Straightforward Air Fryer Meatballs Recipe

You’ll Want These Substances

Scroll all the way down to the recipe card for the total, printable elements checklist, quantities, and step-by-step directions.

• Floor Beef and Pork – I like to make use of a mix of lean floor beef and floor pork in my meatballs, for taste and juiciness. It’s also possible to make turkey or hen meatballs within the air fryer as a leaner protein choice.
• Milk – Just like how milk can tenderize the bottom beef in Bolognese recipes, a splash of complete milk (or 2%) makes the meatball combination moist and tender.
• Egg – A flippantly crushed egg helps bind the meatball elements.
• Parmesan Cheese – Whereas I like to recommend freshly grated Parmesan, pre-grated will work right here, too. Pecorino Romano and Grana Padano cheese are good alternate options.
• Breadcrumbs – Together with the egg, breadcrumbs act as a binder for the meatball elements. In the event you don’t have breadcrumbs, you can also make them! Reduce bread into cubes to dry out within the toaster or oven. Then, blitz the bread within the blender or meals processor to make high quality crumbs.
• Herbs and Seasonings – I take advantage of freshly minced garlic, Italian seasoning, onion powder, salt, and pepper. You may substitute Italian seasoning with particular person dried herbs like thyme, basil, and oregano.

The right way to Make Air Fryer Meatballs

Right here’s how one can make the perfect air fryer meatballs, step-by-step, in underneath 20 minutes. What I really like most about this recipe is how shortly the combination comes collectively, and chilling the meatballs is optionally available, which is a significant time saver on weeknights.

Mixing the Meatball Combination

Crucial piece of recommendation I’ve right here is, don’t overmix! Overmixing yields dense, robust meatballs. I like to mix the bottom meat and seasonings and produce the meatball combination collectively by hand. In any other case, gently fold the elements collectively utilizing a picket spatula or spoon. This retains the meatballs juicy.

• Mix the elements. Add your meatball elements to a big bowl and blend nicely. Use a lightweight contact and blend simply till the elements are evenly mixed. You may put together your meat combination a day or two upfront and maintain it lined within the fridge till you’re able to roll and bake the meatballs.

Form and Prepare dinner the Meatballs

Now, comply with these steps to portion the combination into balls utilizing a cookie scoop:

• Form the meatballs. I discover the perfect dimension for air fryer meatballs is 1 ½ inches. Scoop and roll the meat combination onto a baking sheet for now. At this level, you possibly can prepare dinner your meatballs instantly, or chill them within the fridge for 15-Half-hour. Chilling helps the meatballs maintain their form and makes them a bit simpler to deal with, however it’s not 100% vital.
• Prepare dinner. Prepare the meatballs contained in the air fryer basket. Don’t overcrowd the air fryer, or the meatballs will steam as an alternative of crisp (you might have to prepare dinner in batches). Then, prepare dinner at 380ºF for 10-12 minutes, flipping the meatballs midway by. Do an inner temperature verify on the finish of cooking to make sure your meatballs have reached 165ºF.
• Get pleasure from! In the event you’re serving your air fryer meatballs with sauce, you possibly can add them to the sauce instantly. In any other case, I recommend letting the meatballs relaxation for five minutes earlier than serving.

Serving Strategies for Air Fryer Meatballs

• Spaghetti and meatballs. A traditional! As talked about, serve air fryer meatballs with marinara sauce (or your favourite tomato sauce) over an enormous bowl of pasta.
• As an appetizer. These meatballs make a tasty appetizer with dipping sauces like honey mustard, do-it-yourself BBQ sauce, or the candy chili sauce from these bang bang meatballs.
• Subs and sandwiches. Tuck these meatballs inside a hoagie bun for meatball subs or in between Hawaiian rolls or dinner rolls for sliders.
• Meal prep. Divvy the air fryer meatballs into meal prep containers with rice, zucchini noodles, or roasted greens for straightforward on-the-go meals through the week.

Meatball Variations

I really like serving these Italian-style air fryer meatballs over spaghetti with marinara sauce. That being mentioned, they’re an amazing clean canvas, and these are another enjoyable variations you possibly can attempt:

• Asian air fryer meatballs. Coat these meatballs with teriyaki glaze or borrow the sweet-tangy-spicy sauce from my sesame meatballs recipe.
• Swedish meatballs. Make simple Swedish meatballs within the air fryer and add chopped yellow onion, allspice, and nutmeg to the meat combination. Afterward, serve them with creamy beef gravy.
• Spicy air fryer meatballs. Add chili flakes to the meatball combination or use the smoky chili sauce from my Chipotle meatballs recipe.

Continuously Requested Questions

Storing and Reheating Leftovers

• Refrigerate leftovers. Retailer the cooked meatballs with or with out sauce in an hermetic container. Leftovers final within the fridge for as much as 4 days.
• Reheat. In case your meatballs don’t have sauce, you possibly can return them to the air fryer at 350ºF for a couple of minutes to reheat. In any other case, use the range or the microwave.
• Freeze. Freeze the meatballs on a baking sheet first, then switch them to an hermetic container or resealable bag. Freeze for as much as 2 months. You may reheat the meatballs from frozen or thaw them within the fridge first.