Spaghetti and Meatballs
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This spaghetti and meatball recipe is the ultimate weeknight family dinner — quick, easy, and picky eater-approved!
This is my go-to recipe for spaghetti and meatballs. With a quick 45-minute cook time, it’s perfect for busy weeknights and sure to please even the pickiest eaters. The meatballs are juicy and packed with flavor, with a fork-tender texture that keeps everyone coming back for more. To make things easy and save on mess, I brown the meatballs in the oven on a sheet pan instead of pan-frying them on the stovetop. I also use a good quality store-bought marinara sauce to save time, but feel free to use homemade tomato sauce if you have some on hand.
For more family-friendly Italian recipes (everybody loves Italian!), try my baked ziti, stuffed shells, and chicken parmesan. For an alternative to beef meatballs, try my favorite turkey meatballs.
What You’ll Need To Make Spaghetti and Meatballs
For the most flavorful meatballs (or meatloaf), I recommend using equal parts beef, veal, and pork; at most supermarkets, this blend is labeled “meatloaf mix.” If your market doesn’t carry the blend, you can use half beef and half pork (since ground veal isn’t readily available).
For the cheese, be sure to use the real-deal imported Parmigiano-Reggiano from Italy; domestic Parmesan pales in comparison. You can always tell if it’s authentic by looking at the rind, which is embossed with the name over and over. If the cheese is already grated, it should be labeled “Parmigiano-Reggiano,” not “Parmesan.”
Step-by-Step Instructions
Begin with the meatballs: In a large bowl, combine the egg, basil, parsley, oregano, salt, pepper, garlic and water; whisk well.
Add the meat, breadcrumbs and Parmigiano Reggiano. meatball recipe
Mix with your hands until just combined.
Roll the mixture into golf ball-sized meatballs, and place on an ungreased baking sheet.
Bake for about 10 minutes, then remove the baking sheet from the oven and use a metal spatula or tongs to turn the meatballs (they will stick a bit but should release easily when you scrape under them with the spatula).
Put the meatballs back in the oven and cook for another 10 minutes, until they are nicely browned and almost cooked through.
In the meantime, bring the marinara sauce to a simmer in a large skillet. Taste it and adjust the seasoning if necessary (I usually add a healthy pinch of sugar and some freshly ground black pepper). Transfer the browned meatballs to the marinara sauce, leaving the fat behind. Cover loosely with a lid or foil and simmer for about 10 minutes, until the flavors marry and the meatballs are cooked through. Keep warm until ready to toss with pasta.
While the meatballs are cooking, bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil.
Add the spaghetti and cook until al dente. Drain, then toss with the sauce and meatballs.
Transfer the spaghetti and meatballs to serving bowls and top with fresh chopped basil and more grated cheese.
You may also like
- Turkey, Spinach & Cheese Meatballs
- Bolognese
- Chicken Meatballs with Tomato-Balsamic Glaze
- Orecchiette with Sausage and Broccoli
- Turkey Meatballs in Marinara Sauce
- Cacio e Pepe
Spaghetti & Meatballs
This spaghetti and meatball recipe is the ultimate weeknight family dinner — quick, easy, and picky eater-approved!
Ingredients
- 1 large egg
- 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil (plus more for serving)
- 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ cup water
- 1½ pounds ground "meatloaf mix" (approximately equal parts ground beef, pork and veal)
- ¾ cup dried Italian style bread crumbs (such as Progresso)
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (plus more for serving)
- Large jar (32 oz) good quality Marinara sauce (such as Rao's)
- 1 pound spaghetti
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and set an oven rack in the middle position.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the egg, basil, parsley, oregano, salt, pepper, garlic and water. Add the meat, breadcrumbs and cheese and mix until just combined (your hands are the best tool). Do not overwork it.
- Roll the mixture into golf ball-sized meatballs and place on an ungreased baking sheet. Bake for about 10 minutes, then remove the baking sheet from oven and use a metal spatula to turn the meatballs (they will stick a bit but should release easily when you scrape under them with the spatula). Put the meatballs back in the oven and cook for another 10 minutes, until they are nicely browned and almost cooked through.
