Easy Turkey Meatballs Recipe in Tomato Basil Sauce
How to make tender ground turkey meatballs cooked in a quick and easy tomato basil sauce. Jump to the Turkey Meatballs Recipe or read on to see our tips for making them.
These tender turkey meatballs do not last long in our kitchen. The moment one of us turns away the other quickly steals a meatball, and before we know it, all that’s left is an empty pan.
These Easy Slow Cooker Chicken Meatballs with lean ground chicken, parmesan cheese, and a simple garlic and basil tomato sauce. Perfect for making in advance!
How to Make the Best Ground Turkey Meatballs in Tomato Sauce
You will love this easy recipe. There are no lengthy cooking times and no need to bake or sear the meatballs in advance. Instead, we make quick tomato basil sauce — similar to our marinara sauce. After bringing it to a simmer, we carefully drop the meatballs right into the sauce.
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To make the sauce, cook chopped garlic and crushed red pepper flakes in olive oil then add crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, and basil. Bring it to a simmer and allow it to reduce while you make the meatballs.
For the meatballs, we combine lean ground turkey with breadcrumbs, milk, egg, cheese, and herbs. After forming them into balls, we carefully drop them into the simmering sauce. Simple.
For the most tender and light meatballs (using ground turkey, chicken, or beef) you use a light touch when mixing and forming. To help with this, we have two tricks:
- First, combine all the ingredients before adding the ground meat. You’ll see that in our recipe we mix breadcrumbs, milk, an egg, and herbs first. That way, when we add the turkey meat, all we need to do is lightly mix. We do this when making chicken meatballs and even meatloaf.
- Second, these meatballs are pretty wet, so the mixture is a bit sticky when forming the balls. Be gentle when forming into meatballs then after placing them into the sauce, don’t move them for the first 10 minutes of cooking. Once they’ve cooked and firmed up a bit, you can stir as usual.
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Make Ahead Tips
Meatballs are the perfect make-ahead meal. Here are our tips for making them in advance:
- Make-ahead sauce: The tomato basil sauce can be made in advance and should last in your refrigerator up to three days and in your freezer for about 3 months. We recommend using freezer-safe glass containers, or double layers of freezer bags to store sauces. To thaw, just leave it overnight in the refrigerator.
- Make-ahead meatballs: Arrange shaped and uncooked meatballs in a dish or on a baking sheet, without touching. Cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day.
- Freezing uncooked meatballs: Prepare the recipe through the shaping step. Arrange them on a foil-lined baking sheet and freeze until solid. Place the frozen meatballs in a freezer container or freezer bag, and freeze for up to 1 month. Thaw meatballs in the refrigerator overnight before cooking.
- Freezing cooked meatballs: Let the cooked meatballs cool completely, then transfer to a freezer container or food-safe bag. Freeze for up to 1 month. Frozen meatballs can be thawed overnight or reheated directly from the freezer. Reheat them in a simmering sauce for 10 to 15 minutes or in a warm oven for 10 to 15 minutes.
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Recipe updated, originally posted January 2013. Since posting this in 2013, we have tweaked the recipe to be more clear. – Adam and Joanne
Easy Turkey Meatballs Recipe in Tomato Basil Sauce
- PREP
Easy turkey meatballs cooked in a simple tomato basil sauce. There’s no lengthy cooking times, no baking and no searing these meatballs. Instead they are simmered in a simple tomato basil sauce. Have a light touch when mixing and forming the meatballs. Also, when you add them to the sauce, be careful not to stir the sauce for about 10 minutes so the meatballs have a chance to firm up. Once they’ve cooked and firmed up a bit, you can stir normally. Serve these alone with a dollop of ricotta cheese, over spaghetti, or with rustic bread.
Makes 4 servings
You Will Need
Tomato Basil Sauce1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 (28-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
1 large basil sprig plus handful of torn basil leaves
Salt
Turkey Meatballs1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs or regular breadcrumbs
1/2 cup milk, we use reduced fat
1 large egg
1 1/2 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, coarsely grated (generous 1/2 cup)
1/4 cup fresh parsley leaves and tender stems, chopped
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 pound ground turkey (93% lean)
Directions
- Make Sauce
In a large skillet with sides and lid, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic, and red pepper flakes then cook 30 seconds to 1 minute until fragrant. Stir in the tomato paste and cook, stirring often, until the color turns from bright red to orange, about 2 minutes.
Pour in the crushed tomatoes and a generous pinch of salt. Bring to a simmer. Add the basil sprig then taste for seasoning. Adjust with additional salt if needed. Continue to simmer while you prepare the meatballs.
Stir breadcrumbs and milk in a large bowl, and then let sit 5 minutes. Add the egg, cheese, parsley, oregano, and the salt. Stir until well blended.
Add the ground turkey and use a fork or your fingers to gently mix everything until combined. For the most tender meatballs, try your best not to over mix.
