Baked Meatballs are one of my favorite prep items. I make a huge batch of them and then freeze them in portions for future use. This recipe uses FIVE POUNDS of ground beef, BUT makes enough meatballs for 5 meals and then some! You will never want store bought frozen meatballs again after making this recipe for yourself. A couple hours of your day can save you lots of future time and money with this great staple recipe to fill your freezer and have great tasting beef meatballs.
If you follow any of my social media accounts, you know that I like to prep my meals and food in the morning so that I am ready to go for the day. Mornings are when I’m most productive and I prep meals, gather and prep ingredients, and get everything ready for the day so that if I get tired, or lose motivation, it is much easier to complete my daily list of activities and chores.
To get started crack your eggs. If you don’t want to waste a bowl for cleaning, I suggest cracking your eggs first so that you don’t have any shells in your meatballs. When I was preparing the meatballs for these photos, I just following the ingredient list, so I cracked them separately.
Once you get your eggs figured out, you can simply add all ingredients into a large bowl. It is easiest to just use our hand to mix up everything and make sure that all ingredients are well mixed together for a uniform batch of meatballs.
After the meatballs are mixed together, take a moment to wash your hands and clear your workspace. I like to throw all dishes in the sink, put leftover ingredients away and break out my baking sheets. Form your meatballs to the size you want. Bake your meatballs for about thirty minutes or until baked through.
***NOTE: For best baking results, please make sure your meatballs are uniform in size! If you want meatballs for spaghetti, make them a little larger. If you want meatballs for Italian wedding soup or appetizers, make them a little smaller. Just please make them all the same size per sheet so that they bake evenly. If you want to prep 2 different sizes, do not put them in the oven at the same time. Only bake same size meatballs together. Otherwise, take turns.
Once baking is done, pull out your sheet pans and set aside to cool. They will be greasy and the a lot of the fat will be melted out of the ground beef onto the pans. When meatballs are completely cooled make sure to wipe off grease and fat before freezing. We like to vacuum seal our meatballs in portions of about 10 or 12 depending on how many we prepared. This is usually enough to pull out one bag per recipe we make in the future.
Have questions on anything you read today? Don’t be afraid to ask, I love to help! You will see links throughout my posts. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. As always, thank you for reading and joining us on this journey!
Simply, Beth
Baked Meatballs
Ingredients
- 5 pounds ground beef
- 2 cups plain breadcrumbs
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 4 eggs, beaten large
- 2-3 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 1/2 cup milk, 2%
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
- 1/4 cup parsley, chopped
- 1/2 cup onion, diced
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix all ingredients. It is easiest to mix by hand to get a well combined mixture.
- Start forming your meatballs! Use either your hands, or a scoop to make meatballs that are uniform in size. The bake time set here is for 1.5-2 inch meatballs.
- Place meatballs on greased baking sheets and into a preheated oven at 350 for 30-40 minutes. Meatballs should be mostly cooked at minimum.
- If freezing: Meatballs should be mostly cooked at minimum and then set out to cool. If eating right away: cook to your preference.
- Let cool completely before freezing. Once cool, transfer to clean trays and freeze for a couple of hours to set. Once set, I suggest using a vacuum sealer to freeze in portions. We measure out about 8-10 meatballs per freezer package to enjoy later! *Remember to label and date your freezer bags!