Veggie loaded turkey meatballs – the ultimate make ahead meal prep recipe. Life just got a little bit easier.
Meatballs may not be the most glamorous things you make in your kitchen, but they sure can be a lifesaver when life gets busy. Make a big batch, freeze ’em, and simply reheat and eat when it’s time to get dinner on the table.
Do you ever find yourself at the end of the day feeling tired and uninspired in the kitchen? Does dinner time sneak up on you and you haven’t had time to plan what to cook? That’s where meatballs come in. There are so many ways to make quick and easy meals when you have a batch of nutrient-dense meatballs in the freezer. Dinner is saved!
Quick and Easy Meatballs Meals
- Simmer your favorite veggies in bone broth for 10 minutes. Add a handful of meatballs and simmer until meatballs are warmed all the way through. Boom. Meatball soup ready in less than 15 minutes.
- Simmer meatballs in your favorite marinara sauce until defrosted and warmed all the way through. Make your favorite noodles (we love zucchini noodles and butternut squash noodles) and pour on the meatball marinara. Another easy breezy meal ready to go.
- Make a big salad. Serve warm meatballs on the side. Drizzle with creamy green goddess dressing or healthy ranch dressing.
- Add meatballs to a frittata. This is a great thing to do when you have vegetables to use up in the fridge.
- Make a simple veggie stir fry. Chop up several meatballs and add them in. Serve over zucchini noodles or white basmati rice.
- Bake some whole potatoes or sweet potatoes until soft and tender. Cut in half and load them up with meatballs, steamed veggies and your favorite salsa or marinara sauce. Meatballs can easily be warmed up in a covered glass baking dish in the oven or toaster oven.
- Drizzle warm meatballs with a little bbq sauce and serve with mashed cauliflower and steamed greens. So simple. So satisfying.
I’ve shared a few meatball recipes in the past. We often have my spinach cilantro meatballs and my easy chicken broccoli meatballs on repeat because life gets full and my family wants to eat. I love having easy protein ready to go in the freezer. Today’s recipe is one of my fav meatball recipe because I’m always looking for ways to add MORE vegetables in.
And when I call these little meatballs loaded, I mean loaded!
These loaded veggie turkey meatballs are the epitome of versatile. I used ground turkey because that’s what my hubby likes. You can totally use beef, chicken, pork, or a combo of any of these. I loaded the meatballs with broccoli, kale, and carrots, but you can switch it up with any other veggies that make you happy. I added fresh cilantro to my meatballs, but you can use fresh parsley, basil, or dill if you like. I didn’t add onions as I wanted them to be kid-friendly (little one won’t eat them) but feel free to add some chopped onion if that’s your jam. And I used coconut flour as a binder, but you can use almond flour, cassava, or any other flour that you have.
And like most of the easy dinner recipes on my site, they are gluten free, paleo, and whole30 compliant.
Oh, and here’s a few tips that I’ve shared before about making meatballs:
….dry meatballs suck. I like to add an egg and a bit of extra fat (butter or ghee) to keep them juicy and moist (especially when using leaner meats like chicken or turkey.)
….use a food processor. Chopping your veggies in a food processor makes them super small and will give your meatballs a nice uniform texture.
…do not over cook. Because dry meatballs suck.
…slow your roll. Gently roll out your meatballs because tightly packed meatballs can wind up tough and chewy.
…use an ice cream scooper. Keeping all of your meatballs uniform means that they cook evenly and you won’t overcook some while you wait for others to finish cooking.
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PinIngredients
- 1 pound ground turkey (preferably thigh meat)
- 1/2 cup lightly steamed broccoli florets , finely chopped
- 1/2 cup kale, finely chopped (or any other green)
- 1/2 cup carrots, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp fresh cilantro, finely chopped (or basil, parsley, or dill)
- 1 egg, beaten
- 2 tbsp butter or ghee, melted
- 1 tablespoons coconut flour (like this) **see note
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder (like this)
- pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400′ F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper OR place a cooling rack on top of baking sheet.
- Combine all meatball ingredients in a large bowl until well incorporated.
- Roll into about 28-30 small meatballs ( I use a small cookie scoop to get uniform balls) and place onto prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes, until baked through and slightly golden.
Notes
- I HIGHLY recommend using a food processor to chop you veggies. This makes for a super nice texture in the meatballs.
- I prefer to steam the broccoli before adding it to the recipe. I’ve tried grated raw broccoli and don’t love the texture. Simply steam broccoli in a steamer basket for 3-4 minutes until slightly soft and still bright green. Be sure to finely chop for best texture.
- Most people bake meatballs right on the baking sheet (lined with parchment paper), which works fine. I find that my meatballs cook a bit more evenly if I place them on a cooling rack on top of the baking sheet.
- I use 1 tablespoon of coconut flour as a binder. You can sub any flour that you have like almond or cassava, but you will have to use at 2-3 tablespoons of any other flour. Start with 2 and add another if mixture seems too sticky to roll.
Keywords: meatballs
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Jen says
February 13, 2019 at 12:37 amThis looks great! How long does it keep in the freezer?
