This easy spaghetti and meatball recipe is made in a skillet and cooks to perfection! An updated classic dinner recipe for the whole family!
Why You’ll Love This Easy Spaghetti and Meatballs Recipe
- It is easy to make and prepare! The steps to do this are very easy and straightforward. And throughout the post, I’ll show you how to prepare steps to reduce the total lunch time even further!
- Classic! This is a guaranteed family favorite, an easy dinner recipe. Who doesn’t love spaghetti and meatballs?
- Advance or Use Shortcuts! The advantage of this recipe is that it can be prepared in advance. You can make it a day or even weeks in advance and freeze it! Here are some shortcut ideas to make prep time easier on those busy weeknights!
More Family Favorite Pasta Recipes
What you need to make spaghetti and meatballs
This is a super easy dinner recipe with everyday ingredients that will most likely be in your kitchen right now! As always, head over to the recipe card at the bottom of this post for the full ingredient list and instructions!
Ingredients for meatballs
- Bread crumbs. I use unseasoned panko breadcrumbs in this recipe, but you can totally use regular breadcrumbs if you prefer. I find that the panko helps make the patties less dense.
- Meat mixture. This is a meat mixture that you can find in the supermarket near the ground beef. It is a combination of ground beef, ground pork and veal. I love using the meatball mix in the meatballs to add flavor. If you prefer, you can simply use ground beef or turkey or chicken instead, but be aware that it may result in drier meatballs because the meat is lower in fat. You can also make a combination of lean beef and ground Italian sausage without the beef for another fantastic flavor!
- Parmesan cheese. It is an important ingredient in meatballs to add flavor. Parmesan cheese is naturally salty and delicious! Freshly grate your own Parmesan for this meatball. Pre-grated or pulverized cheese is coated with starch and cellulose to prevent it from sticking, while also preventing optimal melting of the meatballs while cooking!
- Age Composition: Milk and eggs. These 2 ingredients are important binding agents in meatballs and also add structure and stability.
- Spices: Fresh parsley, minced garlic, kosher salt and black pepper. I love using finely chopped parsley to add brightness and freshness to my meatballs. You can also use dried parsley flakes if you have them in your pantry!
Ingredients for the sauce
- Marinara sauce. The beauty of this recipe is that you can use a jar of gravy! Right now I love Rao’s or Carbone, but there are so many great options out there that you don’t have to worry too much about brands!
- Beef or broth. This serves two purposes in this recipe. This deepens the flavor of the sauce a bit, but also thins it out a bit. This is important because you boil the spaghetti until al dente and then cook it in the sauce. The spaghetti will continue to absorb more liquid as it cooks, preventing your cooked dish from drying out and making the perfect sauce!
- Mozzarella. After preparing the dish in a pan or casserole, you will fill the spaghetti and meatballs with extra cheese. You can use fresh grated mozzarella or even thinly sliced ​​fresh mozzarella pieces!
Recipe at a Glance
Be sure to read the full recipe card at the bottom of the post for all the details!
Tips on meatballs:
- use a cookie scoop cut the meatballs into pieces so that they are all the same size!
- Don’t pack your meatballs super tight. You want them to hold together when baking, but if you pack them too tightly, you’ll end up with very firm, dense meatballs instead of soft, tender meatballs!
Prepare the paste
Boil al dente pasta according to package directions and then drain well. Add the pasta back to the pot and toss with the sauce and stock. The heat from the pot will warm the sauce slightly. The sauce doesn’t need to be hot because you’re cooking this dish!
Collect
Add the coated pasta to a deep pan or casserole dish and sprinkle with grated mozzarella. Place the meatballs evenly inside the noodles and bake!
Spaghetti and Meatballs Recipe Shortcuts
- Prepare your meatballs a day in advance! The meatballs for this recipe are my perfect version Baked Meatballs Recipe with a few tweaks!
- Pre-made meatballs. If you don’t want to make your own meatballs, use pre-made meatballs! You can use frozen meatballs, but I would thaw them to use in this recipe. If you’re on a time crunch, it’s a time saver!
- Prepare your pasta ahead of time and cover with the sauce. You can do this a few hours in advance or even a day in advance. If you choose to make this a day ahead, use an extra cup of sauce because the noodles absorb the pasta as they sit in the refrigerator.
Make These Spaghetti and Meatballs Ahead
- Prepare the recipe according to the instructions. Use an additional cup of marinara sauce and 1/4 cup more broth with the pasta to take into account that the pasta absorbs the liquid and dries out.
- Cover and refrigerate or freeze until ready to cook!
- From the refrigerator to cook: Cover with foil and bake at 350° for 20 minutes. Uncover and bake an additional 10 minutes or until heated through.
- Frozen To Cook: Cover with foil and bake at 350° for 40 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until heated through.
How to jazz up spaghetti sauce?
Since you start with a jar of pre-made spaghetti sauce of your choice, you don’t need to do anything else! BUT if you want to make things a little more interesting, here are some ways to enhance your canned sauce:
- spices. The sky is the limit to what you can add here! Fresh basil, crushed red pepper flakes, oregano, and garlic powder are an easy starter to spice up the sauce!
- Caramelized onions. This is a trick I use a lot with this sauce. Chop the yellow onion and cook the onion in a little olive oil until golden. Add the sauce directly to the pan and cook together for about 10 minutes to add flavor!
- garlic. I mean, it goes without saying, right? You can chop fresh garlic cloves and mix them into the sauce for a great garlic clove. Or add garlic powder with other spices like I mentioned above!
- Heavy cream. What could be better than a creamy tomato sauce? An easy way to do this is heat your sauce on the stove top and add a few tablespoons or 1/2 cup of heavy cream depending on how creamy you want it to be! You can also add 4 ounces of cream cheese to the sauce and cook until melted and smooth. The cream cheese adds a delicious silky richness!
What to serve with spaghetti and meatballs
- my Stuffed Garlic Bread it’s the perfect side dish for pasta!
- Of course, a green salad or Caesar salad would be perfect with this recipe.
- Roasted green beans are another great option to serve with spaghetti and meatballs!
Storage
Store airtight in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
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Description
This easy spaghetti and meatball recipe is made in a skillet and cooks to perfection! An updated classic dinner recipe for the whole family!
- 1 lb. mixed meat (beef, pork, veal) *see note
- 1/2 cup unseasoned panko breadcrumbs
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, divided
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
- 1 clove garlic, chopped
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 8– ounce thin spaghetti
- 1 (24 oz.) jar marinara sauce
- 1/2 cup beef broth
- 1/2 cup grated mozzarella or thinly sliced ​​fresh mozzarella
- Optional garnish – chopped fresh parsley or chopped fresh basil
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly coat a rimmed baking sheet with nonstick spray, set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine breadcrumbs, meat, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, milk, egg, chopped parsley, garlic, salt and pepper. Shape the mixture into 12 equal sized patties.
- Place the meatballs in the prepared baking dish and bake for 25 minutes.
- Boil spaghetti al dente according to package directions. Drain the spaghetti and return it to the pot.
- Add the marinara sauce and stock to the pasta and cover.
- Transfer the spaghetti to a deep oven-safe bowl or baking dish. Sprinkle spaghetti with mozzarella. Place the meatballs inside the spaghetti. Place the pan back in the oven and bake for 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
- Remove the pan from the oven, garnish with the remaining Parmesan cheese and, if desired, chopped parsley or basil.
- Serve immediately.
Notes
*Instead of the meatball mixture, you can use ground beef, or even turkey or chicken. The leaner the meat you use, the drier the meatball may be. Do not use leaner than 93/7
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
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