be salty so season to taste). Mix with until combined.
- Gently form 3 tablespoons of mixture into 1.5-inch round meatballs; repeat with remaining mixture. This recipe makes approx 30 meatballs.
- heat ¼ -inch vegetable oil over medium-high heat in a 10 or 11-inch sauté pan. When the edge of a meatball dipped in oil sizzles, add the meatballs in a single layer about 2 inches apart. Fry, turning several times until nicely browned on all sides (about 10 minutes), regulating heat as needed to keep oil sizzling but not smoking. Transfer the browned meatballs to a paper towel-lined plate; set aside. Repeat, if necessary, with remaining meatballs.
- Serve with the sauce of your choice.
Tips + Notes
Tips
- Overmixing ground beef can make it tough so it’s important to avoid handling it too much. A good shortcut is to use a stand mixer to mix your meatballs, but if you do, be sure to use it on a low speed to not overwork the beef.
- Before you assemble your meatballs it is worth taking the extra time to taste test. Make a mini patty and pan fry in olive oil until cooked. Taste and check if you should add more seasoning
- When rolling your meatballs by hand try oiling your hands so that the mixture doesn’t stick when handling
- When cooking, make sure your meatballs are placed about 2 inches apart. Pan fry until brown and crisp. Do this in batches rather than crowding the pan.
- If making to serve with sauce, you’ll either a big batch of Homemade Tomato Sauce, Marinara Sauce, or at least two 24oz jars of store-bought.
Gia Hofmann says
These meatballs were phenomenal! My new favorite recipe!
Erren Hart says
That’s so great! Thanks for taking the time to let me know! 🙂
Vera says
These were the best meatballs I’ve ever made. I used the fresh oregano, rosemary, and parsley, and they turned out just perfect!
Erren Hart says
Yay! Love to hear that 🙂
Becca says
Great flavor …these are excellent and so easy to make. This recipe will be my go to for meatballs.
Erren Hart says
I’m so glad to hear you liked it so much! 🙂
Giana says
These meatballs are the best I have ever had! They would do my nana broud! Thank you!
Erren Hart says
That’s terrific to hear, Giana! 🙂
Deborah says
Just made these tonight and even though I’ve been making my grandmas Italian meatballs for 30 years, these were outstanding! I was a little confused about instruction #2, “Mix the baking soda with the baking soda.” They turned out so delicious though. Can’t wait to have them with my sauce. If there are any left! Thanks, Erren!
Erren's Kitchen says
Thank you so much for pointing out the typo Deborah and I’m so pleased you enjoyed the recipe 🙂
Kallie says
Just like my nana used to make! Just perfect!
Erren Hart says
Oh wow, that’s such great feedback! Thanks, Kallie!
beckandbulow says
Awesome recipe
Erren's Kitchen says
Thank you 🙂
Simone says
Superb! Definitely a five star recipe.
Erren's Kitchen says
Thank you Simone, I’m so pleased you enjoyed the recipe 🙂