10 Easy Turkey Meatballs Recipe Ideas for Dinner (2024)

FAQs

What to eat with meatballs for dinner? ›

Massage your meat

Get your hands into your mixing bowl and combine the ingredients for your meatballs using your fingers. The heat from your hands will help release the proteins in the meat which will in turn help the mixture stick together when it cooks. Don't overmix, just a few minutes will do.

Most meatball recipes depend on other ingredients, such as herbs, cheese, and the meat itself for flavor. Instead, eggs serve a more prosaic function: to help hold everything together. As the eggs cook, their proteins coagulate and solidify, binding all the other ingredients they contact.

Although meatballs cooked in tomato sauce and served with pasta is likely what most Americans first imagine when they think of them, this meatball preparation is virtually nonexistent in Italy. In most regions, meatballs are just fried and eaten as is—enjoyed as a snack or served as a second course without any sauce.

Chill your meatballs: refrigerating your meatballs an hour before cooking helps them hold their shape throughout the cooking process. They can chill in the fridge for up to 24 hours before cooking, making meatballs a great make-ahead dish, too.

Without the use of milk, you may be faced with a plate of dry meatballs. Milk adds a certain level of moisture that helps produce perfectly tender meatballs.

The only way to prevent your meatballs from falling apart is to add some flour in the precooked seasoned ground beef. once you season the ground beef to your taste, you then add some flour, not too much but at least half of a handful.

Commercially ground turkey also has a finer texture than beef or pork, which is why it cooks up mushy. The fine consistency also means the meat has a harder time holding on to moisture.

Egg and breadcrumbs are common mix-ins to add moisture and tenderness. Another binder option that people swear by is a panade, which is fresh or dry breadcrumbs that have been soaked in milk. “The soaked breadcrumbs help keep the proteins in the meat from shrinking,” as food writer Tara Holland explained in the Kitchn.

What keeps meatballs moist? ›

Milk: Adds moisture and tenderizes the meat, making our meatballs juicy and tender once cooked. Egg: Adds more moisture and helps the mixture firm up once cooked. Parmesan: My secret ingredient for the best meatballs! Parmigiano-Reggiano adds flavor and salt to our mixture.

Baking soda, otherwise known as sodium bicarbonate, appears often in köfte recipes. It raises the PH level of the meat, making it harder for the meat's protein molecules to bond. This in turn allows the meat to retain water as it cooks. And more water means a moist meatball.

Using the wrong amount of bread crumbs (or flour)

Bread crumbs are another popular binder for meatballs that can become problematic if used incorrectly. Adding too many bread crumbs to the mix will cause your meatballs to become loose and fall apart. The same applies to flour.

Adding raw meatballs to the sauce and gently simmering till cooked yields ultra-tender results, and infuses the sauce with meaty flavor—a slow cooker gives great results.

Two or four? Would it differ based on the size of the meatball (four for larger ones)? I'd love to know what everyone's go-to is, as this instruction is very common but rarely gives specifics. Editor: I think your instincts are right on here — two sides for smaller meatballs and four for larger ones.

Swedish meatballs are classically served with a creamy mashed potato and lingonberry jam (or cranberry jelly if you can't get hold of this). Alternatively, you could accompany them with boiled potatoes, chips, rice, tagliatelle or some crusty hot bread to mop up the gravy.

I prefer pappardelle here because it is a large, very broad and flat pasta noodles. And they are also similar to wide fettuccine. But you can also make it with egg noodles, fettuccine or spaghetti. I sauted onions before adding them to the meatballs and the sweetness of the caramelized onions was mouthwatering!