Total Time
1 hour
When I hear spaghetti and meatballs, I envision a lengthy (but rewarding) process of tending to both the meat and simmering sauce on the stovetop. But when a craving for this beloved Italian American classic hits on a weekday, I want it NOW, please and thank you. And thus, the creation of this weeknight-friendly version, entirely doable in just an hour. (Watch my development process—and all 65 attempts at nailing the meatballs—here.)
On its surface, spaghetti and meatballs seems like a pretty straightforward dish—and it largely is. You have three parts to contend with: the meatballs, the sauce, and the pasta. The real star, for me, is the meatball component, which requires some love and attention in order to avoid the dreaded dried-out-puck fate.
My ideal meatball is one that is fork—no, spoon!—tender. Many traditional meatball recipes include a trio of beef, pork, and veal to achieve this optimal texture; my aim was to pare this down to the more widely available (and affordable) beef and pork. A panade, a mixture of starch and liquid, is often added to meatballs for moisture; breadcrumbs (homemade or store-bought) or even Japanese panko can be used, but I opted for good old-fashioned Italian-style seasoned breadcrumbs, which produce a consistent texture and, of course, contribute built-in flavor. Additionally, I borrowed from the Korean playbook and include some grated onion and a touch of soy sauce for added umami. Whatever you do, use a light hand and DO NOT OVERMIX the mixture if you want tender meatballs. As for cooking the meatballs, I skipped the time-consuming oven and relied on the broiler to develop a bit of a crust, before finishing off the meatballs in the sauce.
The tomato sauce is a supporting cast member here. I kept it simple with a marinara made from tomato passata, which always tastes brighter and fresher to me than tinned, though you certainly can use your preferred canned tomato purée, crushed tomato product, or even your favorite prepared bottled marinara (I always keep a jar of Rao’s nearby for just this reason). Feel free to add aromatics like basil, oregano, or thyme if you desire. I opted to keep the marinara canvas minimal here.
Lastly, don’t forget to reserve some pasta cooking water (always!) to loosen the sauce. Unlike the emoji plate of spaghetti, it’s always nice to coat the noodles in a bit of the sauce before plating up; there’s plenty of sauce here to allow you to do this.
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What you’ll need
Dutch Oven
$133 $80 At Amazon
Ice Cream Scoop
$15 At Amazon
Wooden Spoon
$7 At Amazon
Rubber Spatula
$13 At Amazon
Rimmed Baking Sheet
$26 At Amazon
Large Pot
$55 $48 At Amazon
Box Grater
$12 At Amazon
Ingredients
4–6 servings
¼
5
4
2
1
½
1
⅓
¼
2
¼
½
1
8
1
Preparation
Step 1
Heat ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil in a medium Dutch oven or heavy pot over medium. Add 5 garlic cloves, sliced; season with kosher salt. Cook, stirring, until fragrant (don’t let garlic brown), about 30 seconds. Add two 24.5-oz. bottles tomato passata. Add ½ cup water to one of the bottles, swirl around, and pour into pot. Give sauce a good stir and bring to a vigorous simmer. Reduce heat to low, partially cover, and simmer gently until sauce is slightly thickened, 15–20 minutes. Cover and keep warm.
Step 2
While the sauce is simmering, mix 1 cup whole milk and ½ cup seasoned Italian breadcrumbs in a medium bowl with a rubber spatula; let panade sit 10 minutes.
Step 3
Mix 1 large egg, ¹⁄3cup grated Parmesan, ¼ cup finely chopped parsley, 2 tsp. soy sauce, ½ tsp. Diamond Crystal or ¼ tsp. Morton kosher salt, and ¼ tsp. freshly ground pepper in another medium bowl. Working over a large plate, grate ½ medium onion on the large holes of a box grater (you should have a generous ¼ cup). Mix grated onion and any onion juice from plate into egg mixture. Add panade and mix well.
