Meatball parmesan is a hearty, Italian dish that goes great over noodles or served as a sub sandwich. The homemade meatballs are full of flavor, smothered in sauce and coated with melted cheese, then baked in the oven. This is an easy meal that’s sure to satisfy a hungry stomach!
Easy Baked Meatball Parmesan
Have you ever had a meatball parmesan sub? This is absolutely my husband’s go-to order anytime we go to a sub shop. He loves the soft hoagie bread loaded in heaty meatballs and smothered with sauce and cheese.
Let’s just say he was pretty happy when I made him our homemade version of this sandwich!
This recipe is so versatile. Not only can you make delicious subs, but you can simply serve it over noodles and have a tasty pasta dish.
Either way, it’s full of flavor and makes for a hearty, filling meal. I think you are going to love this Italian classic and how easy it is to make from home!
Ingredients / Shopping List
- Meat: We used both ground beef and ground pork. You will want one pound of each. We did lean ground beef and Italian ground pork
- Italian Breadcrumbs: These will help hold the meatballs together and give it some additional Italian seasoning.
- Milk: We prefer using whole milk for this recipe.
- Garlic: You will want to mince the garlic (or you can buy it already minced in the jar)
- Herbs and Seasoning: Italian seasoning, onion powder, dried parsley, salt, pepper.
- Parmesan cheese: I prefer to shred my parmesan fresh, but you can buy it already shredded. But please don’t buy the kind in the green bottle. Good parmesan cheese definitely will take all of your recipes up a notch.
- Eggs: Lightly beaten
- Pasta sauce: Your favorite store-bought brand
- Mozzarella cheese, shredded
- Basil: Fresh and finely chopped.
Substitutions and Additions
Pasta: Parmesan meatballs go great with any type of pasta. Fettuccine noodles are our favorite, but you could use rotini, penne, rigatoni, or spaghetti. Whichever you prefer!
Sauce: Just as with the noodles, any type of pasta sauce will do. If you have a favorite brand, stick with that. Since you will need 1 ½ jars, you could get two types of sauce and combine them. You could also make a homemade sauce if you prefer.
Sandwich: Meatball parmesan makes a delicious meatball sub sandwich. I recommend using hoagie buns if you plan to serve your meatball parmesan as a sandwich.
Meatballs: Whisper voice… if you are in a time crunch, you can substitute frozen meatballs. We won’t tell if you don’t!
How to Make Meatball Parmesan
- Line a large cast-iron skillet with foil and set aside.
- Use your hands to mix together meat, breadcrumbs, milk, garlic, Italian seasonings, onion powder, dried parsley, parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and eggs in a large bowl. Mix until just combined, do not to overmix!
- Form the meatballs. You should be able to make about 17 large meatballs or 34 smaller ones.
TIP: use an ice cream scoop! It makes the perfect meatballs! Use an ice cream scoop to form meatballs. - Place the meatballs on the foil-lined cast iron skillet and bake for 25 minutes at 400 degrees (20 minutes if smaller meatballs). Remove from the oven and set skillet aside.
- Lower the oven temperature to 375 degrees. Place meatballs on a plate and remove foil from the cast iron skillet.
- Pour ½ of the pasta sauce on the bottom of the skillet. Add meatballs back to the skillet on top of the pasta sauce.
- Pour remaining sauce over the top of the meatballs. Add 1-1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese to the top of the meatballs. Sprinkle on Italian seasonings.
- Cover the cast iron skillet with foil. Place back in the oven and allow to cook for 20 additional minutes at 375 degrees. Remove foil and cook for an additional 15-20 minutes, or until browned on the top.
- Carefully remove the cast iron skillet from the oven. Sprinkle fresh chopped basil over the top of the meatballs and serve over your favorite pasta or in a sandwich bun.
How to Store Meatball Parmesan
Your meatball parmesan recipe can last in the fridge for about 3 to 4 days. Be sure to store in an airtight container. It makes it super easy to pull out leftovers and put them over noodles or make a quick meatball sub!
You can also freeze your baked meatballs. To do so, place them on a baking sheet and put them in the freezer after cooking. Then, transfer them to a freezer Ziploc bag or an airtight container. They will keep this way for about 3 months. Be sure to thaw them completely before using them in a casserole or putting them over spaghetti!
Helpful Tools
More Great Dinner Recipes
Garlic Butter Steak Bites | One-Pot Chicken Parmesan Pasta | Korean Beef Bowl | Bang Bang Shrimp (Copycat Bonefish Grill) | Sheet Pan Quesadillas | Chicken Pot Pie Skillet | Smothered Pork Chops | Chicken Foil Packet | Meatball Subs | French Onion Pork Chops | Garlic Butter Chicken and Potatoes Skillet
Meatball Parmesan
Video
Ingredients
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 1 lb Italian ground pork
- ½ cup Italian breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup whole milk
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 2 tsp Italian seasoning
- 2 tsp onion powder
- 1 tbsp dried parsley
- 1 cup Parmesan cheese shredded
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
- 2 eggs lightly beaten
- 1 ½ 24 -oz jars pasta sauce
- 1 – 1 ½ cups mozzarella cheese shredded
- ½ tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tbsp fresh basil finely chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a large cast iron skillet with foil and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl combine ground beef, ground pork, Italian breadcrumbs, whole milk, minced garlic, Italian seasonings, onion powder, dried parsley, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, and lightly beaten eggs. Using your hands mix all ingredients in the bowl until just combined, being careful not to overmix the meat.
- Use an ice cream scoop to form meatballs. You should be able to make 17 large meatballs from the meat mixture (or 34 smaller ones)
- Place meatballs on the foil lined cast iron skillet and place in the oven. Cook at 400 degrees for 25 minutes (20 minutes if smaller meatballs). Remove from the oven and set the cast iron skillet on a hot pad.
- Lower the oven temperature to 375 degrees. Place meatballs on a plate and remove foil from cast iron skillet.
- Pour ½ of the pasta sauce on the bottom of the skillet. Add meatballs back to the skillet on top of the pasta sauce.
- Pour remaining sauce over the top of the meatballs. Add 1 – 1 ½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese to the top of the meatballs. Sprinkle on Italian seasoning.
- Cover the cast iron skillet with foil. Place back in the oven and allow to cook for 20 additional minutes at 375 degrees. Remove foil and cook for an additional 15-20 minutes, or until browned on the top.
- Carefully remove the cast iron skillet from the oven and set on a hot pad. Sprinkle fresh chopped basil over the top of the meatballs and serve over your favorite pasta.
Nutrition Info
This Meatball Parmesan recipe is easy and delicious. This is an Italian dish that’s loaded with sauce and cheese, then baked in the oven. Whether you make it into a sandwich, or serve it over noodles, parmesan meatballs make a hearty meal that are sure to get a thumbs up.
what pan would you recommend for those of us who do not have a cast iron skillet large enough for the recipe?
Hi! can I use a Dutch oven vs cast iron skillet for this recipe?
Looking forward to trying it!
Thanks,
Lea
we were burned out on the everyday cooking when I came across princess I was excited to cook again. my first time I did the sloppy Joe pastas it was so good. try the recipes you won’t be disappointed
I think it is a really lousy format, to have the detailed instructions on putting the recipe together, BEFORE you list the ingredients with amounts of each.
Did you use the recipe card?
Your recipe card is actually missing a step between 7 and 8.