How to Make the Softest Italian Meatballs in Tomato Sauce (No Frying)
Learn how to make authentic Italian Meatballs (Polpette al Sugo) recipe — incredibly soft, juicy, and simmered slowly in a rich tomato sauce. Unlike many recipes, there is no frying or baking required. By dropping the meatballs directly into the sauce, they stay incredibly tender and infuse the tomato base with amazing flavor. It’s the ultimate Italian comfort food and perfect for a family Sunday dinner.
The secret to a meatball that melts in your mouth? My family’s trick: using milk-soaked bread (pan bagnato) and a specific blend of ground beef and pork. This ensures they never turn out tough or dry. This is the best meatball recipe for anyone who wants a “no-mess” meal!
Ingredients:
For the Meatballs:
1 lb ground beef
1/2 lb ground pork
2 slices of bread (soaked in milk and squeezed dry)
1 large egg
1 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano
1 garlic clove, grated
Salt & black pepper (to taste)
For the Sauce:
Extra virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, whole
2 jars tomato passata
2 cans whole peeled tomatoes (crushed)
1/2 cup water
Fresh basil
Salt & black pepper (to taste)
Instructions:
1. In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add whole garlic cloves to infuse the oil.
2. Pour in the tomato passata, crushed tomatoes, and water. Season with salt, pepper, and fresh basil. Bring to a gentle simmer.
3. In a large bowl, combine beef, pork, soaked bread, egg, Parmigiano, grated garlic, salt and pepper. Mix it all up!
4. Roll the mixture into meatballs and drop them directly into the simmering sauce.
5. Cook on low heat for about 40 minutes. Stir gently a few times to ensure even cooking.
Instructions:
0:00 Introduction to Polpette al Sugo
0:26 Flavoring the Olive Oil
0:42 Preparing the Tomato Sauce Base
2:07 The Secret to Soft Meatballs
4:11 Mixing the Beef and Pork
4:51 Rolling the Out the Meatballs
5:12 Dropping Meatballs into the Sauce
6:38 Stirring and Simmering
6:58 The Result: Tender, Juicy Meatballs
7:26 Plating
8:18 Giovanni
Why You’ll Love This Recipe:
✅ No Mess: No oil splatters from frying, everything happens in one pot!
✅ Extra Tender: The “poaching” method in the sauce keeps the meat incredibly moist.
✅ Authentic Flavor: A true Italian Sunday staple that tastes better the next day.
💬 Comment Below:
In Italy, everyone has a secret for meatballs. Do you use milk-soaked bread like my family, or do you prefer using breadcrumbs? Let me know in the comments! And don’t forget to subscribe for more authentic Italian family recipes! 🇮🇹
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#meatballs #italianfood #familydinner
50 Comments
Exactly like my Italian grandmother made them! I’ve still been trying to make them as tender as she did.. I’m getting there!
Oh I never tried this one throwing meatballs directly to the sauce
I usually bake them first then throw them to the sauce simmer first 25 min that’s it
My mom always cooked and made meatballs this way ,but she also added a lot of pecorino grated cheese to the sauce
I really enjoy your recipes. So good…
My paternal grandmother emigrated from Naples, and it’s her recipe that I use today. The tomato sauce base is purée and paste. Oregano, basil, salt, sugar, garlic added as it simmers.
The ideal meatball mixture was beef, pork, and veal, if available (and affordable) to which we added garlic, onion, an egg, breadcrumbs, some grated cheese and milk.
These meatballs were NEVER baked, sautéed, fried…once formed, they were just added to the simmering sauce, which over the next several hours would become GRAVY!
N. B. Tomato sauce has one ingredient—tomatoes. Spaghetti gravy is a conglomeration that starts with a tomato sauce base, to which the proprietary ingredients—meat, spices, herbs, etc.—are added, then simmered for hours until that initial tomato foundation becomes a savory, fragrant and delicious gravy.
