When it comes to classic comfort food, few dishes can beat a hearty plate of spaghetti and meatballs. This iconic Italian-American dish is a beloved favorite for its simple yet flavorful combination of tender spaghetti, savory meatballs, and a rich, tangy sauce. Whether you're a seasoned home cook or a beginner in the kitchen, creating the perfect spaghetti and meatballs can be both rewarding and delicious. Let's explore the essential tips and tricks for crafting this timeless dish, ensuring you end up with a meal that will satisfy your cravings and leave you coming back for more.
Let's cook with our recipes!
BEST SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS
One evening, we had unexpected company. Since I had the ingredients on hand, I made this spaghetti and meatballs recipe. Everyone raved! This classic recipe makes a big batch and is perfect for entertaining. -Mary Lou Koskella, Prescott, Arizona
Provided by Taste of Home
Categories Dinner
Time 2h30m
Yield 16 servings.
Number Of Ingredients 21
Steps:
- In a Dutch oven, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions; saute until softened. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Stir in tomato paste; cook 3-5 minutes. Add next 6 ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, for 50 minutes., Combine the first 7 meatball ingredients. Add beef; mix lightly but thoroughly. Shape into 1-1/2-in. balls., In a large skillet, heat canola oil over medium heat. Add meatballs; brown in batches until no longer pink. Drain. Add to sauce; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, covered, until flavors are blended, about 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Serve with hot cooked spaghetti.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 519 calories, Fat 18g fat (6g saturated fat), Cholesterol 106mg cholesterol, Sodium 1043mg sodium, Carbohydrate 59g carbohydrate (8g sugars, Fiber 4g fiber), Protein 30g protein.
TEST KITCHEN'S FAVORITE SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS
Swapping out some of the ground beef for chopped mushrooms is the secret behind the complex flavor of these meatballs. A quick blast in the broiler gives them a nice crust -- and the noncrisp parts soak up the delicious sauce.
Provided by Martha Stewart
Categories Food & Cooking Ingredients Meat & Poultry Beef Recipes Ground Beef Recipes
Time 1h10m
Number Of Ingredients 17
Steps:
- Red Sauce: Heat a straight-sided skillet over medium. Swirl in oil; add onion and 1 teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is soft and translucent, 7 to 9 minutes. Stir in garlic and red-pepper flakes; cook 30 seconds. Transfer one-third of onion mixture to a bowl and reserve for meatballs. Add tomatoes to skillet; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until reduced and thickened slightly, about 20 minutes.
- Meatballs: While sauce simmers, heat a large skillet over medium-high. Swirl in oil. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and most of moisture has evaporated, 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to bowl with reserved onion mixture; let cool slightly.
- Preheat broiler with rack 4 inches below heating element. Stir breadcrumbs and milk into mushroom mixture until milk is absorbed. Add cheese, parsley, oregano, egg, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add beef and gently fold with your hands until evenly combined (don't overwork, or meatballs will be tough). Use an ice cream scoop, or roll heaping tablespoons between dampened palms, to form thirty 1 1/2-inch balls. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet brushed with oil. Broil, undisturbed, until browned on top, about 5 minutes.
- Transfer meatballs to skillet with red sauce. Simmer, stirring gently, until just cooked through, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, boil pasta in a large pot of generously salted water until al dente, about 2 minutes less than per package instructions. Drain pasta and return to pot; toss with 1 1/2 cups sauce. Serve, topped with meatballs, more sauce, cheese, red-pepper flakes, and parsley.
MAMA'S BEST EVER SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS
A classic Italian-American dish that can be as simple or fancy as you want it to be.
Provided by Food Network
Categories main-dish
Time 40m
Yield 6 servings
Number Of Ingredients 5
Steps:
- Combine ground beef, bread crumbs, eggs and ½ cup Sauce in medium bowl; shape into 18 meatballs. Bring remaining Sauce to a boil over medium-high heat in 12-inch skillet. Gently stir in uncooked meatballs. Reduce heat to low and simmer covered, stirring occasionally, 20 minutes or until meatballs are done. Serve over hot spaghetti.
