Italian meatballs are so versatile as they can be used in so many dishes. They can be placed in sauces, soups, or even enjoyed on their own. You can also make them in different sizes depending on what dish you are preparing. For instance, you can make tiny meatballs for a lasagna, or make large meatballs for a pot of Italian spaghetti & meatballs.

When I make Italian spaghetti & meatballs, I like to cook the raw meatballs in the sauce while it’s simmering. In my opinion letting the meatballs cook in the sauce rather than pre-cooking them gives the sauce and the meatballs so much more flavor. Of course, you can also bake or pan fry them before adding them to your sauce if you prefer.

Another way to add a lot of flavor to meatballs is by doing a mixture of ground meats. Ground pork and veal are very popular meat options when making meatballs as they provide a lot of flavor. I like to incorporate some lean ground meat as well to offset some of the fat, so I will usually add lean ground beef or deer.

For this recipe I used 1 pound of ground pork and 1 pound of ground deer. After all the ingredients are mixed, I weigh 1 oz. of meat and roll into a meatball. I find the 1 oz. size is the perfect size for just about any dish and it yields about 42 meatballs in total.

How to Freeze, Store, and Defrost Meatballs

When making a large batch of meatballs, I like to freeze one half of the batch to cook for later. To store frozen meatballs I like to freeze the meatballs first, and then vacuum seal them afterwards. If you vacuum seal them beforehand, they tend to get mashed together.

When you defrost them be sure to take them out of the vacuum sealed package before they defrost otherwise, they will likely get mushed together while defrosting. I usually take them out of the package while still frozen and lay them on a plate or baking sheet and then cover them with plastic wrap while they defrost in the refrigerator overnight.

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Let’s get started! Here’s what you’ll need…

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 small onion, chopped
• 2 tsp. garlic, minced
• 1 slice of bread
• 2 tbsp. milk
• 2 lbs. ground meat
• ½ cup parmesan cheese, shredded
• ½ cup fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 cup Italian style bread crumbs
• 2 eggs
• ½ tbsp. Cajun seasoning

Instructions:

1. In a medium skillet, sauté onion and garlic in olive oil over medium heat for 5 minutes, or until soft. Set aside.

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2. Dip the bread slice in milk to soak and then break apart. Set aside.

3. In a large mixing bowl add ground meat, cheese, parsley, bread crumbs, eggs, Cajun seasoning, sautéed onion & garlic, and soaked bread pieces.

4. Mix all together until well combined.

5. With wet hands roll into balls weighing 1 oz. each, pinching any openings closed.

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6. Bake (in a 400-degree F oven for 15-20 minutes), pan fry, or add to any sauce. Enjoy!