Spaghetti and Meatballs is a classic Italian-American dish. Our homemade meatballs are made from a mix of ground beef and sausage and simmered in sauce while the spaghetti cooks. If pasta isn’t your thing, you can just stick ’em in a bun or eat them right out of the pan. This recipe is easy, delicious, and popular with everyone in our family. Enjoy!

Ingredients

The Meatballs

• 1/2 pound of Italian sausage (I like spicy, but use whatever you like.)
• 1/2 pound of ground beef
• 1 large egg
• 3/4 cup Panko bread crumbs (you may also use regular breadcrumbs or — if you want to get weird with it — 3/4 cup of potato chips crushed in a food processor.)
• 2 tsp. oregano
• 1 tsp. garlic salt
• 1 tbsp. olive oil

The Spaghetti

• 16 ounces of spaghetti noodles
• Salt

The Sauce

• One jar of your favorite pasta sauce, OR you can make your own sauce if you want to get real fancy.

Process

1. Fill a large stockpot with water. Salt it and put it on high heat. Let it come to a boil while you work on the meatballs. You’ll come back to it in step 7.
2. In a large mixing bowl using your hands, combine the ground beef, sausage, egg, bread crumbs, oregano, and garlic salt. The mix should be moist and sticky, holding the shape of a ball. If it seems too loose or too moist, add a little more bread crumbs.
3. Using your hands, mold the meat mix into balls of even size. I use a kitchen scale to weigh each meatball out to 1 ounce, but you can eyeball it if you prefer. Make sure each ball is about the same size so they’ll cook evenly.
4. Heat the olive oil in a large, deep skillet over medium heat. When the oil is shimmery, add the meatballs to the pan. Cover and cook for 2-3 minutes.
5. Use a pair of kitchen tongs to flip the meatballs. Cook another 2-3 minutes.
6. Add the pasta sauce to the pan. Cover, turn the heat to medium-low, and let simmer while you cook the spaghetti. You may want to taste and season the sauce to your liking — try garlic salt, black pepper, or paprika.
7. Add the spaghetti to the boiling water. Cook per package directions and drain.
8. Serve! Plate the spaghetti, then douse it with sauce and three to four meatballs. This meal goes well with a salad or, if you’re a fan of carbs, some garlic bread.

Did you enjoy this recipe? Why not check out some of our other great dinner ideas on The Recipes Page!