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Turkey Meatballs and Sauce

Published: April 16, 2020 | Last Updated: May 19, 2022 | Lisa 6 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links.

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Last Updated May 19th, 2022 at 08:50 am by Lisa

OVEN-BAKED (not fried) Skinny Turkey Meatballs and Sauce are light healthy homemade meatballs from scratch and packed with nutritious veggies! This is a great dinner recipe to make ahead in quantity and is freezer friendly...

Skinny Turkey Veggie Meatballs and Sauce Recipe

Meatballs and Sauce are one thing, but Skinny Turkey Veggie Meatballs and Sauce could change your life.

When I heard about this meatball technique I got so excited because I had never made homemade meatballs (guilty as charged buying them frozen).  Meatballs seemed too complicated for some reason. But are they?

Well fear not, these are fun and easy.  Yes there are a few steps, and that's ok because you can make these and freeze them for a day when you don't have time to figure out what to make for dinner, and look like a complete kitchen genius ; ).

Skinny Turkey Veggie Meatballs and Sauce bowl

These little gems might also either get you married off OR will make someone you love feel so special.  As a matter of fact, this entire recipe website started because of this homemade meatball recipe. Turkey meatballs are actually quite healthy, and a cleaner version of most recipes by using low-fat turkey meat and secretly stashing the veggies inside.  And don't even think to tell anyone, they don't need to know!

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I serve these on a hot bowl of steamy pasta, and oh this sauce seriously is so easy and good, why you won't want the stuff in the jar ever again. But you could skip the pasta all together, your choice!

The last and maybe best part is that you can really try different veggies in here if you wish, have fun, and relax it's only a meatball for goodness sakes.

This recipe is dedicated to a group of ladies that I relaxed in the desert with,  and promised would be my first recipe up on Delicious Table. So go get those boyfriends/husbands gals!!! UPDATE: one two three of those ladies are now married!

Warning: Meatballs can cause boyfriends, girlfriends, and marriage.

Makes 44 - 2 " meatballs

How To Make Turkey Meatballs and Sauce:

Step 1: Mix Veggies

Pulse batches in Cuisinart or grate on box grater:

1 sm onion, 5 carrots, 5 celery stalks
½ cup finely chopped basil
½ cup finely chopped parsley
Mix all finely chopped veggies in small bowl

Skinny Turkey Veggie Meatballs and Sauce blend ingredients

Step 2: Saute' the veggies

Heat large pan, add 1 tablespoon olive oil and saute the veggies for 3 minutes on medium-high heat and turn off the heat. Take out ½ veggie mixture and place back in the large bowl.

Sauteing the veggies brings a depth of flavor and makes them soft and perfect for fluffy, tasty, meatballs.  

I love and use Le Creuset Dutch Ovens, one of my favorite pans in my kitchen.

Step 3: Mix Turkey Meatballs

In that large mixing bowl, take ½ sautéed and cooled veggie mixture above and mix with 3 lbs ground turkey (or for not as skinny use ground beef, hot Italian pork sausage, etc), 1 cup breadcrumbs (or ground almonds) and ½ cup grated parmesan cheese

Stir or mix with 2 forks to "fluff" the meatball mixture.

Skinny Turkey Veggie Meatballs and Sauce bowl

Step 4: Scoop Turkey Meatballs:

Use a 2" ice-cream scoop on a sheet pan lined with parchment or foil

Skinny Turkey Veggie Meatballs and Sauce scoops

Step 5: Bake Meatballs In The Oven:

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees. Bake meatballs 25-30 minutes until golden brown with crispy edges.

What Is Ground Turkey Internal Temperature?

The internal temperature for ground turkey meatballs should be 165 degrees. I use a ThermoWorks professional thermometer.

Themoworks Professional Instant Read Thermometers for the Home Chef

Step 6: Make The Meatball Sauce

In a saute pan mix other ½ veggie mixture, 1 large can of diced tomatoes, ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon pepper, 1 small can tomato paste. Stir and simmer for 20 minutes.

Skinny Turkey Veggie Meatballs and sauce close

Step 7: Serve Meatballs and Sauce

  • Cook Spaghetti Noodles per package Instructions.
  • Ladle Meatball Sauce on hot noodles, place 2-4 meatballs on spaghetti noodles, top with grated parmesan cheese.
Skinny Turkey Veggie Meatballs and Sauce pour

PRO TIP: Since this makes so many meatballs and sauce, freeze extra skinny turkey veggie meatballs on sheet pans either cooked or uncooked and place in zip bags or use a Food Saver vacuum sealer for fast easy future meals. The pasta sauce freezes well too!

