I have no idea why, but I used to be intimidated by meatballs. Meatballs!! Make it make sense. When I finally got over myself and tried making them, I was like “Oh these are easy! Just like everyone says they are!” haha
There are folks who make their own Italian sausage or breakfast sausage with all their own seasonings. I am not that person. See my previous statement about being intimidated by the idea of making meatballs. Let’s keep these things manageable, people! So yes, I use premade sausage. And the meatballs are delicious. I stand by my decision.
Preparation Tips
Gluten free bread dries out and goes bad quickly. I rarely eat an entire loaf or package of buns before they go bad. Because I often make my own gluten free breadcrumbs, I throw the extra bits of bread into the freezer before they go bad. Those bits of frozen bread are perfect to have on hand when you need breadcrumbs or you need to make meatloaf or meatballs. Don’t throw them out!
I like to use the following meat: Jimmy Dean Sage Pork Sausage and an 85%/15% ground beef. I prefer to use grass fed ground beef. One of the best places to get a good price for it is Aldi.
If you don’t have one, get a digital meat thermometer like this one. Ensuring your meat is done but not overcooked is tricky without one. It becomes surprisingly easy when you get used to using thermometer.
It is very effective to cook meatballs on a cookie sheet with a wire cooling rack insert. This allows for more even cooking, as well as a slight crisp to form on the exterior. If you line the cookie sheet with foil ahead of time, it helps with cleanup!
Keep a box of vinyl gloves on hand. It is easiest to mix meatballs with your hands, but it can feel kind of gross. Gloves help a lot!
PrintGluten Free Make Ahead Meatballs
It is easy to make delicious homemade meatballs ahead of time you can freeze and have available any time you need them. Follow these simple instructions, and you will be all set!
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 36–40 meatballs 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
1 pound Jimmy Dean Sage Pork Sausage
About 1.25 or so pounds of ground beef (85%/15% lean, preferably grass fed)
1 slice of GF bread or half of a GF bun – whatever you have on hand
1/2 cup milk (dairy or dairy-free alternative like almond milk)
1 egg
1 small white or yellow onion, diced fine
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
Instructions
- Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and place a wire cooling rack insert on top. Spray the top of the cooling rack with oil. Set aside. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
- In a small bowl, soak the slice of gluten free bread in the milk for at least 3 – 5 minutes. You want the bread to get very mush and begin falling apart. Use your hands or a fork to encourage this process.
- In a large bowl, combine the pork sausage, ground beef, soaked bread, raw egg, diced onion, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. The best way to ensure everything is thoroughly combined is to squish the mixture with your hands. If that feeling weirds you out, use a pair of vinyl gloves. You can pick these up at a drug store or buy on Amazon. Make sure you get the right size for your hands.
- When you have things well mixed, use a #40 (2 TBS) sized cookie scoop to scoop out balls of the meat mixture. Roll the ball in your hand to ensure it is smooth. Place the balls on top of the cooling rack insert. You do not need to keep much space between balls as they do not spread. You should be able to scoop between 36 – 40 meatballs.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes. Halfway through, take the cookie sheet out and use tongs to turn each meatball over for even cooking. Cook the meatballs until they reach an internal temperature of around 155 degrees F.
- You can serve the meatballs right away, or you can freeze them. If you wish to freeze them, allow them to cool to room temperature and then place in a freezer safe Ziploc bag or storage container. They are freezer safe for up to 6 months. Reheat on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper in a 350 degree oven for 10-15 minutes.