OUR FAVORITE SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS
Our ultimate version of everyone's favorite family-night dinner has a super tender and robust meat mixture, slow-simmered and flavorful sauce, and tons of cheese.
Provided by Rhoda Boone
Categories Beef Pasta Pork Kid-Friendly Dinner Veal Back to School Peanut Free Tree Nut Free Soy Free Frankenrecipe Small Plates
Yield Serves 6
Number Of Ingredients 27
Steps:
- Make the tomato sauce:
- Heat a large, wide pot over medium-low and add oil and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic is golden brown on all sides (if it starts to burn, reduce heat), 8-10 minutes. While garlic cooks, break up tomatoes into smaller pieces with a paring knife or kitchen shears. When garlic is almost ready, add red pepper flakes and cook, stirring occasionally, until toasted and fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add tomatoes, bay leaves, salt, oregano, and pepper and stir, breaking up tomatoes with a wooden spoon, until well combined.
- Increase heat slightly and gently simmer, stirring occasionally, until sauce has thickened and flavors have concentrated, at least 2 hours and up to 3 hours.
- Meanwhile, make the meatballs:
- Place bread in a medium bowl, add milk, and let rest until moistened, about 5 minutes. Squeeze bread with your hands to remove excess milk, discarding milk. Tear bread into smaller, pea-size pieces and return to the medium bowl.
- Combine beef, pork, veal, eggs, garlic, 1 cup Parmesan, 1/2 cup parsley, 1 tsp. salt, oregano, pepper, fennel, and red pepper flakes in a large bowl. Using your hands, gently mix in bread until ingredients are evenly distributed (do not overmix).
- Fill a small bowl with cool water. Moisten your hands and roll meat mixture between palms into golf-ball-sized balls, occasionally moistening hands as needed. Place meatballs on a rimmed baking sheet-you should have about 24-and chill until sauce is ready.
- Finish the sauce and cook the meatballs and pasta:
- After 2-3 hours of simmering, pluck out bay leaves and add basil. Using an immersion blender (or transfer sauce to a food processor or blender, working in batches, if necessary), purée until slightly chunky but not smooth. Reserve 1 1/2 cups sauce; keep remaining sauce in pot warm over very low heat.
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high and add oil. Once hot, add meatballs to skillet (without crowding) and work in batches to brown on all sides, turning frequently, about 5 minutes per batch. Return meatballs to baking sheet as you brown them.
- Once all meatballs are browned, add them to pot with tomato sauce. If your pot is not large enough, divide sauce and meatballs between 2 pots. Increase heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until meatballs are cooked through, 10-15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cook spaghetti in a large pot of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally, until al dente. Drain, reserving 1 cup pasta cooking liquid, and return pasta to pot over medium-low heat. Spoon reserved 1 1/2 cups sauce over pasta and toss to coat. Add pasta cooking liquid, 1/4 cup at a time, as needed to loosen sauce and coat pasta.
- Divide pasta among plates and top with meatballs and remaining sauce. Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan and 1/4 cup parsley.
- Do Ahead
- Sauce can be made, cooled, and refrigerated for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 3 months. Meatballs can be shaped and refrigerated 1 day in advance. Meatballs can be cooked in sauce, cooled, and refrigerated for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
THE BEST SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS
Who knew that the same technique for shredding pulled pork with two forks will also work for meatballs? In this case, the method ensures that your ingredients are thoroughly mixed yet not compressed, so the resulting meatballs are tender and light. After browning the meatballs, we finish them in a hearty tomato sauce. The meatballs flavor the sauce as they finish cooking.