- In the meantime, bring the marinara sauce to a simmer in a large skillet. Taste it and adjust the seasoning if necessary (I usually add a healthy pinch of sugar and some freshly ground black pepper). Transfer the browned meatballs to the marinara sauce, leaving the fat behind. Cover loosely with a lid or foil and simmer for about 10 minutes, until the flavors marry and the meatballs are cooked through. Keep warm until ready to toss with pasta.
- While the meatballs are cooking, bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Add the spaghetti and cook until al dente. Drain, then toss with the sauce and meatballs (you may find it easier to toss everything together in the pasta pot rather than the skillet; it depends on the sizes of pans you are using.). Serve topped with fresh basil and more grated cheese.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The cooked meatballs can be frozen, in their sauce, for up to 3 months. When ready to serve, defrost overnight in the refrigerator and reheat on the stovetop until the meatballs are hot in the center.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 731
- Fat: 29 g
- Saturated fat: 10 g
- Carbohydrates: 78 g
- Sugar: 11 g
- Fiber: 6 g
- Protein: 37 g
- Sodium: 897 mg
- Cholesterol: 116 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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I made the meatball portion of this recipe 2 weeks ago. I used ground chicken and because i didn’t hate Italian panko, i used regular and added Italian seasonings to it. I also used arrabiata bottled sauce instead of marinara with penne pasta. It was yummy. Only thing different i would do next time is put more salt than you called for in the meatball mix. It was bland and needed more salt when we were eating it.
These meatballs were fantastic! I make an incredibly good red pasta sauce, but I wanted to shake things up a bit and made these tonight. The kids and husband were impressed! Next time I’ll make them a bit smaller and I will use a little more pasta. I will definitely make these again. Thank you for another keeper recipe.
I doubled your recipe for spaghetti and meatballs. Would you recommend I freeze them raw or bake them first, then freeze.
Hi Donna, I’d recommend cooking them first. Enjoy!
Made this tonight and we loved it. I used casarecce pasta instead of spaghetti. We live in Toronto and did find Rao marinara sauce. Well worth it…
I live in Toronto too. Curious where you found Rao marinara sauce as I’d like to get some?
I live in Toronto as well and I love RAO pasta sauce. You can buy it at Kitchen Table, sometimes Loblaws, downstiars in The Bay aacross from the Eaton Centre and also Saint Lawrence Market .
Love this! It was a crowd pleaser at our house.
This was a very nice meatball recipe, although in future I think it needs a little more salt. The fresh herbs and cheese gave them a lot of flavor. I appreciate the tip about Rao’s marinara sauce, which was excellent; and I like the whole approach for a simpler spaghetti meal on a short timeframe. I made my meatballs in the morning, and stored them in my plastic deviled egg container. An easy way to keep your meatballs separated and retain their shape. Will definitely make again.
Thanks for another great recipe! I made it last night and it was great, even if I did omit the breadcrumbs accidentally. Just a couple of questions: is the idea that the meatballs will not be fully cooked in the oven? Also, curious about covering the sauce and meatballs with foil vs. using an off-kilter pot lid. What’s the rationale there?
Hi Karen, Glad you enjoyed them even without breadcrumbs! Yes, the meatballs should be almost completely cooked through before you put them in the sauce. And the foil covering the skillet is just to keep the tomato sauce from splattering out onto your stove. You can definitely loosely cover it with a lid instead.
These are so delicious. Without doubt the best recipe I have ever tried. Do yourself a favour and try them. I’m sure they will end up in your favourite file.
They have so much flavour and are so tender. Meatballs that I have made before have been like golf balls but not these ones!!!
Hello – Making recipe for a party and planned to double. When purchasing the meat, it came in 3 packages totalling 3.4 lbs. Is it OK to double the recipe or would you make other adjustments to ingredients? Love your recipes… Thank you!
Hi Sue, you should be fine with just doubling everything else. Enjoy!
This is my families new favorite meatball recipe! I made one change when baking the meatballs. I lined my baking sheet with foil, and placed a cooling rack on the sheet. I baked the meatballs on the rack, and they browned beautifully without needing to be turned.