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Quick and Easy Gluten-Free Turkey Meatballs | TheRoastedRoot.net #healthy #dinner #recipe
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4.67 from 3 votes

Quick & Easy Gluten-Free Turkey Meatballs

The BEST turkey meatballs in red sauce! Serve it up over your choice of pasta noodles, zoodles or rice!
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time50 minutes
Course: Lifestyle
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 12 Meatballs
Calories: 169kcal
Author: Julia

Ingredients

  • 1 pound lean ground turkey see note*
  • 1 egg
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/2 cup gluten-free breadcrumbs see note**
  • 1/3 cup yellow onion finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon dried parsley
  • 1 28-ounce jar pasta sauce of choice, see note***

Instructions

  • Add all of the ingredients to a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix until the ingredients are well-incorporated and the meat begins to ball up. Note: If you don't have a mixer, you can mix everything by hand (yes, with your actual hands) in a mixing bowl. 
  • Form balls out of the turkey meatball mixture (mine were 1-1/2 to 2 inches in diameter), and place them on a plate.
  • Heat a large (10-inch) cast iron skillet to medium-high and add enough olive oil (or algae oil or cooking oil of choice) to generously coat the surface. Once the skillet is hot, carefully place the meatballs on the hot surface, giving ample room between each ball. 
  • Cook for 1.5 minutes, flip the meat balls over, then cook an additional 1.5 minutes. Turn the meatballs a couple more times to get a good sear on them, but don't cook them all the way through. Reduce the heat to medium.
  • Carefully add the sauce to the skillet (if the skillet is too hot, the sauce will splatter out..watch out for sauce debris). Cover the skillet and allow the meatballs to cook at a gentle boil for 20 minutes (or cook over medium-low at a simmer for an hour). 
  • Serve meatballs over choice of zoodles, rice, pasta, gluten-free noodles, etc.

Notes

*You can use 1/2 pound ground turkey + 1/2 pound ground turkey sausage for a more traditional meatball flavor.
**If making paleo or Whole30 meatballs, omit the GF breadcrumbs and add 1/4 cup almond flour and 1 tablespoon tapioca flour. You can also use regular breadcrumbs if you don't follow a GF or paleo diet.
***If using store-bought red sauce, red the label to be sure there isn't any added sugar. I like the Primal Kitchen Brand of marinara sauce. Or follow the marinara sauce recipe from this post.

Nutrition

Serving: 1of 12 | Calories: 169kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 10g | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 3g