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These tender turkey meatballs simmered in a flavourful tomato sauce are a hit with the whole family-babies, toddlers, kids, and adults alike. Easy to make and great for freezing, they're sure to become a regular in your weekly meal rotation
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Little ones can often find meat a bit dry, but these turkey meatballs were always a favourite with my boys when they were babies and toddlers-and they still love them now as tweens and teens!
The tender texture makes them ideal for younger children, and simmering them in the tomato sauce keeps the meatballs succulent while infusing the sauce with even more flavour.
Prefer meatballs not cooked in sauce-great for lunchboxes or as a finger food? Be sure to check out our Baby-Led Weaning (BLW) Chicken Meatballs, Spiced Lamb Meatballs, or Lemongrass and Ginger Chicken Meatballs.
Ingredients Information (With Alternative Suggestions
- Ground Turkey (Turkey Mince) - Can sub with ground chicken, beef, pork, lamb, or a mix of meats.
- Egg - Helps bind the meatballs. If you want an egg-free meatball, you can skip or alternatively mix the breadcrumbs with 2 tablespoon milk (panade) to keep meatballs tender.
- Breadcrumbs - Gives structure and light texture. I
- Parmesan Cheese - Adds flavour and richness. Skip if dairy-free or reducing sodium.
- Onion & Celery - Add natural sweetness and depth to the sauce. Finely chop or grate for a smoother texture. Can be skipped for extra-fussy eaters.
- Passata - Smooth and mild-great for babies and toddlers. Can sub with crushed tomatoes (texture will be chunkier).
- Oregano - For flavour, can replace with Italian seasoning or fresh herbs such as basil can be stirred in at the end.
Step By Step Instructions
- Saute Vegetables: Heat oil in a pot and gently cook chopped onion, celery, and garlic for 10 minutes until soft
- Simmer Tomato Sauce: Add passata, water, oregano. Bring to boil, then simmer gently.
- Meatball Mixture: Combine turkey, onion, egg, breadcrumbs, and parmesan in a large bowl. Mix gently by hand
- Roll and Simmer Meatballs: Shape into 1-tablespoon meatballs and gently add to the sauce. Simmer for 30 minutes
Cooking Tips
- Don't Overwork the Meat Mixture
Mix gently using your hands to keep the meatballs tender. over-mixing can make them dense or tough. - Easy Rolling
Lightly oil or wet your hands to stop the mixture sticking. - Smoother Sauce Option
Grate the onion and celery-or blend the sauce in a blender if your kids dislike "bits" - Sauce Too Acidic?
Add a small pinch of sugar to balance the flavour
Simmer longer to mellow the acidity and deepen the flavour. - Add Extra Veggies
Grate carrot or zucchini or finely chop spinach into the meatball mix for an added boost of veggies.
Serving Suggestions
- With Pasta - We love these with a mix of spaghetti and zucchini (courgette) noodles for a lighter, veggie-packed twist.
- With Mashed Potato - Creamy mash makes a comforting combo with the rich tomato sauce.
- With Crusty Bread - Perfect for soaking up that delicious sauce.
- In a Sandwich - Turn leftovers into meatball subs-just add cheese and toast until warm and melty.
Storage Instructions
- Refrigerate - Allow meatballs and sauce to cool before transferring to a covered container. Store in the refrigerator for up to two days.
- Freeze - Once cooled, place meatballs and sauce in an airtight container. Store in the freezer for up to 2 months.
- Reheat - Thaw frozen meatballs and sauce overnight in the refrigerator. Reheat gently in a saucepan or microwave until piping hot. Stir well and check for any hot spots before serving.
Recipe FAQs
These turkey meatballs can be introduced from around 6 months, once your baby is developmentally ready and is used to finger foods.
Important considerations: The recipe contains dairy (parmesan cheese), wheat (breadcrumbs), and egg-all common allergens. These should be introduced safely and separately before offering this dish.
To reduce sodium, skip the salt and you you may also wish to omit the parmesan cheese.
Serving tips for babies: If serving with spaghetti, snip the noodles into small pieces and mix well with the tomato sauce and serve in a bowl, which will help with scooping.
Serving meatballs whole may be easier for younger babies to grip and hold. For older babies and toddlers, you may wish to chop the meatballs into smaller pieces.
Always provide a safe eating environment and supervise babies closely while they eat.
For informational purposes only-each baby develops at their own pace. Make informed decisions for your child and consult a professional for personalised advice.
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Turkey Meatballs in a Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
Tomato Sauce
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion - finely chopped *SEE NOTE 1
- 1 celery stalk - finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 700ml (3 cups) passata Can replace with 2 x 400g (14 oz) cans of crushed tomatoes.
- 500 ml (2 cups) water (or chicken stock)
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- Pinch dried crushed chilli flakes (optional)
- ½ teaspoon salt Do not add if making for a baby.
