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 a ground turkey alternative to the meatballs, try this recipe.
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
- Fettuccine 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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Comments
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This turned out really good even though I forgot the basil and had to use Italian seasoning instead. The kids and adults loved them.
Easy, perfect, delicious. Absolutely what you’re looking for when someone wants spaghetti and meatballs.
OH MY GOD these meat balls! Highly recommend these – easy to make (and I am a shitty cook), yet they turned out perfect. We did end up pan-frying them instead of in the over but the recipe is excellent. Great tip re the marinara w/ sugar and fresh pepper – 10/10 would recommend.
What would the ratio be to use regular bread vs. Breadcrumbs?
Hi Danielle, I’m not sure as it depends on the size of the bread. I’d pulse 1 piece of bread in the food processor at a time until you get to 3/4 cup of bread crumbs.
Did not use the dried oregano . Traditional Italian meatballs do not use oregano, the flavor is overpowering . Fresh parsley and basil is perfect and enough
Excellent recipe! I am curious- how do you chop your herbs so fine?
Thanks!
Hi Cecile, So glad you enjoyed the dish. And I get the herbs chopped so finely from years and years of cooking/practice/working in restaurants! 🙂
Probably great knives too!
Made these meatballs with your homemade tomato sauce tonite. It was full of flavor and was a hit with the men at home. I made the sauce from Roma tomatoes & only had ground beef (no pork or veal). But it was a meal I will create again. Loved the use of my garden basil in the meatballs & added garnish.
Made this tonight and it was AMAZING! I had been craving spaghetti and meatballs for weeks and this recipe hit the spot!
This was delicious thank you for the recipe! Made it for the whole family and it went down a treat!
I want to make this for 10 women . It will be an Italian theme, plus several pizzas and salad. I think I need to 1.5 times this recipe? If so, should i add another egg?
Hi Joni, For ease, you can get away with using another egg but if you want to be the most accurate, you can use half an egg — just beat one egg in a measuring cup, discard half of it, and use the remaining half. Hope everyone enjoys!
i need to make meatballs without spaghetti for an Italian ladies’ luncheon. Do you suggest this recipe or the turkey with spinach recipe? In either case, I am doing them cocktail size along with the rest of the menu.
Hi Joni, I think either would be delicious, but because you’re making them into minis and the turkey meatballs sometimes have a bit of spinach sticking out of them, I think I’d opt for these instead. Hope the luncheon is nice!
Hi! How far in advance can I make the meatballs and leave in the fridge? In sauce?
I haven’t made them yet but I love all the ingredients and appreciate the flavors it will bring.
Hi Mary, I suspect they’d be fine for 3 to 4 days. 🙂
Many of the meatball recipes I have tried in the past use milk instead of water. Is there any reason you prefer water? You are my go-to chef so I thought I would ask. Thanks!
Hi Rebecca, No specific reason – either will work well here!
This is a life saver🇨🇦🇨🇦
the best ever
I don’t have a sweet Italian grandmother to get great recipes from but this recipe tasted like it came from one! We loved it!
Move over, Marry Me Chicken! These should be called Marry Me Meatballs! My fiancée said he has no choice but to marry me now so I can always cook these for him! Plus, he said if I cook meals this good every night he will let me be a stay-at-home mom! 😉 He scarfed down almost half the batch and had to stop himself from eating more! The meatballs are so moist and pair perfectly with Rao’s marinara sauce (to which I did add some black pepper and sugar as Jenn does). I have made this with different combinations of meat, including all turkey, and they all turn out moist. I will only make meatballs this way from now on! Thank you for another easy and delicious weeknight recipe!
Hi Jenn!
If buying the meats separately what kind of ground beef do you suggest…80/20?
Either 80/20 or 85/15 would be good.
Hi Jenn! This recipe is now my go-to, after many MANY years of doing them another way. So delicious!! One question, if you’re still monitoring comments on this: I’ve been asked to make these meatballs, but served with a creamy mushroom sauce. Well, Campbell’s mushroom soup, to be honest 🙂 Do you think the Italian seasonings would be a problem? Thanks!
Hi Jane, so glad you like these! No, I don’t think the Italian seasonings would be a problem. 🙂
Hi! Can’t wait to try these 🙂 so 4-6 meatballs IS about 700 calories right?
Im counting my calories so i need to document it
Yes, that plus 1/6 of the spaghetti is 731 calories. Hope you enjoy!
i made these meatballs , wowowowowowowow WOW . they were soft wonderful firm enough to hold up in sauce , they were yum yum billy blum , and if billy blum would eat it you know thier good , love from boone of the north woods
ok going to try your meatballs , we;ll see how it goes
thanks brenda
Jenn
I want to make these meatballs for a party and one guest is gluten free. What do you suggest I substitute the breadcrumbs with to make them gluten free? Thanks!
Hi Cynthia, You can definitely use gluten-free breadcrumbs.
Thank you!
Easy & delicious recipe. I had abt 1.25 lbs ground beef so I reduced the breadcrumbs a bit while keeping other ingredients appx the same ( per an eyeball measure). Substituted abt 1tsp dried parsley – no fresh on hand but did use fresh basil plus a bit extra. Using a scoop, my mixture made 22 meatballs. I popped the pan w/ meatballs in the refrigerator until ready to bake for dinner. Took about 24 minutes to cook. Simmered a jar of Rao Marinara while baking the meatballs. I prepared meatball subs w/ freshly shredded mozzarella & parmesan for my husband & me and spaghetti & meatballs for our son. Quick easy wonderful weeknight meal. So versatile. I think the leftover meatballs & sauce will be served over baked parmesan polenta. Thank you!
This was very good made with chicken or turkey. I personally will not eat veal.
The cruelty involved in harvesting veal is just horrible.
Love your foolproof recipes, Jen!
Can I use Panko instead of the Italian bread crumbs?
So glad you like the recipes! Sure, you can use panko. If you’d like to add some of flavors that Italian seasoning has, you can use this recipe as a guide.
Wonderful, delicious sauce and the meatballs scrumptious. Again a winner.
I made this last week for my great granddaughters birthday party. We had 15 guests for dinner and I have never received so many compliments on this meatball recipe. Raves about how flavorful, tasty and tender they were. It was easy to prepare. I doubled the recipe and made 60 meatballs. I combined the jar of Rao’s marinara sauce with a jar of Rao’s Arrabbiata spicy marinara sauce and it gave it a little spicy bite. I also followed the suggestion I read in the comments to place them on a raised rack to save having to turn them and they turned out perfect. Thank you for such a wonderful recipe. I will be making this often!