Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs are cheesy, melty Italian meatballs perfect for appetizers or topping your favorite Italian main dish.
Fresh-made Italian Meatballs are one of the easiest and most versatile Appetizer Recipes. You can serve them on their own, add different sauces to easily change the flavor, or add them to your favorite dish to make them into a meal.
Sabrina’a Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs Recipe
If you are a lover of cheese (as many readers on this site are), then you are going to really enjoy these Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs. These easy, tasty morsels are packed with melty, cheesy, Italian seasoning in every bite. They are a dream for Italian food lovers, and will be so impressive to your guests.
Recipe Card
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef , 80/20
- 1/2 onion , finely chopped
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup Panko bread crumbs
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese , freshly grated
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley , chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil , or 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 2 teaspoons coarse ground black pepper
- 3/4 pound mozzarella cheese
- Butter or oil , for cooking
- Marinara Sauce , for serving
Instructions
- Cut mozzarella into 24 small squares, set aside.
- Mix together beef, onion, egg, Panko bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, parsley, basil, and pepper until just combined.
- Divide meat into 24 even pieces.
- Wrap each piece around a piece of cheese.
- Roll into a ball, ensuring all of the cheese is completely covered by the beef mixture.
- For best results, freeze for at least 1 hour.
- Cook in batches in a skillet with 2 tablespoons butter for 5-7 minutes.
- Remove the meatballs from the pan and serve with marinara sauce.
Nutrition
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Table of contents
About this Recipe
While frozen meatballs are great for recipes like cocktail meatballs, there is nothing quite like a homemade fresh Meatball. Not only do you get to control the quality of ingredients going into them, you can also make them exactly how you like.
Can this be made ahead of time?
It is a popular idea to make a double batch of these meatballs and freeze some for later. Assemble the meatballs as usual but don’t bake. Flash-freeze them by placing them on a baking sheet in the freezer for about an hour. Then transfer your meatballs to an air-tight freezer bag and store them for up to 2 months before baking.
Serving Ideas
- In this recipe, the meatballs are topped with easy marinara sauce, but you can use a jar of your favorite pasta sauce or even a basil pesto.
- Serve these meatballs at your next potluck. Keep them warm in a slow cooker with sauce and guests will keep coming back for more.
- Serve the meatballs on an appetizer platter with sauce on the side, or spoon a small amount of sauce on each one. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and fresh chopped parsley for a beautiful presentation.
- Take this tasty appetizer from starter to dinner easily. Use your meatballs to top off your favorite pasta dish, or in baked Italian recipes like Baked Spaghetti casserole.
Mozzarella Stuffed Meatball Sub
Preheat oven on broil. Brush a hoagie roll with a mixture of melted butter, garlic powder, and fresh parsley. Toast bread under the broiler until golden brown. Place 3-4 stuffed meatballs into the toasted hoagie roll. Top with a generous spoonful of warm marinara sauce and 2 deli slices of Provolone cheese. Pop under the broiler for a few more minutes until the cheese is melty.
How to Store
- Serve: Your meatballs can be kept at room temperature for no more than 2 hours before they should be properly stored.
- Store: Keep your meatballs in a zipped storage bag or air-tight container for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.
- Freeze: Allow your meatballs to cool completely before storing them in a freezer bag for up to 2 months.
Slow Cooker Method
- Prep: Add 2-3 cups marinara sauce to the slow cooker and set on high while you are making meatballs.
- Mix: Combine all meatball ingredients except the mozzarella in a large bowl. Using your hands, mix until fully combined.
- Stuff: Take a golf-ball sized piece of the ground beef mixture and place a piece of mozzarella in the middle. Press meat around the piece of cheese, fully enclosing it.
- Cook: Place meatballs in the Crockpot and submerge in sauce. Cover and cook on high for 2 – 2 ½ hours, or until meat is fully cooked.
Frequent Questions
Be sure to cover the cheese center well, and evenly with the ground meat mixture to ensure it won’t leak out while cooking. Also follow the instructions for temperature, and cook time, as high heat and long cook times can cause leakage.
The eggs will help all your ingredients stick together, especially the bread crumbs, meat, and seasonings.
If you have a lot of things to manage along with your meatballs, or are making a very large batch, you can keep them warm in an oven set at 250 degrees while you finish cooking everything. Just spread them out on a cookie sheet and they’ll stay fresh for serving.
Variations
- Meat: If you decide to use ground turkey or ground chicken, add a tablespoon of olive oil to your meat. You can also use ground pork or a blend of your choices of meat. Try a spicy ground sausage for some heat.
- Cheese: Stuff these Italian meatballs with your favorite cheeses like Monterey Jack, Sharp Cheddar, or Provolone. String cheese is a less expensive, substitute if you don’t want to buy a block of fresh mozzarella.
- Spicy: Add some spice to the meatballs with cayenne pepper, and crushed red pepper in the meat or in the sauce.
- Mushrooms: Mushrooms, mozzarella, and beef make a great combo. Place stuffed meatballs into prepared mushroom caps before baking (like Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms). Or you can add diced, sautéed mushrooms to your ground beef.
- Keto: To make these low-carb Stuffed Meatballs, substitute the bread crumbs for almond flour or pork rinds! Yup, use a food processor to crush pork rinds into low carb, Keto breadcrumbs.
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Photos used in previous posts
