I know it’s a bold claim to make, but this recipe for Italian Spaghetti and Meatballs is the BEST EVER. The homemade meatballs are moist and flavorful, with just a hint of spice. They’re coated in a simple tomato sauce that uses canned tomatoes but still tastes so fresh and delicious. When paired with perfectly al dente spaghetti, you’ve got yourself an Italian feast no restaurant can compete with!
“Absolutely the BEST spaghetti recipe ever. I never liked spaghetti. Now I will only eat it one way. THIS way!! So if I’m eating spaghetti, it’s because I made it with THIS recipe. I make it for friends and family as well.” – Jessica (So Much Food reader)
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The Only Spaghetti and Meatballs Recipe You’ll Make Again
While there are thousands of meatball recipes out there, I adapted this recipe from my dad’s and it’s truly special.
This is not a copy-and-paste recipe that looks like everyone else’s. Yes, there’s homemade tomato sauce + meatballs + spaghetti noodles. But the similarities end there, because my recipe uses all of my go-to tips and tricks that I’ve picked from working in restaurant kitchens over the years.
This is real spaghetti and meatballs like the kind you get at a fine dining Italian restaurant. I don’t use the term “best ever” lightly — but this is the only recipe for spaghetti and meatballs you’ll catch me making for my friends and family, and I bet you’ll follow suit once you make this dish too!
My Secrets to Making the World’s Best Meatballs
- Use Italian sausage instead of ground pork. Typically homemade meatballs are made with a mix of beef and pork, but these go a step further by incorporating hot Italian sausage. The sausage adds tons of flavor, a little bit of heat, and they provide the necessary fat content to keep your meatballs from drying out.
- Use fresh breadcrumbs, not canned. Using fresh bread crumbs or torn bread instead of canned breadcrumbs is key! Fresh bread soaks up the milk and egg better and keeps the meatballs tender.
- Grate your onion, don’t dice it. This adds a bit of extra moisture and flavor so that these classic Itaian meatballs have the perfect texture.
- Broil, don’t sear the meatballs. I’ve saved the best for last! You don’t have to sear these meatballs in a skillet, which takes forever and makes a big mess. Instead, we’re broiling the meatballs before simmering them in the sauce. Easy!
Helpful Cooking Tools
Key Recipe Ingredients
- Pasta. While the classic is obviously spaghetti, you can serve meatballs and sauce with any pasta that you have on hand! Some of my favorites to swap in are bucatini, penne, rigatoni, and cavatappi.
- Ground Meat. I opt for ground sirloin and hot Italian sausage, but you can swap in your favorite meats.
- Onions and Garlic. Onions and garlic are the base to all the best food! Grate your onion for the meatballs, dice the onion for the sauce.
- Fresh breadcrumbs. I make fresh breadcrumbs by throwing some torn bread in the food processor until they’re fine crumbs. They’re so much better than breadcrumbs from a can!
- Parmesan cheese. Parmesan cheese in the meatballs acts as a bit of a binder and I always top my spaghetti and meatballs with extra parm. Grate a block of Parm yourself rather than use the kind in the shaker can; the flavor and texture will both be so much better if you do this.
- Egg. One lightly beaten egg binds the meatballs together.
- Half and half. I soak the bread crumbs in half and half before mixing everything together. You can swap milk in if that’s what you have.
- Canned tomatoes. The sauce is best with both crushed tomatoes and tomato puree (tomato passata if you can find it!).
- Fresh basil. Optional, but some fresh torn basil leaves take the sauce to the next level.
How to Make Classic Italian Spaghetti and Meatballs
Jenny’s tip: I often double the recipe for the meatballs and freeze the extras so that I always have an easy dinner ready to go.
- Make the meatballs. For super moist and tender meatballs, you want to let the fresh breadcrumbs sit in the half and half and beaten egg for 5 minutes before mixing in the remaining ingredients (I use my hands so that I don’t overwork the meat mixture). This plumps up the breadcrumbs and makes them blend seamlessly into the meat mixture.
- Shape and broil. I use a large (1/4 cup) cookie scoop to portion the meatballs so they all cook evenly. Then, I broil them for 10-12 minutes until they’re browned a bit before adding them to the sauce. Speaking of …
- Make the spaghetti sauce. My simple recipe starts with two kinds of canned tomatoes, and the sauce gets simmered for roughly 45 minutes with the broiled meatballs. The simmering finishes cooking the meatballs and removes any excess liquid from the sauce so it turns out thick and perfectly balanced in flavor.
- Bring it all together. For the best spaghetti and meatballs, I strongly suggest salting your pasta water so the spaghetti itself has some flavor to it. This recipe makes enough meatballs and sauce for a full pound of pasta.
Jenny’s Tip: This Doubles as a Freezer Meal!
