How To Freeze Meatballs

Homemade Meatballs are perfect to make ahead and freeze for later. Learn how to make and freeze meatballs and thaw them when you need it.
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Homemade Meatballs are perfect to make ahead and freeze for busy nights. They are so versatile with the type of meats and different flavors you can use. Learn how to make and freeze meatballs and thaw them when you need it.

a grey bowl filled with baked basic meatballs and a wooden spoon with one meatball.

Why Freeze Meatballs

Having something quick and easy to make for dinner is a must for most people. Whether you have a demanding job, demanding family, or both, everyone needs to eat and we can’t live on take-out all the time. That’s why having easy freezer meals is so helpful.

One of the top questions I always get about recipes is whether they can be prepared ahead of time and/or frozen. That is why I always include freezing instructions when appropriate. Meatballs are one of those recipes that is just PERFECT for freezing! And when you’re ready, you can make some quick grape jelly meatballs as an appetizer or Italian meatballs dinner in a flash.

It is actually my FAVORITE food to freeze because they can be used in such wide variety of meals. You can use chicken, turkey, beef and pork, lamb, or veal as your meat of choice. There is a variety of flavors you can add as well, from different herbs and seasoning, to cheeses and veggies.

Meatballs can be frozen with or without sauce too. I prefer to freeze them without sauce because that will give me much more flexibility to make a sauce that I will be in the mood for later.

How To Freeze Cooked Meatballs

PRO TIP: freezing cooked meatballs is my personal preferred method because they are easier to work with to thaw.

collage of two images of meatball mixture being scooped and rolled into meatballs.
Basic beef meatballs mixture and rolled meatballs.

1: Prepare the meat mixture and use a cookie scoop to scoop out the meat mixture into even-sized meatballs (1). You can choose a size of the cookie scoop according to the meatball size you prefer.

2: Lay out the meatballs in a baking pan, side by side, but leave some space in between each meatball (2).

3: Bake the meatballs at 400° for 18-22 minutes, depending on the size.

4: Cover a large cutting board with parchment paper and lay cooked meatballs out on the paper to cool to room temperature.

5: Once the meatballs are at room temperature, place the cutting board with meatballs in the freezer for about 2 hours. SET A TIMER!

6: Once the meatballs are frozen, divide them among the freezer bags, close them tight, label and place back in the freezer. Freeze for 2-3 months.

PRO TIP: You can freeze meatballs with sauce or without. I do NOT recommend freezing meatballs with cream sauce. Many dairy products tends to separate when frozen so if you want to freeze meatballs in sauce, use tomato based or non-cream sauces.

PRO TIP 2: Note that flour thickened sauces, like gravy, DO NOT freeze well either. It is recommended to use tapioca starch when making thickened sauced/gravy for freezing.

collage of two images of meatballs baked and layered on parchment.
collage of two images of frozen meatballs of cutting board and in the zip-top bag.

How To Thaw Meatballs

To THAW meatballs, pull the bag with meatballs out of the freezer and place in the refrigerator. This can take a few hours or overnight, depending on size of meatballs and how many are in the bag.

You can prepare sauce and cook the meatballs in the sauce for a few minutes before serving.

If you’ve frozen meatballs with sauce already, you will just have to reheat the meatballs in sauce in the oven or in the pan on stove-top. To reheat them, bring meatballs in sauce to simmer over medium heat and cook for a few minutes to heat through. Or, place them in a baking dish and reheat at 350° until hot throughout.

How to Freeze Uncooked Meatballs

collage of two images of scooping turkey meatball mixture and rolled into meatballs.
Turkey meatballs mixture and rolled turkey meatballs.

PRO TIP: while you can definitely freeze meatballs uncooked, it is not ideal when it comes to thawing and if you used previously frozen meat. Don’t thaw uncooked meatballs in the bag you froze them in. You will need to separate them before thawing in the refrigerator.

1: Prepare the meatballs mixture and mix it very well. Use a cookie scoop to scoop out the meatball mixture (1) and quickly roll them.

2: Place rolled meatballs on parchment paper covered cutting board. Make sure to leave some space in between each meatball (2).

3: Place the cutting board with the meatballs into the freezer for about 2 hours. SET THE TIMER!

4: Once the meatballs are frozen, transfer them into a freezer friendly zip-top bag. Label the bag and freeze for up to 2 months.

To Thaw Raw Meatballs:

Raw or cooked, meatballs need to be thawed slowly, in the refrigerator. Line a rimmed baking sheet (or baking pan) with parchment paper. Take the bag of frozen meatballs out of the freezer and separate them on a parchment paper.

Cover the baking sheet air-tight and place into the refrigerator for the meatballs to thaw.

Ingredients To Make Basic Meatballs

labeled ingredients to make basic meatballs on wooden background.