Provided by Food Network Kitchen
Categories main-dish
Time 1h15m
Yield 4 to 6 servings
Number Of Ingredients 19
Steps:
- Whisk together the panko, Parmesan, parsley, fennel seeds, 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes, 1 1/2 teaspoons of the oregano, 1 tablespoon salt and 1 teaspoon black pepper in a medium bowl until combined. Stir in the cream.
- Combine the beef, pork and veal in a large bowl. Pull the ground meat apart with two forks as if you were shredding pulled pork, breaking up the clumps and incorporating the meat without compacting it until thoroughly mixed and no clumps remain. Add the panko mixture to the meat and use the same pulling technique to mix until all the ingredients are evenly incorporated.
- Lightly oil your hands. Scoop out portions of the meat mixture with a 1/4-cup measuring cup or large ice cream scoop; roll the meat gently between your hands into balls. Arrange the balls on a rimmed baking sheet.
- Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add half the meatballs and cook, turning and rolling occasionally, until they are browned on all sides, about 5 minutes total; remove to a plate. The meatballs will not be cooked through; they will finish cooking in the sauce. Repeat with the remaining meatballs.
- Reduce the heat to medium, add the onion and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the tomato paste, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon oregano and a pinch of red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the tomato paste is brick red, about 1 minute. Stir in the wine, scraping any browned bits from the bottom of the pan, and cook until the liquid is almost completely evaporated, about 3 minutes.
- Add the tomatoes and basil to the sauce, smashing and breaking up the tomatoes into bite-size pieces with a wooden spoon. Bring the sauce just to a boil, and then add the meatballs with any accumulated juices. Cover the pan, reduce the heat to low and simmer until the meatballs are cooked through, about 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Cook the spaghetti according to the package directions. Drain well.
- Transfer the meatballs to a plate. Discard the basil and season with salt.
- Add the pasta to the sauce. Gently stir until the sauce coats the pasta. Transfer the spaghetti to a serving platter and top with the meatballs. Sprinkle with Parmesan before serving.
JENN'S OUT OF THIS WORLD SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS
This authentic spaghetti and meatballs recipe is made with fresh oregano and parsley. Because the meatballs are cooked in the sauce, they are tender and savory.
Provided by JENNGOETZ
Categories World Cuisine Recipes European Italian
Time 1h15m
Yield 8
Number Of Ingredients 16
Steps:
- Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat, and cook the onion until lightly brown. Mix in 2 cloves garlic, and cook 1 minute. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, water, sugar, 1/2 the oregano, and bay leaf. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer while preparing meatballs.
- In a bowl, mix the ground round, bread crumbs, remaining oregano, remaining garlic, parsley, eggs, and cheese. Season with salt and pepper. Roll into 1 inch balls, and drop into the sauce. Cook 40 minutes in the sauce, or until internal temperature of meatballs reaches a minimum of 160 degrees F (72 degrees C).
- Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil, and stir in the spaghetti. Cook 8 to 10 minutes, until al dente, and drain. Serve the meatballs and sauce over the cooked spaghetti.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 571.9 calories, Carbohydrate 80.1 g, Cholesterol 86.6 mg, Fat 17 g, Fiber 7.7 g, Protein 27.7 g, SaturatedFat 5 g, Sodium 1177.2 mg, Sugar 21.3 g
MEGAN'S AMAZING SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS
This recipe will leave your family and friends mopping up their plates with their garlic bread!
Provided by Megan Darling
Categories Main Dish Recipes Pasta Spaghetti Recipes
Time 1h20m
Yield 6
Number Of Ingredients 18
Steps:
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat; cook and stir onion and garlic until onion is tender and translucent, about 5 minutes. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, red wine, Italian seasoning, sugar, garlic powder, and garlic salt. Season with salt and black pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and continue simmering while preparing meatballs.
- Mix ground beef, egg, bread crumbs, mozzarella cheese, and parsley in a large bowl. Roll walnut-size meatballs and place in the simmering sauce, making sure sauce covers entire meatball. Increase heat to medium and simmering until meatballs are no longer pink in the center, about 40 minutes, turning meatballs once about halfway through.
- Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook spaghetti in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until cooked through but firm to the bite, 8 to 10 minutes. Drain.
- Serve meatballs and sauce over spaghetti with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.
Nutrition Facts : Calories 518.9 calories, Carbohydrate 79.8 g, Cholesterol 63.2 mg, Fat 10.3 g, Fiber 6.6 g, Protein 24.5 g, SaturatedFat 3.6 g, Sodium 969.7 mg, Sugar 11.3 g
SPAGHETTI AND MEATBALLS RECIPE BY TASTY
Here's what you need: olive oil, large yellow onions, garlic, kosher salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, tomato paste, crushed tomato, dried basil, dried oregano, dried parsley, ground beef, ground pork, bread crumbs, ricotta cheese, fresh parsley, large eggs, grated parmesan cheese, milk, kosher salt, black pepper, dried spathetti, fresh basil, grated parmesan cheese
Provided by Matthew Johnson
Categories Dinner
Yield 6 servings
Number Of Ingredients 24
Steps:
- Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Set a wire rack over a baking sheet and grease with nonstick spray.
- Make the marinara sauce: Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and garlic and season with salt, pepper, and the red pepper flakes. Cook until soft and caramelized, about 15 minutes.
- Set aside ⅓ cup (50 G) of the cooked onions and garlic for the meatballs and let cool.
- Stir the tomato paste into the onions and cook until browned and aromatic, 3-5 minutes.
- Add the crushed tomatoes, dried basil, dried oregano, and dried parsley. Stir together and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for at least 30 minutes.
- Make the meatballs: In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, ground pork, reserved onion and garlic mixture, bread crumbs, ricotta, parsley, eggs, Parmesan, milk, salt, and pepper. Mix with your hands until well combined.
- Shape about 2 ounces (55 G) of meat at a time into balls and set on the prepared wire rack.
- Bake the meatballs for 20 minutes, until the outsides are browned and the centers are tender and juicy and reach about 155˚F (68˚C).
- Bring a large pot of water to boil and add a generous pinch of salt. Cook the pasta according to the package instructions, 7-10 minutes, until al dente. Stir occasionally to keep the noodles from sticking together.
- Drain the pasta and add it directly to the simmering marinara sauce. Reserve some pasta water, in case you need it to loosen the sauce. Stir the pasta into the sauce until fully coated.
- Add the pasta to serving bowls, top with the meatballs, and garnish with Parmesan, fresh basil, and cracked pepper.
- Enjoy!
Nutrition Facts : Calories 1173 calories, Carbohydrate 119 grams, Fat 47 grams, Fiber 13 grams, Protein 69 grams, Sugar 26 grams
Tips:
- Choose the right pasta: Spaghetti is the classic choice for meatballs, but you can also use other long pastas like linguine or fettuccine.
- Make sure your meatballs are moist: Use a combination of ground beef and ground pork, and add some bread crumbs, eggs, and milk to help bind the meatballs together. Don't overmix the meatball mixture, or the meatballs will be tough.
- Brown the meatballs before simmering them: This will help to develop their flavor and prevent them from falling apart in the sauce.
- Use a good quality tomato sauce: You can use a store-bought sauce, or make your own from scratch. If you're using a store-bought sauce, doctor it up with some fresh herbs, garlic, and red pepper flakes.
- Simmer the meatballs in the sauce for at least 30 minutes: This will allow the flavors to meld and the meatballs to become tender.
- Serve the spaghetti and meatballs with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese and some crusty bread: This is the classic way to enjoy this dish.
Conclusion:
Spaghetti and meatballs is a classic Italian-American dish that is loved by people of all ages. It's a hearty and flavorful meal that is perfect for a family dinner or a special occasion. With a few simple tips, you can make spaghetti and meatballs at home that tastes just as good as your favorite restaurant.
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