Step 4
Using a rubber spatula, gently mix 1 lb. ground beef, 8 oz. ground pork, and 1½ tsp. Diamond Crystal or 1 tsp. Morton kosher salt in a large bowl. Gently mix in egg mixture until incorporated; do not overwork. Using a #20 ice cream scoop (about 3 Tbsp.), portion out meatballs (you should have about 16) and place on an oiled rimmed baking sheet. Using oiled hands and working one at a time, pass meatballs back and forth between each hand (like a pitcher throwing a ball into his mitt, but lightly!) 5 or 6 times to remove excess air. The resulting balls should be smooth and shiny. Arrange meatballs in a 4x4 grid on baking sheet.
Step 5
Heat broiler. Broil meatballs just until golden brown on top, about 3 minutes (don’t be tempted to cook them longer; meatballs will finish cooking in sauce). Stir 2 tsp. Diamond Crystal or 1¼ tsp. Morton kosher salt into tomato sauce. Transfer meatballs and any juices to sauce, making sure meatballs are mostly submerged. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook just until meatballs are cooked through, 7–9 minutes. Taste and season with more salt and/or pepper if needed.
Step 6
Meanwhile, cook 1 lb. spaghetti in a large pot of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally, until al dente. Drain, reserving 1 cup pasta cooking liquid. Return pasta to pot.
Step 7
Add a few ladlefuls of sauce to pasta; toss to combine. Tossing vigorously, add pasta cooking liquid a splash at a time until pasta is glossy and coated.
Step 8
Divide pasta among shallow bowls. Top with meatballs and sauce. Scatter more parsley and Parmesan over.
How would you rate Spaghetti and Verrry Tender Meatballs?
Leave a Review
Reviews (13)
Back to TopThe meatballs were excellent - after reading others' comments, and knowing I prefer a slightly firmer meatball, I reduced the amount of milk to 2/3 cup for the panade. Came out just as I like them, the flavor was stellar. The sauce was a bit plain, and you really need a bite of meatball to keep the dish interesting.
Matthew
IL
9/9/2023
Really good meatballs. I read Judy's response and I decided to put mine in the air fryer. They came out great! I used my air fryer at 400, for around 10-12 min total, turning halfway through.
Pat
Ypsilanti, MI
8/21/2023
Made meatballs exactly according to recipe and cooked in air fryer at 400 until they reached 160F (shaking half way through) around 10-12 min total. Best meatballs ever!
Jody
8/15/2023
If the objective was "tender", and it was, these are certainly that. Not necessarily to everyone's taste, but that's personal. If grandma made tough meatballs, then tough it was.. Having been married to a 100% Italian/American for 50 years, I didn't dare utter a word of criticism of grandma's recipe. We already had plenty to argue about, and this is not worth dying over. That said, I'd be very happy with these meatballs for the rest of my life. Fantastic flavor and great texture. Neither of my grandmas had a clue what an Italian/American meatball was supposed to be. (One couldn't cook to save her life, and other was strictly kosher.) These have it all over my wife's rather unsophisticated (boring) version. I rate these as my all-time favorite meatballs. I do like some torn, fresh basil leaves added at the very end, if they're available.
StuKin
CT
7/29/2023
Delicious recipe. Only changes were I used 1.5 jars marinara, stewed it with fresh basil and left the meatballs in way more than 3 mins under broil. I waited until I saw a little crust on top, then added them to the sauce. Used bucatini and came out tasting incredible
Anonymous
Chicago
7/26/2023
Great tips for making meatballs tender and moist, such as making the panade , the fat % of the beef, mixing w pork, grating onion, handling & shaping them, which is key, broiling them (I would bake them hot, and turn them- but as per recipe, just to brown, finish cooking in sauce). The cook should know it’s their own judgement call on the amount of salt and other seasonings (I just have to add a kick of heat! Red pepper flakes, maybe dried herbs) and don’t criticize the recipe if you add too much or too little! That’s cook’s choice! Well done for a nice weeknight dinner!
JeanBean
San Jose Ca
6/25/2023
Cut back some on the salt; used a little less garlic and soaked panko in chicken broth, because it’s what I had on hand; otherwise made as written. Delish!!!
KW
CA
6/25/2023
Good flavor, but I didn't care for the texture of the meatballs. You may call them "tender"; I call them mushy.
William Wroblicka
Northampton, MA
6/22/2023
this recipe is wildly delicious perfect as written.
TG
Los Angeles
6/22/2023