Meat – for the beef meatballs, use a combination of equal parts of 1 lb. ground beef and 1 lb. ground pork for juicy and tender meatballs. You can also use 2 lbs. of ground chicken to make chicken meatballs, or 2 lbs. ground turkey to make turkey meatballs.

Onion – minced yellow onion is a must addition for juicy and flavorful meatballs.

Garlic – it’s best to use fresh garlic and press it.

Soaked bead – use a thick slice of bread and soak it in some milk. You will squeeze the milk out and discard it before adding the bread to meatball mixture. (Allergy note: Use gluten free bread if needed and use milk alternatives or lactose free milk if needed!)

Seasoning – for the basic meatballs, all you need is salt, pepper, and garlic powder.

a bowl full of baked meatless and a spoon holding gone.

Recipe FAQs

What flavors can I add to meatballs mixture?

To variate the flavor and compliment the sauce that you know you will want to use, you can add different herbs, seasoning, and cheeses.
Italian meatballs – add grated parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning to the meatball mixture. You can also cook and freeze these meatballs with marinara sauce.
Swedish meatballs – if you know that you will be using the meatballs to make Swedish meatballs, add 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg, 1/2 tsp white pepper, and 1/2 tsp ground allspice to the meatball mixture. Don’t freeze these meatballs with sauce.
Thai chili meatballs – if you will be making meatballs with Thai chili sauce, you can add either a fresh chili pepper or crushed red pepper flakes to the meatballs mixture. Also, you can add some cilantro and chives.

There are many different complimentary flavors you can add to meatballs, so feel free to play around with herbs and seasonings.

Is it better to freeze cooked or uncooked meatballs?

Personally, I prefer to freeze cooked meatballs.
Uncooked meatballs are not as easy to thaw. You will have to make sure to separate frozen uncooked meatballs before thawing them or you are likely to end up with meatballs all stuck together.
It is also best to cook meatballs first because you likely used previously frozen ground meat to make the meatball mixture. If you know for sure you used fresh meat that was not previously frozen, that is okay to freeze it uncooked. If you know you used previously frozen ground meat to make your meatballs mixture, it’s best to cook them before freezing.

Can I freeze meatballs with or without sauce?

Depending on the sauce, you can freeze the meatballs either with or without it.
Sauces not good for freezing – it’s best not freeze some creamy, emulsified, and flour-thickened sauces. There is a good chance that those sauce will separate and not thaw well. These sauce are best to add after thawing.
Sauces good for freezing – tomato sauces, clear sauces, sweet Thai chili sauce, teriyaki, and many others without cream.

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a bowl full of baked meatless and a spoon holding gone.

Basic Meatballs Recipe And Freezing Instructions

Homemade Meatballs are perfect to make ahead and freeze for later. Learn how to make and freeze meatballs and thaw them when you need it.
3.90 from 19 votes
Print Rate
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Freeze Time:: 2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
Servings: 4 4-6 servings
Calories: 678kcal
Author: Lyuba Brooke

Ingredients

Basic Meatball Recipe:

  • 1 lb ground beef 85/15
  • 1 lb ground pork
  • 1 thick slice of bread
  • 1/4 cup milk whole, reduced far, or milk alternative
  • 2 eggs
  • 2-3 garlic cloves pressed
  • 1/4 cup minced yellow onion
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp coarse salt more or less to taste
  • 1/4-1/2 tsp black pepper more or less to teste

Instructions

  • Combining all of the ingredients, except for soaked bread, in the mixing bowl. Squeeze out the milk from the soaked bread slice and crumble the bread into the mixing bowl. Discard squeezed milk. Mix well the meatball mixture until all evenly incorporated.
  • Grease your hands with some cooking spray. To get even meatballs, use a cookie scoop. (I use #40 scoop but you can use a slightly larger one.) Try to keep the meatballs about 1 inch in diameter. (You can make meatballs a little bigger or smaller according to your own preference. Just remember to adjust cooking time if making bigger or smaller meatballs.)
  • Lay out the meatballs on a parchment paper lined rimmed baking sheet, side by side but leave a little space in between.
  • Preheat the oven to 400° and bake for 18-22 minutes, depending on the size of the meatballs.

Freezing Cooked Meatballs:

  • Cover a large cutting board with parchment paper and lay cooked meatballs out on the paper to cool to room temperature.
  • Once the meatballs are at room temperature, place the cutting board with meatballs in the freezer for about 2 hours. SET A TIMER!
  • Once the meatballs are frozen, divide them among the freezer bags, close air-tight, label, and place back in the freezer. Freeze for 2-3 months.

To Thaw Cooked Meatballs:

  • Pull the bag with meatballs out of the freezer and place in the refrigerator to thaw. This can take a few hours or overnight, depending on size of meatballs and how many are in the bag.

