Dutch oven meatballs get poached in an Italian tomato bath in just 30 minutes. What you get is about 10-12 tender meatballs with a large pot of red sauce for spooning over spaghetti or enjoying inside of miniature subs. You can freeze these meatballs -- Leftover meatballs are even more flavorful!
Prep Time20 minutesmins
Cook Time30 minutesmins
Total Time50 minutesmins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American, Italian
Keyword: meatballs
Servings: 6people
Calories: 557kcal
Author: Sara @ TheFrayedApron
Ingredients
1cupItalian breadcrumbs
1Tmilk
1pound80% lean ground beef
1poundground pork
1/4cupyellow onionminced
2clovesgarlicminced
2Tflat leaf parsleychopped
2eggs
1/2cupshredded parmesan cheese
2wholebay leaves
1/2tspcrushed red pepper
1/2tspItalian seasoning
6ozcanned tomato paste
228 ozcanned crushed tomatoes
salt and pepperfor seasoning
1ozfresh basilfor serving
6smallbread loavesif desired
Instructions
Toss the breadcrumbs with the milk in a large bowl until they soak it up. Add the beef, pork, onion, garlic, parsley, eggs, and parmesan cheese on top and season with salt and pepper. Mix by hand just until combined.
Use an ice cream scoop or hands to form 10-12 balls of meat. Very gently place them into the bottom of a large pot or 5-7 quart Dutch oven. Brown over medium heat, about 5 minutes, then gently flip over using a spoon to brown the other side.
Create a flavorful sauce. To the same pot with the meatballs, add bay leaves, crushed red pepper, Italian seasoning, and a generous sprinkle of salt and pepper. Top with tomato paste and crushed tomatoes.
Cook covered on low heat for 30 minutes, until the internal temperature of the meatballs reads 160°F. Serve meatballs nestled inside toasted white subs with freshly torn basil and parmesan cheese.
Notes
Freeze: After cooking, remove lid to allow steam to escape. Piping hot sauce does not cool well in the freezer so allow 10 minutes before attempting to store. Disperse the meatballs and sauce into sealed bags or containers for freezing -- they freeze faster this way. Transfer to the refrigerator to thaw 1 day ahead. Store frozen up to 3 months or refrigerate up to 4 days.*Recipe adapted from a slow cooker version by chef savvy.