You can make this a freezer-friendly meal so easily! If you want to just freeze the meatballs, follow the instructions through broiling them. Let them cool to room temperature and then transfer them to a fresh sheet tray lined with parchment. Freeze them in a single layer, and after about an hour you can transfer them to a zip-top freezer bag or airtight container.
I usually freeze the meatballs and sauce separately in case I want to dress the meatballs in a different sauce, but you can also freeze them together. If you froze your meatballs separately, you can drop them into sauce or soup frozen, no defrosting necessary!
Side Dishes We Love for Spaghetti and Meatballs
- Little Gem Caesar Salad or Italian Chopped Salad
- Grilled Lemon Parm Asparagus
- Garlic Almond Green Beans
- Brioche Dinner Rolls
- Burrata Tomato Salad
If you do give this recipe a try, I love hearing about it! Leave a comment with a star rating below. Be sure to subscribe to my weekly newsletter and never miss a new recipe! You can also snap a photo & tag @JENNYGOYCOCHEA on Instagram.
More Easy Pasta Dinners to Try
- Pasta alla Vodka
- Truffle Mushroom Pasta
- Creamy Sausage and Tomato Pasta
- Pasta alla Genovese
- Pasta Bolognese
- Braised Beef Ragu
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Classic Spaghetti and Meatballs Recipe
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 1 cup fresh breadcrumbs*
- 1/3 cup half & half
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1/2 yellow onion, grated
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 1/2 lbs. ground sirloin (90/10)
- 1 lb. hot Italian sausage, removed from the casings
- 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan
- 3 tablespoons minced fresh basil
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
Sauce
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 yellow onion, finely diced
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 15 oz. can crushed tomatoes
- 12 oz. can tomato puree (tomato passata is best if you can find it!)
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- Kosher salt, to taste
- Freshly ground pepper, to taste
- Fresh basil leaves, torn
- 16 oz. Spaghetti, cooked to al dente
Instructions
Meatballs
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, half & half, and egg and mix to combine. Sit for 5 minutes. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well by hand. Using a 1/4 cup scoop, portion the mixture and roll into balls. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Set an oven broiler to high and arrange the top rack to be in the middle of the oven. Broil for 10-12 minutes, until the tops are browned. At this point, you can cool and freeze the meatballs, or transfer to the sauce to simmer.
Sauce
- In a large skillet, braiser, or a dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring often, until the onions are soft. Add the crushed red pepper and cook for one minute more. Then, add the crushed tomatoes, tomato puree, and sugar. Bring to a light simmer and add the basil leaves. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add the meatballs in a single layer and toss to coat with the sauce. Cover, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 45 minutes. Taste the sauce for seasoning and season as necessary. Toss with spaghetti and serve topped with more fresh basil and parmesan.
Notes
Nutrition
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Rate & Review This Recipe
If you’re looking to break keto or just carb load, look no further!! Spaghetti and meatballs is a “must know” staple and this recipe is super easy to follow and execute.
Meatball: if you are mixing this by hand, make sure you stretch your fingers and forearms because it is a workout. Otherwise, I tasted the meatball after broiling… awesome…. Tasted the meatball after simmering in sauce for 45 mins…. Fantastic!
Sauce: this part was easy but I believe very crucial!!! This was also my kids and wife favorite part of the dish (super tasty). I highly recommend you top this off with grated parm cheese vs kraft parm cheese… such a game changer!!! Enjoyed this one, will most definitely re-visit this =]
I haven’t had meatballs taste this good before. Shaving the onion really is a game changer. I’m going to memorize this recipe. It’s amazing!
This recipe sounds delicious, but half and half? You lost me there. What is half and half? I’m keen to try out this recipe but need your help with half and half? Thanks
Half & half is equal parts heavy cream and whole milk. You can find it in the dairy section of most grocery stores. You could also swap in just whole milk or just heavy cream depending on your preferences. Hope that helps!
Omg best meatballs ever! Love the heat on the sausage and fresh bread crumbs. My family devoured it and they are picky.
So happy you loved them! This is a definite favorite in our household.
This was THE BEST RECIPE I’ve cooked in a long time. I’m one who takes time to read the entire article to ensure the best outcome, and when I tell you every word written was correctly! Baby this meal was immaculate!! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe!!
Thank you so much for your kind words! Can’t tell you how much it means that you loved the recipe so much!
Absolutely the BEST spaghetti recipe ever. I never liked spaghetti. Now I will only eat it one way. THIS way!! So if I’m eating spaghetti, it’s because I made it with THIS recipe. I make it for friends and family as well.
We are not really spaghetti people, but I felt like changing it up, and it did not disappoint! I used lean ground beef, and wagyu ground beef since my family doesn’t love pork, and the meatballs turned out awesome. The sauce tasted great as well much better than premade sauce, however, if you have anyone who likes it saucy, you may run out so I think it could handle a bit more sauce to match the amount of meatballs. Will definitely mak again!