To Freeze Raw Meatballs:

  • Prepare the meatballs mixture and mix it very well. Use a cookie scoop to scoop out the meatball mixture and quickly roll them.
  • Place rolled meatballs on parchment paper covered cutting board and make sure to leave some space in between each meatball.
  • Place the cutting board with the meatballs into the freezer for about 2 hours. SET THE TIMER! Once the meatballs are frozen, transfer them into a freezer friendly zip-top bag, label, and freeze for up to 2 months.

To Thaw Raw Frozen Meatballs:

  • Raw or cooked, meatballs need to be thawed slowly, in the refrigerator. Line a rimmed baking sheet (or baking pan) with parchment paper. Take the bag of frozen meatballs out of the freezer and separate them on a parchment paper.
  • Cover the baking sheet air-tight and place into the refrigerator for the meatballs to thaw slowly. Bake them or cook them on stove-top according to the recipe.

Notes

Adding sauce to thawed meatballs: You can prepare sauce and cook the meatballs in the sauce for a few minutes before serving.
If you’ve frozen meatballs with sauce already, you will just have to reheat the meatballs in sauce in the oven or in the pan on stove-top. To reheat them, bring meatballs in sauce to simmer over medium heat and cook for a few minutes to heat through. Or, place them in a baking dish and reheat at 350 until hot throughout.
 

Nutrition

Calories: 678kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 43g | Fat: 50g | Saturated Fat: 18g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 22g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 244mg | Sodium: 852mg | Potassium: 711mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 128IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 79mg | Iron: 4mg
Tried this recipe?Mention @willcookforsmiles or tag #willcookforsmiles!

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All images and text ©Lyubov Brooke for ©Will Cook For Smiles. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If using my posts in collections and features, please link back to this post for the recipe.
Disclaimer: Nutrition information shown is not guaranteed to be 100% accurate as most ingredients and brands have variations.

3.90 from 19 votes (16 ratings without comment)

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20 Comments

  1. Kimberley says:

    I plan on making these for a vacation trip with old college buddies! We are having Italian night Sunday but leaving with frozen meatballs on Friday. The meatballs will be packed in cooler! Will these hold until Sunday or will they be ruined?

    1. Hi, they will be fine in the fridge for a couple days as long as they stay cold in the cooler on the way there.

  2. wilhelmina says:

    5 stars
    This is a great time saver on busy nights. It has become a standard part of my meal prep for busy weeks!

    1. I’m happy to hear that the recipe has become a valuable time-saver for you during busy nights and weeks!

  3. 5 stars
    We made these meatballs for sub sandwiches and my kids loved them more than Subway. Making another batch for the freezer.

    1. That’s fantastic to hear!

  4. Please give the directions for “cook until done”. Temp and approx time would be helpful. I have only every cooked store bought meatballs or as part of a recipe that will be cooked completely.

  5. Kathy martin says:

    To freeze cooked meatballs on a baking sheet do I cover the meatballs too

    1. I do not cover them on the cookie sheet but do make sure after they freeze that you put them in an airtight freezer bag.

  6. Stacy Hinz says:

    How long can they last in freezer? I am guessing it typically isn’t a problem but just checking.

    1. Hi, Stacy! These will last in the freezer up to 4 months.

  7. Hi Lyuba, I’ve just mixed up the chicken for the meatballs. What you said about finishing them off in the sauce making them extra tasty has me wondering if I should still do that and then take the meatballs out of the sauce and freeze the meatballs separately and the sauce separately or freeze them in the sauce? I’m probably over thinking this but I don’t have any experience with freezing meatballs and I want them to be fantastic. I just do not have time to do them in the last couple of days before the party. What do you think is best?

    Thanks,
    Sher

    1. Sher, I prefer to freeze the sauce and meatballs separately. If you choose to freeze them together. make sure the sauce is not cream-based.

      1. Charles Sonza says:

        3 stars
        Since I use cheese in my meatballs you’re saying to not freeze? Cheese is a dairy product.

        1. Charles,
          Most cheeses, especially hard cheese like Parmesan, in the meatball mixture will be just fine. The dairy in the freezer applies to cream, sour cream and things like that.

  8. Marisa Franca @ All Our Way says:

    Me, again. I just reread the entire post and noticed that you cooked the meatballs until just done. From the gorgeous shot, they still looked uncooked. Glad I reread it.

  9. Marisa Franca @ All Our Way says:

    Hi, Lyuba! Your meatballs look delicious! Now we also make loads of meatballs when we decide it’s time to restock our supply. Freezing them uncooked would give the dish that you’re adding them to more flavor from the meatballs. Really, I had no idea you were expecting until recently. Congratulations — a little girl. How precious, but little boys are special too. We have 4 grandsons. All have their own personality. Great freeze ahead recipes. Have a wonderful weekend.

    1. Thank you, Marisa! We’re very excited. Sorry for the late respond.

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