Simple Air Fryer Meatballs Recipe

You’ll Want These Components

Scroll right down to the recipe card for the complete, printable elements listing, 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. You can even make turkey or rooster 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 entire milk (or 2%) makes the meatball combination moist and tender.
• Egg – A frivolously 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. If you happen to don’t have breadcrumbs, you can also make them! Minimize bread into cubes to dry out within the toaster or oven. Then, blitz the bread within the blender or meals processor to make superb crumbs.
• Herbs and Seasonings – I exploit freshly minced garlic, Italian seasoning, onion powder, salt, and pepper. You’ll be able to substitute Italian seasoning with particular person dried herbs like thyme, basil, and oregano.

Find out how to Make Air Fryer Meatballs

Right here’s the way to make the very best air fryer meatballs, step-by-step, in beneath 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 serious time saver on weeknights.

Mixing the Meatball Combination

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

• Mix the elements. Add your meatball elements to a big bowl and blend properly. Use a lightweight contact and blend simply till the elements are evenly mixed. You’ll be able to 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 very best measurement 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 cook 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, but it surely’s not 100% needed.
• Prepare dinner. Organize the meatballs contained in the air fryer basket. Don’t overcrowd the air fryer, or the meatballs will steam as a substitute of crisp (you could must cook dinner in batches). Then, cook dinner at 380ºF for 10-12 minutes, flipping the meatballs midway by way of. Do an inner temperature test on the finish of cooking to make sure your meatballs have reached 165ºF.
• Get pleasure from! If you happen to’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 Recommendations for Air Fryer Meatballs

• Spaghetti and meatballs. A basic! 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 simple 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 incredible 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’ll be able to reheat the meatballs from frozen or thaw them within the fridge first.