If you are looking for a new family dinner this Keto Meatball Casserole should be it. Juicy, flavorful meatballs baked until golden and then covered with tomato sauce and cheese. My low carb Meatball Parmesan Casserole was a hit with my family and should be a hit with yours.
When I was in college I was still a vegetarian. One of my favorite meals from the dining hall takeout was a vegetarian Italian meatball parmesan sub. I have no idea what those "meat"balls were made of, and I probably don't want to know, but it was terriffic.
It was smothered in tomato sauce and topped with provolone. I'd look forward to Tuesdays so I could get dining hall take-out and my favorite meatball parmesan sub. Almost fifteen years later that is the only dining hall food I recall and that is my inspiration for my cheesy meatball casserole.
This casserole with meatballs was a perfect substitute. I could eat this Italian meatball casserole recipe once a week for the rest of my life and never get sick of it. And my whole family would agree. We enjoy it with a side salad, vegetables, or any of the main low carb pasta options out there such as palm noodles and zoodles. This easy family dinner is also low carb, gluten-free, grain-free, and a THM S recipe.
Ingredients
To make this meatball casserole you only need a handful of common ingredients:
Ground Meat - I typically use ground turkey but ground beef, ground pork, or ground chicken work as well.
Ground Sausage - I use sweet Italian sausage but hot Italian sausage is fine or a combination of the two. If you are doing low carb or keto just watch for added sugar in the sausage.
Egg - The egg is the binder in this in addition to the grated parmesan cheese.
Shredded Zucchini - You can't taste it and it gives a lot of moisture to the meatballs.
Shredded Mozzarella Cheese - You can also use a blend of Italian cheese.
Keto Marinara Sauce - I like to make my own but any pasta sauce or tomato sauce without added sugar is fine.
Spices - I prefer to use dried onion, garlic, and basil in these. You can use Italian seasoning in place of the basil if you prefer the flavor of that.
Salt & Pepper
How to make a Keto Meatball Casserole
Step One: I just dump all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mix it by hand. In the photo above you can see all the different layered ingredients for the low carb meatballs in my meatball parmesan. For a bowl of raw meat, it looks pretty nice.
Step Two: Next, scoop the meatballs. You should end up with 24 meatballs. Bake in a baking dish coated with cooking spray until they are almost completely cooked. I shoot for 150-155 on my meat thermometer.
Step Three: Top with sauce and sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top and finish baking. For the best golden brown cheese on top broil the low carb meatball casserole for 2-3 minutes, watching it carefully.
Expert Tip - you can make the Italian meatballs ahead of time, cook until fully cooked, and then freeze the cooked meatballs in a freezer bag. Just place the frozen meatballs in the casserole dish, bake until thawed, and then top with the sauce and cheese. This easy prep idea is always a perfect meal on busy weeknights. I don't meal prep much but I do do this.
Leftovers: Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Variations
Fresh Basil - If you have fresh basil feel free to mix some into the ground meat mixture, add some to the marinara, or sprinkle on top after baking.
Spices - Swap the dried minced onion and garlic for onion powder and garlic powder, or sub in Italian seasoning.
Common Questions
What should I serve with meatball casserole?
Our family favorite ways to serve this is on top of zucchini noodles or spaghetti squash. For any non-keto eaters you can serve with garlic bread or a side of al dente pasta.
Alternatively, you can serve with a side of roasted broccoli or green beans or a green salad.
A Cookie Scoop for Meatballs?
Yup! Here the meatballs are after forming them. I use a large cookie scoop to simplify the process. Since there is no need to get up to your elbows in raw meat this is a great task to get the kids involved in. Mine are pros at scooping low carb meatballs by now. Make sure to also check out the video below.
Do I Have to use Zucchini?
That hidden zucchini in my juicy meatballs is my sneaky mom favorite addition. My kids don't even notice it's in there. If you really want to hide it you can peel the green skin off first.
If you would like to substitute another veggie for the zucchini I would recommend chopped spinach. You can also just leave the green stuff out and serve this with some Caesar salad, green beans, or roasted broccoli. The low carb meatball parmesan will still work.
Can I Freeze Keto Meatballs?
Absolutely! This easy meatball recipe also freezes really well! Go ahead and make a double batch and then next time you want an easy Meatball Casserole just thaw, dump into the baking dish, and cover with sauce and cheese. Meatball Parmesan in a jiffy!
