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no fuss homemade meatballs
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5 from 1 vote

Garden Herb Meatballs

Author: D. Durand Worthey

Ingredients

  • * 2 pounds 80/20 ground beef
  • * 1 pound ground pork
  • * 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • * 2 tablespoons extra olive oil + 1/3 cup of olive oil for frying the meatballs
  • * 1 small yellow onion diced
  • * 1/4 cup carrots coarsely chopped
  • * 1/3 cup celery coarsely chopped
  • * 3 large cloves of garlic coarsely minced
  • * 3 large eggs + 1 egg yolk
  • * 2 tablespoons McCormick Garlic Herb Black Pepper & Sea Salt all-purpose seasoning
  • * 2 tablespoons fresh oregano leaves
  • * 2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
  • * 2 tablespoon fresh sweet basil chopped
  • * 1 teaspoon of freshly cracked black peppercorns
  • * 1/2 cup arugula or parsley roughly chopped
  • * 2 1/2 cups Panko breadcrumbs

Instructions

  • Place a medium skillet over med-high heat and add two tablespoons of olive oil; when the oil is hot, add the diced yellow onion, coarsely chopped carrots, celery, and minced garlic. Sauté the mixture until the onions are soft, should take about five minutes. Spoon the mixture into a small bowl and set aside. Wipe the skillet clean in preparation for browning the meatballs.
  • In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, ground pork, and grated Parmesan cheese. Mix until the ground meat and grated cheese in evenly mixed.
  • Add the sautéed onion, carrots, celery, and garlic mix, along with McCormick Garlic Herb, Black Pepper & Sea Salt all-purpose seasoning, fresh oregano, fresh thyme, fresh sweet basil, freshly cracked black peppercorns, and chopped arugula or parsley. Gently fold the ingredients until they are evenly mixed.
  • Crack three whole eggs into a bowl, along with one additional egg yolk. Using a fork, scramble the eggs, before adding the eggs to the mixture, add the Panko breadcrumbs, then pour the eggs over the meat mixture, mix until the eggs and breadcrumbs are evenly mixed throughout, do not overmix the ingredients.
  • Form make golfball size balls. Remember, when making meatballs, form each meatball gently in the palm of your hand and shape into a ball. Packing the meatballs with a lot of force will result in tough meatballs.
  • Brown the meatballs in batches. Place the skillet over med-high heat and add the 1/3 cup of olive oil; when the oil is hot, add 8-10 meatballs, using a pair of tongs to move the meatballs around carefully until they are browned evenly. Don't worry about the meatballs not being cooked all the way through because the meatballs will finish cooking in the tomato sauce.
  • After all of the meatballs are browned, place them in the tomato sauce and cook in a 400 degree preheated oven for 25 minutes.
  • Serve meatballs with your favorite pasta or make a meatball sub sandwich.