Not to appear rude but…. You forgot the parsley and by putting the basil in the sauce straight away it will loose a lot of its flavour but ….the most important thing is…. You put 1/2 cm of oil in the pa, fry the meatballs all round ( by turning them ) add the tomato purée and a good glass of dry – medium / dry wine and scrape all the stuck caramelised bit on the bottom of the pan ( that’s all flavour ) and let it reduce, add the Passata and some water, salt & pepper ( easy on the salt, you can add more later ) and after 15/20 minutes taste, if slightly acidy add a teaspoon of sugar ( it depends on the quality of the tomatoes ) , cook on a low flame for 1 – 1/2 to 2 hours , add the basil and enjoy. Now, that’s the real Napoletana meat sauce, your meat balls will be nice and tender by sealing all the flavour when frying. Try that and let me know.
This is the recipe I learned from my Nana. We'd have a blast rolling the meatballs. It's still the hubster's favorite meal.
Thanks for the memory tickle. 🤌✌️🤟🙏
Its the milk that softens the mince
I usually do 6 to 7 hours with beef, sausage(the beef and sausage I lightly brown) but the last hour I drop my balls and yes no fried but raw! MY WHOLE LIFE!
I used soaked bread as well, but instead of using milk, I soaked my bread in sauce. I also fry my meatballs in olive oil. They come out tender and flavorful.
Did anyone else catch that he cracked the egg on his wedding ring? 😂 Love it!
The meatball ingredients are pretty on point. I always use percorino-romano (as opposed to the parm-regg), a bit of olive oil, and chopped fresh parsley. Dropping the raw meatballs into the sauce in the last 40 minutes is definately the correct way to do it.
Slow cooker, sauce, meatballs, period! Everyone loves my meatballs! Fry before, very greasy
Ground lamb, beef, pork, so tender! Tasty too
Great video!!! HINT: Zap some fresh bread in the blender… instant breadcrumbs… add this to your milk, your beaten egg, seasonings in a mixing bowl…
You will have a mixture that will very easily mix in with your meat. No over-working and over-kneading….
And… If you absolutely HAVE to make use of a jarred Marinara… One word… RAO's.
Are the 2 cans of crushed tomatoes 28 oz each?
Can I pre make and roll the meatballs ahead of time and then drop them in the sauce when I am ready?
Subscribed boss, looks so yummy, I will try this weekend
Subbed…
Somebody needs to tell this guy that sunscreen is his friend, some people tan and some people burn, he's a burner.
What size can tomatoes did he use ?
This looks so simple 😍 Sam thinks are the best when they are simple.
This is one of them. I tried lots of your recipes, and they all turn out great
Thanks so much again for those simple meatballs 😋
I do the same but use only veal and it’s delicious. My grandma’s recipe.
I didn’t know that
Make mine almost identical except I add a litte fresh chopped Italian parsley to meatball mixture and a 1/4 of warm water. This method also makes the meat amazingly soft Yours look fab. TO. 🇨🇦
Did I hear you say wooder? Not water.. from Philly?❤
Try putting about 1/3 c whole milk ricotta cheese in your meatball mix ! I’m first generation Italian 🤌🏼
This is exactly how my Italian grandmother and mom made meatballs. However, they sautéed onions for their sauce.
I have salt & pepper hair & brown eyes. Your blue eyes are beautiful Giovanni. The sauce & meatballs look fantastic. Will have to try these
Those are fantastic for sure but then the next day comes and you make a meatball sub and you elevate them to God Tier.
Great job on the ingredients selection and preparation of the sauce and meatballs.But one cardinal sin has happened here. You gotta fry the meatballs! You have to. Here is why. You need to at least place them in hot oil and roll them until they are thoroughly browned for several minutes on the outside so the outside is cooked before placing them in the sauce. If not your meatballs will be too soft.Squishy and spongy from soaking up too much sauce. Meatballs should be firm, browned and tasty on the outside.And soft only in the center. Italian nonna's feel free to help me out with this argument.🎉
Looks good, but it adds so much more flavor to at least brown the outside of the meatballs and then finish cooking them in the sauce. Also, the sauce will have 100% of the fat from the meat. If you fry or bake off some of the fat, it will be more balanced. But, this will work, and is just another option. Next time, I’ll do a test by cooking some in the sauce only, and frying some first. 😋🍝
Absolutely the best way is in the sauce!
