This healthy turkey meatballs recipe is perfect because they’re easy to make, full of flavor, and come out moist & tender every time! And because the flavoring isn’t particularly overpowering, they taste great with just about any type of cuisine. Eat them for breakfast with an egg, on top of a salad for lunch, or with marinara sauce and over noodles for dinner.
Why You’ll Love These Baked Turkey Meatballs
- Perfect for high protein meal prep. One of the hardest parts about meeting daily protein goals is not planning ahead and having prepped proteins easily available. These meatballs fixes that problem, taking less than 30 minutes to prep and cook, and lasting all week long
- Healthy and nutritious. Ground turkey is a great option for hitting your protein goals, as it’s low in saturated fat, zero carbs and packed with protein as well as Vitamin B, iron, zinc, phosphorous and potassium.
- Versatile and family friendly. Kids love these mixed with marinara sauce and spaghetti, and adults can use them a variety of ways including veggie loaded protein bowls and even tossed in a simple veggie soup.
Healthy Turkey Meatball Recipe Ingredients
These take just about 10 minutes of prep time because the ingredients are few and the steps are even fewer!
- Ground turkey – I prefer 93% lean
- Bread crumbs – I like Panko best but sub out for almond flour or chickpea crumbs if you’re gluten free
- Egg – this is crucial for keeping the meatballs moist, which I’ll get into below
- Fresh scallions and parsley, but go ahead and use dried herbs as well if that’s all you have on hand
- Lemon zest and salt and pepper.
And that’s all you need to make this healthy turkey meatballs recipe! Keep in mind that you can definitely switch up the herbs a bit, and can even use dried herbs. Oregano and basil would be great, but would give them a more distinct Italian flavoring. I like the herbs recommended just because it keeps the flavor of the meatballs pretty simple and versatile.
How to Make Turkey Meatballs
Start by measuring out all of your ingredients and gathering your tools so that you have everything ready to go. The worst thing that can happen when making meatballs is realizing you forgot to get a pan ready when you’re elbow deep in raw turkey meat.
1. Grab a mixing bowl, a baking tray as well as a frying pan if you plan to fry the meatballs, and all of your ingredients. I also like to have a couple of paper towels handy just in case, and a small bowl of oil to grease my hand with when forming the meatballs.
2. Next, just add your ingredients to the bowl, and mix them all together! Just like you never want to over mix batter when baking, be mindful not to over-mix your meat. Over mixing can toughen up the meat.
3. Form your meatballs into approximately 1.5″ spheres and place on a lined baking sheet. If you are baking them you can stick them right in the oven and bake at 400 for 15 minutes. If you want to pan fry, place the tray in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes to let the meatballs firm up, then pan fry over medium heat for another 10 minutes.
How to Bake Turkey Meatballs
If you are baking them, have a thermometer on hand to measure the internal temperature. Because ovens vary so much, I highly encourage you to start checking your meatballs for doneness at the 10 minute mark. I would hate for you to overcook and dry out your meatballs because your oven runs a bit differently than mine, therefore cooks faster.
How to Fry Turkey Meatballs
Alternately, if pan frying these, I recommend heating about 2 tablespoon of oil in a saute pan over medium high heat. Cook them up in batches, making sure to turn the meatballs around so they cook evenly. The trick is to cook them on one side just long enough so that they don’t stick to the pan when you try to turn them. I have found 5 minutes to just about be the perfect timing.
How to Make Ground Turkey Meatballs Ahead of Time
Assemble and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Cover with plastic wrap or tinfoil and store in the fridge for up to 24 hours before cooking.
Lower the heat to medium-low if the pan starts to smoke and meatballs are getting too brown on the outside before cooking thoroughly on the inside.
Best tips to avoid dry turkey meatballs
I find it quite easy to mess up ground turkey haha! I mean it always tastes passable and gets the job done for feeding a hungry family. But when overcooked or under-seasoned, it can be dry and boring. Here are a few tips to help you achieve healthy turkey meatball success!
- Don’t ever skimp on adding some sort of moisture to the mix. Here we use an egg, but finely diced onions work well too! My mom liked to use milk. I’ve even seen some recipes call for adding olive oil straight to the mix. This is crucial though, so never leave out!
- As I mentioned above, don’t over-mix the meat.This can toughen it up, so instead mix *just* until everything is combined.
