Ready for the easiest gluten-free baked meatballs? No pan-frying, one bowl, and travel-inspired!
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About This Gluten-Free Baked Meatball Recipe
Fair warning friends: these meatballs aren't served with tomato sauce and spaghetti. I mean, you totally CAN (and I do in this recipe here), but these meatballs are traditionally enjoyed, without it!
Meatballs, called polpette in Italian, are usually served without spaghetti. Spaghetti and meatballs is more of an Italian-American dish. In Genoa, Italy last year, Dylan and I visited a restaurant called Settepolpette, which means "Seven Meatballs". Almost all of the dishes were meatballs made with different meats, proteins, and fillings - and most of them were gluten-free. For side dishes, we had potatoes and vegetables.
That's exactly how we choose to enjoy meatballs here at home- with plenty of vegetables on the side, and often rice or potatoes. We save the pasta for another night, to have with turkey bolognese, pesto even sun-dried tomatoes.
Ingredients You Will Need For Meatballs
-Lean Ground Beef
-Gluten-Free Breadcrumbs (See below for my recommendations)
-Parmesan Cheese (Freshly Grated)
-Spices: Garlic & Onion Powder, Italian Seasoning
-Your Favorite Tomato Sauce (jarred, or homemad
-Kosher Salt & Black Pepper
-2 Eggs
-Olive oil, to coat your hands
Gluten-Free Breadcrumbs For Meatballs
For gluten-free breadcrumbs, I recommend Aleia's or 4C. Both work well in this recipe. I have also used them in gluten-free meatloaf and gluten-free macaroni and cheese.
How To Make Gluten-Free Meatballs
These gluten-free meatballs are baked, not pan-fried. Making them is easy enough because the most work you'll do is assembling them! First, you'll want to line your baking sheet (make sure it has sides, in case the fat drips) with parchment or a silicone baking mat.
Then, all you need to do is combine all of the ingredients in one bowl and roll the meat into balls. Finally, you bake them for about 20 minutes until nice and crispy.
The trick is to make sure your hands are coated in olive oil as you form the meatballs to make sure they stay moist, and don't dry out!
Tools For Making Gluten-Free Baked Meatballs
Baking Sheets: I recommend these from Nordic Ware.
Silicone Mats: Not required, but helpful and less wasteful than using parchment paper. I use SilPat because they last forever!
Notes About This Meatball Recipe
This recipe has been adapted from The Slow Roasted Italian. I've made it many times over the years and have since adapted it to double the number of meatballs, use gluten-free breadcrumbs, and adjusted the amount of sauce as well for moisture.
Looking for more gluten-free recipes inspired by travel?
This is the pad thai I learned to make right in Thailand, with a homemade sauce too!
These gluten-free empanadas have a homemade pastry filled with beef, cheese, and onion.
Butter chicken is both gluten and dairy-free, and goes perfectly with a slice of gluten-free naan.
Looking for another tasty dinner recipe? Try lomo saltado, a Peruvian stir fry!
Check out over 100+ gluten-free recipes on the blog right here.
Here's how to make these gluten-free baked meatballs!
If you love this recipe, please leave a comment! Thank you so much!
Gluten-Free Meatballs Recipe
Gluten-Free Baked Meatballs
Recipe Adapted From The Slow Roasted Italian
Ingredients
- 2 pounds lean ground beef, or meatloaf mix (make sure if you use beef only, it is lean, so there is less fat)
- 1 cup gluten-free breadcrumbs
- ½ cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese (don't use the bagged kind)
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 5-6 Tablespoons prepared tomato sauce (jarred, or homemade)
- 2 tablespoons dried Italian seasoning
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt (or 1 teaspoon if you prefer more)
- ½ teaspoon of black pepper
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten together
- olive oil, to coat your hands
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Line 2 jelly-roll pans or baking sheets (with sides!) with parchment paper. Make sure whatever you place the meatballs on to cook has sides, so they don't drip over the side!
In a large mixing bowl, combine all of the ingredients together. If meatballs seem dry, add another tablespoon of tomato sauce. Be careful not to overmix.
Using an ice cream scoop, divide the meat into portions and place on the baking sheet. Then, coat your hands in olive oil, and roll each portion into a meatball. Place on the baking sheet with some space in between each one.
Bake for 20-22 minutes, until the meatballs are browned. Feel free to leave in for a full 25 minutes total if you like them extra crispy. Serve warm.
Notes
Storage
Store meatballs in the refrigerator. You can also freeze them raw (keep them on baking sheet to make sure they don't stick together) or once they are baked - just make sure they come to room temperature first before placing in the freezer.
Nutrition Information
Yield 10 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 339Total Fat 17gSaturated Fat 6gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 8gCholesterol 135mgSodium 550mgCarbohydrates 12gFiber 1gSugar 2gProtein 33g
The nutrition information on each recipe card is provided as a courtesy and for your convenience. The data is calculated by Nutritionix. You are encouraged to make your own calculations based on your ingredients and preferred nutritional facts calculator. While I try to make sure they are accurate, I cannot guarantee the accuracy of these calculations.
Do you like meatballs?
What's your favorite kind?
Tell me in the comments below!
James D says
My favorite on a cooler night. Good luck not eating them all at once..
Jennifer Fitzpatrick says
Thank you, James 🙂
Diane Schwarz says
Thanks, Jen!
I am making these today!
LM
Jennifer Fitzpatrick says
Love you! Thanks Mom!