Sauce needs seasoned breadcrumbs, garlic powder, garlic salt, onion powder and Parmesan cheese! No basil. Milk in bread? No. Same ingredients in the meatballs as the sauce.
We’ve never added pork, only beef.
Your cooking is the key to bringing love ones together. I'm originally from Sicily, and my grandfather's name was Giovanni siracusa
The neighborhood I grew up in Pittsburgh was polish and Italian mostly and they all shared recipes and this is the exact way my polish grandmother made meatballs.. Awesome!! Great channel brother!
There sure are alot folks here telling how to do things differently. Not sure why that is? You all can rest assured that he made things exactly as he wanted, and your ideas and tips and thoughts are not wanted. Make your own video if you need to.
With hair like that how can he be wrong.
Similar to what my mother and grandmothers did. He lost me at the end when he was speaking with food in his mouth. Ugh!
YOU HAVE TO FRY THEMEATBALLS IN A PAN FOR A LITTLE WHILE BEFORE PUTTING THEM IN SAUCE…YOU SURE YOURE ITALIAN?
I bet them meatballs would make a bomb sammy with some mozzarella right on top❤YUMMY! Thanks for your recipe❤
Oh man, this is how my mom made meatballs! Always the best comfort food!!! Miss that!!
Dude. It looks so good. I’m 75 years old and I was the kid who my mom would like mix up the meatball mix with my hands. I’d stand on a stool to get high enough to reach the counter top. She had me as her helper for her wonderful cooking. And from that I still love to cook.
Your meatball mix is also a great way to make meatloaf. Maybe grate some onion into it with wrap in bacon. The important part of these recipes is the milk soaked bread. It’s what makes it so tender.
Looks great but I've never cooked sauce for only one hour. But I'd like to try this anyways. I love the unfried meatball trick 🤔
I GREW UP WITH MY ITALIAN FAMILY AND NEVER DID WE THROW MEATBALLS IN THE SAUCE WITHOUT FRYING THEM FIRST !!! HOMEMADE SAUCE WITH BRACCIOLE LIGHT OLIVE OIL FRESH GARLIC WE FRIED ON BOTH SIDES THEN PUT INTO THE SAUCE INCREDIBLE MEATBALLS MADE WITH EGGS FRESH PARSLEY FRESH PECORINO GRATED CHEESE ITALIAN BREAD CRUMBS AND THE RIGHT ITALIAN SEASONINGS 👍 MADE WITH ITALIAN MILD AND HOT SAUSAGES ALL PUT IN THE SAUCE AND SIMMER YOU CAN ALSO DO GROUND PORK AND GROUND SIRLOIN MIXED TOGETHER TO DO MEATBALLS WE DO THAT TOO AND THE ITALIEN LASAGNA INCREDIBLE MY FAMILY FROM NAPLES ITALY INCREDIBLE ITALIEN COOKS 👍❤️ COOKED EVERYTHING FROM A TO Z FROM SOUP TO NUTS INCLUDING ITALIEN POLENTA 👍❤️❤️
I immediately clicked. Then immediately subscribed ❤
My Sicilian Grandma's Meatballs
2 lbs. ground chuck
4-6 eggs
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
2/3 cup grated Romano cheese
1 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley (or 2 T. dried parsley)
1/2-3/4 tsp. garlic powder
Brown all sizes of meatballs in olive then put into sauce. Can add ice water for a more moist meatball.
this is right , NO bread crumbs, but bread soaked in milk! My grandma, nona, from Bologna teach me that! Bravo!!!
My Sicilian Grandmother would want me to tell you that you forgot to put a whole bunch of sugar in your sauce!