Tender, juicy and super flavorful Italian Meatballs made right in your Instant Pot. No browning or sautéing required! You will have authentic Italian Meatballs in under 30 minutes!Watch me make this Instant Pot Meatball Recipe on a 30 minute episode of Pinterest TV!
Dinner- on top of cooked pasta or creamy polenta. Also great in a meatball sub
For a lower carb option serve over zucchini noodles.
Our favorite is serving these meatballs with a 50/50 combo of spaghetti and the Trader Joe's Heart of Palm pasta.
Appetizer - with warm crostini
Instructions
Preparing The Meatballs
Start by combining the panko breadcrumbs, lightly beaten egg, milk and extra virgin olive oil in a small bowl. Give it all a good stir and let sit for 5 minutes to soften. (while it sets measure out all your seasonings, coarsely grind the parmesan and mince your garlic)
½ cup panko bread crumbs, 2 tablespoon milk, 1 large egg, 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
Add the minced garlic, parmesan, dried basil, onion powder, kosher salt and black pepper to the breadcrumb mixture. Give it a good stir.
½ cup parmesan cheese, 2-3 plump garlic cloves, 1 ½ teaspoon dried basil, ¾ teaspoon onion powder, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper
Now add the ground beef and ground pork. Lightly mix everything together so it is evenly distributed. (I like to do this with clean hands)
1 lb ground beef, 1 lb ground pork
Form the meatballs. You should have between 20-24 meatballs. PRO TIP: use a cookie scoop to measure out the meatball mixture. It will ensure more uniform meatballs.
Cooking in the Instant Pot
Prepare your Instant Pot by spraying the bottom with nonstick spray, or you can coat it with a tablespoon or two of oil. PRO TIP - The oil/spray will help prevent the burn warning. But if you feel you have a sensitive pot that gives you the burn warning often, see the notes below!
non stick spray
Pour in half the jar of marinara sauce.
24 oz jarred marinara
Layer in the meatballs and then pour the remaining sauce over top.
Close the lid, turn the pressure valve to "seal". Set to cook on high pressure for 8 minutes.
When the time is up do a 5 minute natural release, letting the pot count back up to 5. Then release the remaining pressure with a quick release.
Very lightly stir the meatballs breaking apart any that are stuck together.
Serving
I personally like to remove all the meatballs from the Instant Pot. Then I check to see if there is extra grease on top of the sauce, skim off any excess. Give the sauce a good stir.
Serve with cooked pasta (hello spaghetti and meatballs), over creamy polenta, or on a meatball sub.
Or as an appetizer serve with crostini or chunks of warm ciabatta... burrata would be great with it too!
Storing
These meatballs will keep perfectly in the fridge for up to 4 days.
You can also freeze them for up to 3 months. To use: thaw in the fridge overnight and then warm over medium low heat until warmed through.
Notes
Parmesan Cheese Pro Tip - pulse parmesan cheese in a food processor or blender until it is coarsely ground, like pea gravel. This will give you nice pockets of parmesan cheese in your meatballs! Burn Warning- This is my own opinion but I truly believe that some of the newer Instant Pots have a more sensitive burn warning. If you think your pot might be a little more sensitive consider using your trivet. Spray the nonstick spray and pour in half the sauce, then use the trivet and layer the meatballs on top of the trivet. In The Oven- If you would rather make these meatballs in the oven, pop over to The Best Baked Italian Meatball Recipe!