Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs make spaghetti and meatballs extra delicious. Ground beef meatballs are stuffed with mozzarella and are especially luscious smothered in a homemade spaghetti sauce with a side of garlic bread.
How to Make Stuffed Meatballs
While there is a little more prepping involved in this recipe than with regular Italian meatballs, it is still super easy! The rave reviews these meatballs earn will be well worth the effort.
How to Prepare Stuffed Meatballs: For this recipe, the stuffed meatballs are prepared separately from the sauce.
SAUCE
- Sauté diced onion in olive oil, and when softened, add the minced garlic.
- Add the rest of the sauce ingredients and seasonings.
- Simmer uncovered or partially covered to thicken.
MEATBALLS
While the sauce simmers, the meatballs can be prepared and baked.
- In a mixing bowl, combine all meatball ingredients except the mozzarella.
- Cut the block of mozzarella into small cubes.
- Wrap each cube with the meat mixture. Compress a couple of tablespoons of meat in one hand, press a cube into the center and shape tightly into a ball ensuring the cheese is fully enclosed.
- Place on a parchment-lined cookie sheet and bake.
How to Cook Cheese Stuffed Meatballs
You can bake mozzarella stuffed meatballs for 15-20 minutes at 350°F. They meatballs will cook in the sauce a bit as well.
You’ll want to make sure the cheese is sealed in as best as you can however, you can expect a little cheese to ooze out.
You can serve cheese stuffed meatballs over spaghetti noodles, zucchini noodles or inside a sandwich roll for a fabulous meatball sub. Stuffed meatballs also make terrific party appetizers. Bacon wrapped cheese stuffed meatballs are especially suited for such occasions, with or without a marinara dipping sauce.
Can You Freeze Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs
While the prep work may take time, this is one dish that’s practically made for cooking in advance, so make lots. You’ll love the convenience! You can either bake and freeze them, or shape them into meatballs and freeze them raw (provided the meat was not frozen initially).
Either raw or cooked, place the meatballs on a cookie sheet inside the freezer. When hardened, place in freezer bags and store for up to four months. Thaw inside the refrigerator before baking or broiling.
More Meatball Favorites
- Creamy Lemon Chicken Piccata Meatballs – fun twist on a classic
- Meatball Sub – kid-friendly!
- Salisbury Steak Meatballs – family favorite meal!
- Meatball Soup – easy and comforting
- Porcupine Meatballs – baked in tomato sauce
- Sweet and Sour Meatballs – Great over rice!
Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs in Homemade Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 2 pounds ground beef or turkey
- 1 tablespoon olive oil (if using turkey)
- ½ onion finely chopped
- 1 egg
- ½ cup Panko bread crumbs
- ½ cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 2 tablespoons fresh basil (or 1 teaspoon dried basil)
- 2 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
- ¾ pound fresh mozzarella cut into small cubes
Sauce
- 1 onion chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 28 oz canned whole tomatoes with juice
- 28 oz canned diced tomatoes with juice
- ½ teaspoon white sugar
- 1 bay leaf
- 6 oz tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 lemon (for zest only)
Instructions
Sauce
- Using a veggie peeler, peel off two very thin pieces of lemon zest making sure only to get the yellow part (not the white).
- Heat olive oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add onion & garlic and cook until soft, about 4 minutes. Add remaining sauce ingredients. Reduce heat to low, cover and let simmer 1 hour.
Meatballs
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Cut mozzarella into 24 small squares, set aside.
- Mix together turkey or beef, olive oil (if using turkey) onion, egg, panko bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, parsley, basil, and pepper. Mix just until combined (over mixing will create tough meatballs).
- 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 turkey mixture.
- Place on a pan lined with parchment paper. Bake 30 minutes (a little of the cheese may leak out of some of the meatballs, that's ok, there will still be more inside!)
- Remove meatballs from the oven, stir into the sauce and let simmer an additional 20 minutes.
- Serve on pasta.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Dinner, Pasta
Cuisine Italian© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Like our recipes?
Follow us on Pinterest!
This recipe was inspired by Allrecipes.com.
The recipe was great except for the lack of salt. We halved the amount of pepper and it was perfect. Next time we make them we’re doing 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp pepper.
Substituting the spices for ~tbsp of Italian seasoning and using whole wheat breadcrumbs worked out great. It’s the best dinner we’ve had in a while!
I love alot of your recipes. Plus my Daughters name is Holly.❤
❤️❤️Thank you Nancy!
Okay, Holly! The meatballs are cooked. The sauce is ready. Now how do you freeze? Meatballs and sauce frozen together or separately?
Sorry for the delay Barbara! I would suggest freezing them together. They can be thawed and baked together as well. Enjoy!
Thanks for the reply!
Easy and SO delicious! My kiddos loved helping with the meatball prep! I have always added sugar to my tomato sauce and happy to see it included in this recipe!
That sounds like so much fun D! Glad you guys are having fun in the kitchen :)
I want to make these tonight! Would it be a good idea to put the cheese cubes in the freezer to make them really cold so they dont ooze out?
I haven’t tried freezing the cheese first so I can’t say for sure how that would work. Let us know how it goes if you try it.
What do you have to peel the lemon zest for?!
I just add a strip or 2 to the sauce. Adds a great flavor!
Made It For Dinner Tonight..Well See What The Verdict Is When The Fam Dives In:)
Thanks so much for sharing this recipe!!! I’ve pinned and I’m sure we will love it!!!