More of My Ground Turkey Recipes:

Turkey Chili With Black Beans Recipe
Turkey Chili with Black Beans can be made in a slow cooker, crockpot, or stovetop. An all-time family favorite with years of rave reviews!
GET THE RECIPE PIN IT
A bowl of turkey chili topped with sour cream, grated cheese, and green onions with corn bread muffins.
Cheesy Meatball Subs
Cheesy Meatball Subs are loaded with gooey melted cheese and homemade marinara sauce. Use frozen or homemade ground beef, turkey, or pork meatballs. These meatball sub sandwiches are classic comfort food, and so worth the effort. Toast them under the broiler to get the bread crispy and the cheese gooey, golden, and melty.
GET THE RECIPE PIN IT
A meatball sub with marinara sauce and melted golden gooey cheese on a toasted baguette.
Skinny Turkey Veggie Meatballs and Sauce meatballs

Skinny Turkey Veggie Meatballs and Sauce will always be a special recipe for many reasons. This recipe started Delicious Table and is my first recipe.  True Story: My friends made me hold up my hand and swear I would publish it on a website. Okay yes, wine was involved, and it might have been happy hour! But hey, if they hadn't encouraged me...I wouldn't have jumped in and built this community of recipe and food fanatics.

I will forever be grateful to my sweet friends for their support and encouragement to begin a recipe website and "blog".  At the time, I didn't even know what a food blog was... or how to turn on my big scary camera, or what the heck social media was.  Once this recipe went up on the website, I was in love with sharing my food with the world. Enjoy!

All The Best Dishes,

Lisa

XO

More Of My BEST Dinner Recipes:

Gorgonzola Stuffed Chicken
Gorgonzola Stuffed Chicken will be a hit at family dinner, plus it's low-carb. These stuffed chicken breasts have a delicious pan sauce!
GET THE RECIPE PIN IT
Cooked Gorgonzola Stuffed Chicken in pan sauce garnished with fresh thyme.
Beef Stroganoff Recipe
Classic beef stroganoff made with ground beef is so popular and beloved worldwide. But what if I shared my secrets to pack in flavor and use various beef cuts? This recipe has ideas for different steak cuts, mushrooms of course, rich stroganoff flavor, and a creamy sauce.
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White plate filled with Beef Stroganoff on noodles with mushrooms.
Sheet Pan Chicken - One Pan Dinner!
Sheet Pan Chicken with croutons and baby potatoes takes 20 minutes to prep and this entire chicken sheet pan dinner bakes in 50 minutes!
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A white platter filled with sheet pan chicken dinner including lemons, potatoes, and croutons.
Easy Chicken Enchilada Casserole
A super easy chicken enchilada casserole layered with corn tortillas, Mexican Oaxaca cheese, black olives, shredded chicken, and salsa verde.
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A white casserole dish with chicken enchilada casserole topped with black olives and lots of melted cheese.
Lobster Ravioli With Lemon Butter Sauce
Lobster Ravioli with a Lemon Butter Sauce uses a baked ravioli technique you can prep ahead for dinner parties, holidays, and romantic nights. This recipe can be made ahead with wonton wrappers and baked instead of boiling the ravioli. It is a perfect recipe for the holidays or special dinners like Valentine's Day.
GET THE RECIPE PIN IT
A white plate filled with heart shaped lobster ravioli garnished with parsley.

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Turkey Meatballs and Sauce

Turkey Meatballs oven-baked with a special technique which creates tender, moist, and maximum full flavor packed into each homemade meatball!
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 52 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Servings 10
Calories 432kcal
Author Lisa Hatfield

Equipment

Spring Loaded Cookie Scoops (3 Sizes)
Parchment Paper Sheets
Large Metal Sheet Pan

Ingredients

  • 16 ounces uncooked spaghetti

Turkey Meatballs

  • 3 pounds lean ground turkey or swap in ground beef or Italian pork sausage
  • 1 medium yellow onion 2 cups roughly chopped
  • 6 whole carrots 2 cups roughly chopped
  • 6 stalks celery 2 cups roughly chopped 2-3" pieces
  • ½ cup finely chopped basil
  • ½ cup finely chopped parsley
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 cup breadcrumbs (or sub ground almonds)
  • ½ cup grated parmesan cheese

Meatball Sauce

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 large yellow onion diced
  • 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • ½ teaspoon ground pepper
  • ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ teaspoon sugar
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
  • 1 6 oz small can tomato paste
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Make The Meatballs

  • Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
  • Rough chop veggies in batches and pulse in a food processor or grate on a box grater. 1 small onion, 5 carrots, 5 celery stalks. Process veggies in batches, and place ground vegetables into a large bowl as you go.
  • Next dice ½ cup finely chopped basil, and ½ cup finely chopped parsley into the mixing bowl, toss together.
  • Heat a large pan or heavy skillet, add 1 tablespoon olive oil and saute the veggies 3 minutes on medium high heat, keep stirring, then turn off the heat.
  • Place the sautéed veggie mixture in a large mixing bowl, and cool. Next, add 3 lbs ground turkey (or ground beef, Italian pork sausage etc.), 1 cup breadcrumbs (or ground almonds) and ½ cup grated parmesan cheese.
  • Stir and completely mix with 2 forks to "fluff" the meatball mixture.
  • Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Use a 2" ice cream scoop (cookie scoop) to portion the meatballs. The scoop makes the meatballs all the same size and is faster than hand rolling. If you certainly can roll them with clean hands, that works just fine.
  • Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Bake 25-30 minutes until golden brown with crispy edges. Use a meat thermometer food safety, turkey is cooked at 165 degrees Fahrenheit.

Make The Spaghetti and Meatball Sauce

  • Cook spaghetti noodles per package instructions, keep warm but don't overcook or leave in the boiling water.
  • Heat butter and olive oil in a large heavy pan, add diced onions, saute until soft 5 minutes, then all 6 seasonings, canned tomatoes, and tomato paste.
  • Stir until the marinara sauce thickens about 10-15 minutes. Keep marinara sauce warm.
  • Ladle Sauce on hot noodles, place 2-4 meatballs on noodles, top with parmesan cheese.
  • Store leftover sauce and meatballs in an air-tight container, use within 3 days or keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Notes

This recipe makes 40 meatballs, from a 2" ice cream scoop.

Freezer Tips

  1. Freeze extra skinny turkey veggie meatballs on sheet pans either cooked or uncooked and place in zip bags or use a Food Saver vacuum sealer for fast easy future meals.
  2. The pasta sauce freezes very well, to reheat add frozen sauce to a pan with a small amount of water and reheat until hot.

meatballs 

This recipe makes about forty-four 2" meatballs. Freeze extra meatballs on sheet pans either cooked or uncooked, and place them in zip bags or use a Food Saver vacuum sealer for fast easy future meals.
 
 
Grab a bag of Italian-style meatballs at the store or make some the whole family will love using ground turkey, chicken, pork, or beef.

Nutrition

Calories: 432kcal | Carbohydrates: 50g | Protein: 42g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 79mg | Sodium: 636mg | Potassium: 868mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 6796IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 106mg | Iron: 3mg
Tried this recipe?Let's see it on Instagram! Follow us @Delicious.Table and tag us on your recipe photo with #delicioustable
Need ingredients or equipment to make this recipe? Shop Now Every cooking product recommended I own, use, and love how they perform in my kitchen. Happy Cooking! Lisa
Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate, Delicious Table earns advertising fees from qualified purchases linking to Amazon.com
167 shares

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jessica Robinson says

    April 16, 2020 at 1:36 pm

    5 stars
    These are so darn good! Perfect since we are trying to eat healthier! Such great flavor!

    Reply
  2. Beth Allen says

    March 07, 2018 at 10:18 am

    5 stars
    I am always looking for recipes that I can make multiple meals with. Freezing these meatballs (and sauce!) ahead is a huge bonus for days when I don't have it in me to cook a big meal at night. This makes it seem like I did, so that is always a plus! Second, I loved having the option to put ground almonds in these instead of bread. I loved it and I would never have thought of substituting with that! you can't go wrong with this recipe.

    Reply
  3. bet joy says

    June 29, 2015 at 5:15 pm

    lisa, these photos look terrific. i will be following your new baby blog with relish (don't groan...).
    i'm gonna make these. gonna use ground bison, of which i have become a fan, with its low fat
    content. using ground almonds is inspired...perfect for a low fat, high fibre entree.
    you go, girl...you've grabbed a brass ring!!
    bet joy

    Reply
    • Lisa says

      July 04, 2015 at 10:09 pm

      Thank you Bet for following my "shiny new" food blog, and can I say what a pleasure it was to meet you? So so so fun at lunch, I know we will be able to meet again so I can see your cookbook. Love and Hugs, Lisa

      Reply
  4. bet joy says

    June 29, 2015 at 5:07 pm

    lisa, these photos look terrific. thrilled to experience your new baby blog, and will follow it
    with relish (don't groan...). i am moved to try the meatballs and use the almonds.
    capital idea for a high protein, high fiber diet. i would use ground bison, since i am a
    recent fan, because of its low fat content. go on with yourself, girl...you have snagged a brass ring!
    bet

    Reply
  5. Kristina says

    June 23, 2015 at 8:47 pm

    These look delish!!! Can't wait to try them out

    Reply

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