- No need to get overly aggressive when forming the meatballs. You want lightly formed balls, just so they hold together. You do not want meatballs so tight and compact they could could be used in a snowball fight.
- Make them all the same size so they cook evenly and uniformly. This will help you avoid half your batch being overcooked and the other half being just right.
Best Turkey Meatballs Recipe Variations
- Gluten Free: It couldn’t be easier to make this healthy turkey meatball recipe gluten free by swapping out bread crumbs. There are so many gluten free bread crumb options now, but I really like chickpea bread crumbs or almond meal as a good alternative.
- Greek inspired meatballs: add in fresh or dried oregano, finely diced red onion and chopped spinach as well as crumbed feta. Pair with my garlic yogurt sauce.
- Asian inspired meatballs: Add grated ginger, garlic and a tablespoon of soy sauce and sesame oil. Pair with teriyaki sauce, using my simple homemade version found in this chicken teriyaki recipe.
- Buffalo ranch: add dried dill, garlic and onion powder and 2 tablespoons of your favorite buffalo sauce. Serve on a bed of mixed greens with carrots, celery and ranch dressing.
How to Store Ground Turkey Meatballs
Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. To reheat, place in the oven at 350 degrees for 5-10 minutes, an air fryer at 350 degrees for 2-3 minutes, or the microwave for 45-60 seconds.
Healthy Turkey Meatball Recipe FAQs
High in protein, low in fat. 4 ounces of cooked ground turkey is about 28 grams of protein. It’s also packed with vitamins and minerals, and is a great option for those trying to stick to a weight loss plan, as it’s very satiating.
The bread crumbs will help keep the meatballs together. Some brands of ground turkey have a lot of extra moisture. If you find your meatballs are not holding together with the recommended breadcrumb quantity, add another ¼-1/2 cup to the mixture.
The best way to ensure even sizing for each meatball is to weigh each one after forming, and adjust as needed. The second best way is to use a uniform tool to scoop out the mixture, like an ice cream scoop or cookie batter tool.
What to Serve with Turkey Meatballs
- Chilled Pesto Orzo Salad: Light pasta salad that balances meatballs nicely. Works warm or cold, and is easy to prep ahead
- Pearl Couscous Salad with Vegetables: A veggie-packed, slightly chewy grain salad that pairs well with the protein of meatballs while adding fiber and color.
- Arugula Salad with Quinoa, Hazelnuts & Goat Cheese: A hearty, fiber-rich salad that can serve as a lighter side, or be bulked up with meatballs for a complete meal
Other Yummy Healthy Recipes
- Skillet Turkey Meatballs & Rice
- Oven Baked Chicken Cutlets
- Easy Baked Meatballs with Ricotta and Sundried Tomatoes
- Instant Pot BBQ Meatballs
- Easy Low-Carb Italian Style Meatballs
Healthy Turkey Meatballs – Baked or Fried
Ingredients
- 1 pound 93% lean ground turkey
- ⅓ cup panko bread crumbs or ¼ almond flour if making gluten free
- 1 large egg
- Greens from 2 scallions sliced thin
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley or 1 tablespoon dried parsley
- 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon salt & ½ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl until well combined. Roll heaping tablespoons of turkey mixture into small meatballs about 1.5″ in diameter. Place on a lined baking sheet and bake at 400 for 15 minutes, or until center of meatballs registers 160 degrees.
- Alternately, if pan frying, cover raw meatballs with plastic wrap or paper towels and refrigerate tray for at least 15 minutes to allow to firm up.
- Heat 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat and cook meatballs for about 10 minutes, rotating half way through cooking to brown on each side. Drain on a paper towel lined plate and serve.
Emily Bruno says
So easy and flavorful!
Lauren Grant says
I love these turkey meatballs! So easy to whip up and incredibly tender. A staple around here!
Tawnie Kroll says
The lemon zest in these meatballs adds such a wonderful flavor! New favorite recipe!!
Lauren Nagel says
Meatballs are a go for o meal prep for me, adding these to the rotation!
Lauren Grant | Zestful Kitchen says
YUM! These look so delicious!
Andrea Howe says
Thank you! they are one of our favorites 🙂
Tawnie says
This lOoks Incredible!!!
Susie Weinrich says
Im always looking for new meatball recipes.. it is one dinner my kids love!