If you have a hunger for meatballs then let’s try these low-carb Italian Meatballs. They are made with beef, pork, and almond flour. One of the healthiest meatball recipes, these are grain-free, gluten-free, dairy-free, and sugar-free.
Whole30 + Keto Italian Meatballs Recipe by Tastes Lovely
You guys! These are hands down the best meatballs we have EVER HAD! We are serious. Juicy, flavorful, tender, and packed with tons of Italian flavor.
The best part? They’re keto, whole30, gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, sugar-free, and 100% clean eating. We tweaked our previous go-to meatball recipe and made some adjustments to make these completely diet-friendly.
How To Make Whole30 + Keto Italian Meatballs
The first key to the meatballs is using both ground beef and ground pork because this adds a lot of flavor and fat to keep these meatballs juicy. We personally prefer 85% lean beef and 80% pork, and always from ButcherBox.
Rather than using a panade of bread crumbs and milk, we make a panade using almond flour and chicken stock. Works beautifully! We cannot even tell the difference. In fact, we like it even better. The almond flour adds even more protein to the meatballs, and the chicken stock adds a light flavor that doesn’t compete with beef and pork.
Ingredients
These meatballs also have 2 eggs, onions + garlic that have been sauteed until golden, Italian seasonings, salt, pepper, and fresh chopped parsley. All simple, real ingredients.
We mix it all together and use a large cookie scoop to keep the meatballs because it keeps them uniform in size so they bake at the same rate. Plus, it’s much easier to scoop them out than doing it all by hand.
Cooking and Freezing
We like to roast my meatballs on a rimmed baking sheet with a baking rack. By baking them on the wire baking rack the meatballs get crisp and golden because they don’t have to sit in the juice as they bake.
Once they’re done baking, they’re ready to serve! We like serving mine on zoodles or spaghetti squash noodles with marinara sauce. These can also be kept warm in a slow cooker or on the stove with the marinara sauce, and they freeze beautifully! See the recipe and notes for instructions on that.
These keto + whole30 meatballs are also one of the favorite ways to get red meat into children that are under age. The chewing steak of these meatballs is the perfect way to get children a chewable red meat dinner that is packed with iron, zinc, and B12.
Other recipes you might like to try: Parmesan Chicken Keto Recipe, Stuffed Cheese Meatballs, Lemon- Garlic Baked Salmon
Italian Meatballs Keto Recipe
Equipment
- rimmed baking sheet
- large cookie scoop
Ingredients
- ¾ cup (84 g) almond flour
- ½ cup (120 g) chicken stock
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
- 3 cloves of garlic, grated or finely minced
- 1 pound (453.6 g) ground beef, 85% lean
- 1 pound (453.6 g) ground pork, 80% lean
- ½ cup (30 g) packed finely chopped fresh parsley
- 1 tbsp dried Italian herb seasoning
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425ºF. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or foil (for easy clean up), and set in the wire rack.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the almond flour and chicken stock. Stir and set aside while it absorbs the liquid.
- Heat a medium size skillet over medium heat. Add olive oil, onions, garlic and a pinch of salt & pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions are soft and turning golden brown, about 8-10 minutes.
- In the same large mixing bowl that has the almond flour and chicken stock, add the cooked onions & garlic, ground beef, ground pork, 2 eggs, parsley, salt, pepper and Italian seasonings. Use a spatula or hands to mix until completely combined.
- Use a large cookie scoop (or measure out 3 tablespoons) to scoop out meatballs. Place meatballs on wire baking sheet. Will make 23-24 meatballs.
- Bake the meatballs in the oven for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Serve immediately while warm. We love serving over hearts of palm pasta or zucchini noodles with marinara sauce.
- Leftovers will keep refrigerated in an airtight container for 5 days, or frozen for 6 months.
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