Are you looking for a delicious and easy Italian dinner option? Try this slow cooker polpette recipe! These flavorful Italian meatballs are sure to become a family favorite.
Why You Will Love These Italian Meatballs!
These Italian meatballs (Polpette in Italian) have been loved by so many people over the years. It is a recipe from my Italian great-grandparents that has been passed down through the generations and now to me. It is the same recipe my family cooked in Italy. The only change is that I have adapted it to make them in the slow cooker.
The main thing that makes these meatballs so amazing is the type of breadcrumbs used. In Italy, you go to the bakery and pick up breadcrumbs that are made from day-old bread.
So we make our own breadcrumbs the same way. They are not dried out the way the breadcrumbs are dried that you buy in the store. It is the same method I use for making my family's polpettone recipe.
Even though it is day-old bread, there is still a bit of moisture, making those meatballs nice, tender, and delicious. Now let me show you how to make them so you can make this a tradition in your home the way it has been in ours.
Polpette Ingredients
Italian Meatballs
- Ground beef: I prefer 90/10 fat to meat mixture.
- Ground Pork
- Homemade bread crumbs: This is just using day-old bread from the bakery and then pulsing it in a food processor until it resembles crumbs. No need to dry out the bread. Any good quality bread like sourdough bread, boule, or Italian bread will work. Just make sure it is somewhat stale.
- Eggs: I like to use large eggs.
- Parmigiano Reggiano: You can also use Pecorino Romano or Grana Padano.
- Garlic minced
- Dried Italian Seasoning
- Kosher salt
Sugo Sauce (Red Sauce)
- Crushed San Marzano tomatoes: Canned
- Tomato Paste: This smooths out the sauce.
- Dry Vermouth: Make sure to use dry vermouth, not sweet.
- Onion
- Garlic
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Fresh basil: Only use fresh, not dried. If you have extra after making these meatballs, you can freeze basil in olive oil for a later meal.
- Kosher salt
- Dried oregano
- Crushed red pepper flakes
How to Make Polpette
- Making the breadcrumbs: Grab the day-old bread and cut large pieces and place it in the food processor. Pulse on high until it resembles breadcrumbs.
- Mixing the meatballs: In a large bowl add all the meatballs ingredients (ground beef, bread crumbs, garlic, basil, oregano and salt). Mix gently until just combined. Then roll in meatballs and set aside.
- Making the sauce: You want to start the sauce on the stove top by sauteeing the onions and garlic then adding the vermouth and reducing it down. Once this is done, add in the canned tomatoes. Now add the tomato paste and seasonings and mix well.
- Adding it to the slow cooker: Pour the sauce into the slow cooker. Then gently place the raw meatballs into the sauce. Cover and cook on low heat for 6 hours.
- Slow Simmering: The Italian meatballs will slow simmer in the slow cooker where you give them a quick flip about halfway through the cooking time to ensure the meatballs cook evenly.
Variations
- Use dried breadcrumbs: If you do not have time to make your own breadcrumbs, you can use dried breadcrumbs. Just add 1 tablespoon of milk to the bread crumbs to moisten them up.
- Skip the ground pork: If you want to make an all beef meatball, feel free to do that. Just omit the ground pork and add more ground beef to the recipe.
Tips
- For soft and tender meatballs: The key to really tender meatballs is to not over-roll them. Roll them gently.
- Add the breadcrumbs to the meatball mixture before the eggs: Just like with my mini meatballs, you want to make sure to add all the flavors to the meat and mix well then add the egg. This allows the flavor going into the meatballs to be distributed evenly.
- Skip the vermouth: If you do not have this on hand, you can leave it out and the meatballs will still taste wonderful.
Storing, Reheating, And Making Ahead
- Leftover Italian Meatballs: These polpette store well in the fridge. Just place in an air-tight container in the fridge with the sauce and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
- Making extra for the freezer: If you want to make extra meatballs for a quick dinner later on, just allow the extra meatballs and sauce to cool. When they are cool, place them in a freezer-proof container or bag and freeze fro up to 2 months.
- Reheating: To reheat the meatballs, place the meatballs with the sauce in a medium saucepan over low heat and cover with a lid. Gently simmer making sure to stir often for about 20 minutes or until heated through. You may need to add a little water to the sauce to loosen it a bit.
Recipe FAQs
Polpette is the Italian word for meatballs. They are the same food.
Italians eat polpette as a secondi course (meat course) and not with pasta. It is usually served with a sauce over them.
Yes. These meatballs freeze well for up to 2 months in the freezer. You can freeze them with or without the sauce.
My Favorite Dishes To Serve With These Italian Meatballs
Italians love eating polpette as a second course. I like to serve the dishes below first then the meatballs after. You can serve the meatballs with pasta or at the same time as these dishes.
More Easy Italian Recipes
Slow Cooker Polpette Recipe (Italian Meatballs)
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 1 lb Ground beef
- 1 lb Ground Pork
- 2 cups Homemade Breadcrumbs Made From Day Old Bread. Pulse day-old bread in the food processor until it resembles crumbs.
- 2 eggs lightly beaten
- ½ cup Parmesan cheese
- 3 cloves Garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
Sauce
- 56 ounces Crushed San Marzano tomatoes
- ½ cup Yellow onion finely chopped
- ½ cup Dry Vermouth
- 2 cloves Garlic minced
- 2 tablespoon Extra virgin olive
- 2 tablespoon Tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon Fresh basil chopped
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon Dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon Crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
Meatballs
- Add the day-old bread to a food processor and pulse until it resembles breadcrumbs.
- In a large bowl combine your breadcrumbs, meat, and seasonings and mix well.1 lb Ground beef, 1 lb Ground Pork, 2 cups Homemade Breadcrumbs, ½ cup Parmesan cheese, 3 cloves Garlic, 1 tablespoon kosher salt, ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- Next add the eggs and mix well.2 eggs lightly beaten
- With your hands gently work all of the ingredients together.
- With a small ice cream scoop (or about ⅛ cup), scoop out heaping scoops of your meatball mixture and gently roll the meatballs into round balls.
- Repeat this until all the meatballs are made.
- Set the meatballs aside.
Sauce
- In a large saute pan over medium heat, add your olive oil, red pepper flakes, oregano, onions and garlic and cook for about 4-5 minutes or until the onions begin to soften.½ cup Yellow onion, 2 cloves Garlic, 2 tablespoon Extra virgin olive, ¼ teaspoon Crushed red pepper flakes, 1 teaspoon Dried oregano
- Add the vermouth and reduce by half.½ cup Dry Vermouth
- Now add your canned tomatoes and tomato paste and mix well.56 ounces Crushed San Marzano tomatoes, 2 tablespoon Tomato paste
- Next, add fresh basil, kosher salt and stir well.1 tablespoon Fresh basil, 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- Pour the sauce into the slow cooker.
- Now place meatballs into the slow cooker.
- Cover and cook on low heat for 6 hours or until the meatballs are tender and cooked all the way through. Make sure to flip the meatballs halfway through the cooking time.
Terrence
My family loves this!