Wet your hands, and then form the mixture into 1-inch balls. You should get about 24 meatballs.
Gently drop the meatballs into tomato sauce. (It’s okay if the sauce does not entirely cover some). Cover the skillet and cook 20 minutes. Gently shimmy the skillet to move the meatballs around a little and then cook another 5 to 10 minutes or until the meatballs are thoroughly cooked. Just before serving, scatter torn basil leaves over meatballs and sauce.
Adam and Joanne's Tips
- Storing leftover meatballs: Store leftover meatballs in a food-safe container in the refrigerator up to 1 week. Reheat over low heat in a saucepan or in the microwave.
- Make-ahead sauce: The tomato basil sauce can be made in advance and should last in your refrigerator up to 3 days and in your freezer for about three months. We recommend using freezer-safe glass containers, or double layers of freezer bags to store sauces. To thaw, leave it overnight in the refrigerator.
- Make-ahead meatballs: Arrange shaped and uncooked meatballs in a dish or on a baking sheet, without touching. Cover and refrigerate for up to 1 day.
- Freezing uncooked meatballs: Prepare the recipe through the shaping step. Arrange them on a foil-lined baking sheet and freeze until solid. Place the frozen meatballs in a freezer container or freezer bag, and freeze for up to 1 month. Thaw meatballs in the refrigerator overnight before cooking.
- Freezing cooked meatballs: Let the cooked meatballs cool completely, then transfer to a freezer container or food-safe bag. Freeze for up to 1 month. Frozen meatballs can be thawed overnight or reheated directly from the freezer. Reheat them in a simmering sauce for 10 to 15 minutes or in a warm oven for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Nutrition Facts: The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. We have used the USDA Supertracker recipe calculator to calculate approximate values.
If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #inspiredtaste — We love to see your creations on Instagram and Facebook! Find us: @inspiredtaste
Nutrition Per Serving: Serving Size 6 meatballs / Calories 354 / Protein 37 g / Carbohydrate 28 g / Dietary Fiber 9 g / Total Sugars 14 g / Total Fat 12 g / Saturated Fat 4 g / Cholesterol 114 mg
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I’m enjoying your recipes. Would you recommend using mushrooms in the meatball recipe as you do in meatloaf and burger recipes?
That would be excellent.
I tried this recipe tonight for dinner. The best turkey meatballs I have ever made. The sauce was delicious. The meatballs were the most tender and moist. Printed the recipe – it’s a keeper!
I have tried so many turkey meatball recipes. If it had flavor, it was dry. If it was moist, it was bland. I put most of them in the sauce but a few didn’t fit so, I put them in the air fryer and they was delicious and still moist!! This recipe is a keeper. Thank you!!
I think I have a new favourite meal. Wow, I’m just trying to cook at home more and helping my Wife with new recipes. I rather have this homemade than go out. Meatballs were impressive! Cooking them from raw in the sauce was the way to go. Unexpectedly had to serve it at last minute to our best friends (Italian). “You must have some Italian blood in you, these are so delicious!” Thanks guys, all your recipes have been a hit.
THese were super easy and even more delicious! We couldn’t stop ourselves from over-eating.
Made it yesterday night and it was very easy and good! I usually don’t care for meatballs but those are really moist and tasty!
I made it tonight for a larger dinner party so I tripled the recipe. Very moist indeed and dropping them into the sauce is brilliant. My meatballs were a little bland so I would add more seasoning next time. Perhaps some garlic salt, onion salt and black pepper. Great dish for a large dinner party.
These look delicious and easy! Any ideas what I can use instead of egg (hubby is allergic). Thanks!
Hi Rebecca, You might actually find that you can get away with just omitting the egg.
Love you’re receipes and videos….
AM I the only one who watches tons of these videos
And doesn’t make anything.I have lots of receipes, maybe I should get in the kitchen and start cooking.☺☺
These are just the BEST. I have never had turkey meatballs so moist and flavorful. They will always be a staple in this household! Just to note, the first night I made these I didn’t have any milk on hand, so I decided to use chicken broth. They turned out fantastic! I tried it with milk another time, and I actually thought they were a little too soggy, but still very good. I might try beef broth next time! Thank you so much for this recipe!!!
I’m making these tonight for my boyfriend and his daughter! I am super pumped! We are starting a once a month sunday italian pasta BIG sunday dinner. Your recipe will be the first of this tradition!! Any tips? I’m doubling the recipe..
I’d really like to make these but I can’t eat cheese. Any suggestions on what I could do instead or if I can just leave the cheese out?
Hi Shanelle, You can leave the cheese out. Happy cooking!
I already have a go-to turkey meatballs and spaghetti recipe but I was looking for something that cut out the searing step. I was excited to try this out tonight, and I loved it! My husband and toddler also gobbled this up. Definitely easy and will be in the dinner rotation from now on. I’ve really loved every recipe I’ve tried on this website!