Meatballs
- 450g (1lb) ground turkey (turkey mince)
- 1 egg
- 45g (½ cup) breadcrumbs
- 25g (3 tbsp) freshly grated parmesan cheese * SEE NOTE 2
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a heavy based saucepan or dutch oven, add the onions (for the sauce), celery and garlic and cook at a low temperature, stirring occasionally, for about 10 mins.
- Add the oregano, crushed chilli flakes, passata and water and bring to the boil before turning the heat down to simmer gently (while you make the meatballs. ) Season to taste.
- Put all the meatball ingredients into a large mixing bowl and mix together, gently, with your hands. Try not to over mix.
- Roll the mixture into balls approx. 1tbsp inch in size. We made 28 from this mixture.
- Gently place the balls into the tomato sauce and allow to simmer for 30 mins, until cooked through.
- Serve with a side of your choice.
Video
Recipe Notes
- I finely chop the vegetables for the sauce but if your kids do not like "bits" in their sauce then I recommend pureeing the onion and celery to give a smoother sauce.
- Freshly grated parmesan works best in this recipe. I buy a block and freshly grate it. You can alternatively buy freshly grated parmesan but don't use the ambient grated parmesan (you find in the pasta aisle), the taste is not the same!
- For more flavour, you may wish to add some herbs. A little thyme, oregano or basil all works well.
- If your sauce is too acidic (will depend on the tomatoes) you can add a pinch of sugar to balance out and simmer longer.
Tanesha H
My 10 month old loved them. However my sauce didn't turn out like yours unfortunately. It was on the thicker/clumpy side as I didn't puree the veggies after. Can I cook the meatballs another way? Baking or frying them alone ?
Amy
Hi Tanesha, I'm so glad your little one loved these 🙂
I don't puree the sauce but I do chop the vegetables very finely. I'm not sure why your sauce would be clumpy, did you remember to add the water? Did you use passata or canned tomatoes? If your child doesn't like "bits" in the sauce you could always puree the onion and celery before cooking or the sauce after. You could also skip the vegetables but the sauce may not be as flavoursome.
If you just want plain turkey meatballs, without a sauce, you could bake or fry them. Here is a chicken meatball recipe that has timings and oven temp to help guide you.
Charlie A
This was easy to make and really tasty, thanks Amy! Leftovers were even better the next day as the flavours had further developed. Five stars.
Charlie A
This was easy to make and really tasty, thanks Amy! Leftovers were even better the next day as the flavours had further developed.
Amy
Glad you enjoyed them, thanks Charlie 🙂
Deb
If i want to freeze meatballs and sauce separately, should i freeze the meatballs uncooked?
Jamie
Made this last night, my son kept shoveling meatballs into his mouth haha. They tasted so good! Thanks so much for your recipes. As a new mom with no previous knowledge of cooking, your recipes have helped me out tremendously and I'm learning each time!
Amy
Excellent! So lovely to hear 🙂
Lucy
Thank you so much for this winning recipe! I altered it slightly by using chicken mince instead of turkey, and put grated carrot and zucchini in the meatball mix instead of onion. There were zero complaints from my 3 and 1.5yr old and they gobbled it all up!
Amy
Zero complaints is always a good thing! Thanks so much for taking the time to rate and leave a comment, it means a lot 🙂
Iola Josebury
Amazing - thank you for another recipe my fussy 4 year old would try and then ask for seconds and thirds. The 9 month old baby also had a whole meatball to himself. So pleased we have another meal for the whole family to eat together.
Amy
Excellent! Comments like this make me so happy, Lola :). Thanks for taking the time to comment and rate, I'm delighted your kiddos enjoyed the recipe.
Jennifer Ng
Does this work if I just want to sear/cook the meatballs desperately, and not in the sauce. Want to freeze just the cooked meatballs.
Jennifer Ng
Sorry *seperately, not desperately 🙂
Amy
Hi Jennifer, you could cook the meatballs separately but the flavour of the sauce & meatballs will be different. The sauce freezes well too. Or are you not planning on making the sauce at all?
Jennifer Ng
Oh no I totally am! I was just wondering. I’ll make it together like you have! Can’t wait to try!
Deb
If i want to freeze meatballs and sauce separately, should i freeze the meatballs uncooked?
Amy
Hi Deb, you can freeze them cooked or raw. However, as you cook them in the sauce it would probably be easier to freeze raw.
Sarah
I make turkey meatballs quite a lot, but these are the nicest I’ve made! I put a few chilli flakes in the meatballs & think my daughter hit a bit of that on the first taste which put her off, but I pursuaded her to try another & she says she liked it. She loved the sauce, I added a sweet pepper to it as she loves those
Amy
Hi Sarah, thanks for your lovely feedback. Comments like this really make my day 🙂 So glad you like them x
Amanda
I made this for my nearly 10mo daughter and she absoutely scoffed it down. I added some extra veg to the sauce and omitted the parmesan cheese as she's dairy/egg intolerant.
Amy
Hi Amanda, Brilliant - I love that your daughter is a fan of this and I'm loving your extra veg in the sauce idea! Thanks for taking the time to comment.