This Spaghetti and Meatballs recipe is a year round go-to when we crave a cozy meal around the family table. Reserved for rainy, cool, or snowy days – our version of Ina’s Real Spaghetti and Meatballs can be made traditionally or gluten free. We’ve omitted or added a thing or two, and we love the result. Our meatballs are made without the additional dry breadcrumbs, which we feel makes them extra tender. And for our gluten free meatballs, we just use our favorite gluten free white bread. We skip the extra step of making homemade marina, because we think our jarred choice is just as good, so why make the effort. We do add fresh parsley to the sauce, because it’s just that much better with it.
This is a family favorite for a reason!
Spaghetti and Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb ground veal
- 1/2 lb ground pork
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 cup fresh white bread crumbs (traditional or GF works fine)
- 2 tbsp fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 extra-large egg, beaten
- vegetable oil
- olive oil
For the sauce
- 2 24-ounce jars Rao's marinara sauce
- 2 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped
For serving
- 1 1/2 lbs spaghetti, cooked according to package directions
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Place the ground meats, bread crumbs, parsley, Parmesan, salt, pepper, nutmeg, egg, and 3/4 cup warm water in a bowl. Combine very lightly with a fork. Using your hands or an ice cream scoop, lightly form the mixture into 2-inch meatballs.
- Pour equal amounts of vegetable oil and olive oil into a large (12-inch) skillet or Dutch oven, to a depth of 1/4-inch. Heat the oil. Very carefully, in batches, place the meatballs in the oil and brown them well on all sides over medium-low heat, turning carefully. This should take about 10 minutes for each batch. Don't crowd the meatballs. Remove the meatballs to a plate covered with paper towels. Discard the oil but don't clean the pan.
- For the sauce, pour the Rao's into the pan and stir.
- Return the meatballs to the sauce, cover, and simmer on the lowest heat for 25 to 30 minutes, until the meatballs are cooked through. Stir in fresh parsley. Serve hot on cooked spaghetti and add the grated Parmesan as desired.