Katja Heino says
February 13, 2019 at 2:31 pmI would say, for best quality and taste, store meatballs in freezer 3-4 months. 🙂
Katja Heino says
February 19, 2019 at 10:20 amMeatballs will keep up to 3 months in the freezer. 🙂
Kelly says
April 5, 2019 at 3:36 pmThese were so good! I made these last week and I doubled the batch and freezed them for when I came back from vacation and I just defrosted them and had them for lunch and dinner this past week and they were delicious! I used spinach instead of kale and I added in some garlic and onion and they tasted great! I ate them for breakfast with pancakes and I’ve had them for lunch and dinner in a tortilla wrap with salad and avocado and they were so delicious. I highly recommend this recipe. I will definitely be making these again and they can totally be used for so many different things since they are so yummy. I could totally see myself making them into burger patties for burgers or even just to eat for breakfast with eggs and it’s so great that you can freeze them and just pull them out when needed. I just put them in the fridge to thaw and would just microwave them when I wanted to eat them and they turned out perfect. Thank you so much for the recipe.
★★★★★
Katja Heino says
April 9, 2019 at 11:17 amYay! I am glad that you loved them. Thank you so much for taking the time to write such an awesome review. Meatballs are the BEST when it comes to meal prepping. Enjoy!
Madison says
April 11, 2019 at 10:16 amI’m obsessed with these! They are perfect to keep in the freezer to heat up for a quick lunch for my 11month old and she just devours them. My husband and I enjoy them as well especially with paleo cauliflower Alfredo sauce and noodles. Such a great recipe! Thank you!!
★★★★★
Katja Heino says
April 19, 2019 at 9:11 pmYay! That’s awesome to hear. I’m so glad y’all like them. 🙂
Alyssa Wood says
June 26, 2019 at 6:28 pmI am blown away at how delicious these meatballs are! I substituted the Kale for Spinach and used whole wheat flour. These are amazing. My 1 year old and I love them! Great way to get him to eat his veggies!
Katja Heino says
July 2, 2019 at 12:07 pmYay! I’m so happy to hear that you like them. And your little one too!
Suzanne says
July 1, 2019 at 10:27 amIf I can cover the meatballs entirely with tomato sauce or alfredo, I might be able to convince my boys that they don’t have veggies in them!! I’ll definitely be trying these soon, thank you!
Sarah Battiato says
July 7, 2019 at 1:44 pmWhat can I use Instead of Butter or Ghee
Katja Heino says
July 9, 2019 at 11:16 amYou can use any fat that you like. Avocado oil would be good too.
Mina says
July 30, 2019 at 6:13 pmMade these tonight & they are absolutely delicious, I freezed half of them, they will make excellent meal prep dinner. I subbed the flour for bread crumbs and used spinach instead of kale, and added sauteed onion, I also used 1/2 tsp of salt instead of 1 tsp (personal preference). I’m excited to turn these into chicken burgers next time.
★★★★★
Katja Heino says
July 31, 2019 at 6:54 pmYay! I’m so glad you liked them. Thanks for sharing your subs. 🙂
Amy Estes says
July 14, 2019 at 2:15 pmMaking these for dinner tonight. Excited to try this recipe! They look so good!
Katja Heino says
September 4, 2019 at 1:23 pmHope you love it. 🙂
Kate says
August 29, 2019 at 4:10 pmNo eggs for us (allergy) and it worked well. I served it over rice with a tzatziki sauce (yogurt, lemon juice, salt, and cucumber). Happy family! (None left for freezing!!!) 🙂
★★★★★
Katja Heino says
September 4, 2019 at 1:07 pmYay! Glad you liked them.
Ana says
September 17, 2019 at 10:08 pmI made these for dinner tonight and my husband and 10 month old baby loved them. I made sticks for my daughter so she could grab them easier and because they were so moist it was easy for her to eat them.
Katja Heino says
October 2, 2019 at 2:19 pmYay! Love when kids are eating healthy real food!
Kiana says
September 18, 2019 at 6:20 amSuper easy to make and delicious
★★★★★
Katja Heino says
October 2, 2019 at 2:18 pmYes! Thanks for your kind feedback. 🙂
Kelsey D says
September 21, 2019 at 5:48 pmJust wondering what the nutrition info and serving size is for this recipe. Thanks!
Katja Heino says
October 2, 2019 at 2:06 pmHi, Kelsey! I don’t calculate. But if you want to know, you can use this —-> http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ Hope that helps. 🙂
Brenda says
September 23, 2019 at 5:28 pmAbsolutely delicious! I swapped cauliflower for broccoli because that’s what I had on hand. Definitely going to make them again and again ?
Katja Heino says
October 2, 2019 at 2:05 pmI am so glad you loved them. 🙂
Autumn says
September 29, 2019 at 7:45 amI love the added nutrients to this with the vegetables
Crissy says
September 30, 2019 at 7:42 pmThese meatballs were so delicious! We loved all the veggies, I used spinach instead of kale, 3 tbsp panko bread crumbs, and 1/2 tsp of salt. I used an 85/15 ground turkey. Can’t wait to make these again and I love all your serving suggestions!
★★★★★
Katja Heino says
October 2, 2019 at 1:52 pmYay! I’m so glad you loved them. 🙂