I love to always have a bag of low carb homemade meatballs in the freezer for nights that I don't want to cook. Those and frozen taco meat have saved us from spending too much money on take-out more than once.
What Casserole Dish Should I Use?
I need to give a little shout out to the Emile Henry ceramic company for this beautiful casserole dish. I absolutely love it. It is gorgeous, distributed the heat evenly for this casserole, and washed up in a cinch.
This sausage parmigiana is also a great choice if you need more dinner recipes! Or for a vegetarian version sub in cauliflower and try my Cauliflower Parmesan.
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Keto Meatball Casserole
Equipment
Ingredients
Meatball Ingredients:
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1 lb Italian sausage
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella
- â…“ cup grated or shredded parmesan
- 1 shredded zucchini about 1 cup
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoon dried minced onion
- 2 teaspoon dried minced garlic
- 2 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon salt
Casserole Ingredients:
- 1 cup marinara sauce
- 8 oz shredded cheese (I used a two cheese pizza blend of mozzarella and provolone)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400. Spray a casserole dish with cooking spray
- Combine all the ingredients for the meatballs and mix thoroughly. Make about 24 meatballs and put them in the casserole dish.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until the meatballs are cooked through. Carefully drain the cooking liquid from the casserole dish.
- Top with the sauce and cheese. Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is melted.
- Optional: I broiled for 3-4 minutes at the end to toast the cheese. Watch it carefully if you put it under the broiler. The cheese can burn easily.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Originally Published September 23, 2016. Revised and Republished April 24, 2023.
Casey says
Would it be possible to leave the zucchini out?
Taryn says
Sure, but you can't really taste it. It's a great way to get in an extra veggie 🙂
Chrissy O. says
This was absolutely delicious! The whole family enjoyed it! Thank you for sharing your recipe!
Kim | Low Carb Maven says
This makes me think of my mom. She was a great Italian cook. She would serve meatballs like this sometimes for a treat. Thanks for the memory and the great photos. Yum!
Joy says
Is the nutrition facts listed for ONE serving of 3 meatballs or for the entire thing? 489 calories seemed pretty high for 3 meatballs. TIA.
Taryn says
Yes, it's for one serving of 3 meatballs with the sauce and cheese. That includes about 4 oz of meat, 2 oz of cheese, etc. per serving. Using sausage makes these very moist and flavorful but it is a higher calorie meat.
Teri says
Any suggestions to substitute for zucchini?
Taryn says
You could substitute chopped spinach.
Cindy Marquart says
This is wonderful!! Thank you so much for the recipe. I used the leftovers to make an Italian Egg Bake Breakfast (S)!!
Sooo Good.
I spray a 9 x 13, Crack about 8 eggs into it, add 8 of your delicious meatballs, cover them with fresh spinach, S/P, Garlic powder, top with No Sugar Marinara, cover that with some Parmesan and Mozzarella,
350 until not jiggly. Freezes well for individual portions. My new grab and go breakfast. 🙂
Lois says
I'm curious to try this variation. You don't mention it, but did you beat the eggs after you cracked them into the pan??
Whitney says
Any recommendations on how to cook these in a crockpot?
Taryn says
I've never done meatballs in a crock pot. Sorry. I would look for another recipe and just use those cooking directions with my ingredients.
Sue says
If you google meatballs in crockpot I would follow hat. Basic ingredients are the same. The only difference would be the lack of liquid with these so I would go with whatever low setting and be home to check maybe an hour earlier.
Theresa says
When do you add the zucchini to the casserole?
Taryn says
Into the meat mixture before forming into meatballs.
sue says
What size zucchini? What would be he approximate shredded amount? Thank you!
Taryn says
Just a medium zucchini. I'm not sure the exact amount of shredded but it won't really matter in this recipe. Just don't use one of those five pounds monsters some people get from their gardens 😉
Whitney says
I have this in the oven right now and it smells so good! The recipe made more meatballs than we can eat tonight, could the rest be freezed and made later?
Taryn says
The meatballs should freeze fine. They normally freeze well 🙂
Erica says
I just made these meatballs and they are sooo good! I used spicy italian chicken sausage and used a no sugar added marinara sauce. Definitely will be in our meal rotation going forward. Thanks!
Taryn says
I'm glad you liked them!
Leah says
Hello! Do you think this casserole would do well made-ahead, refrigerated, and baked the next day? Thank you! 🙂
Taryn says
Yes. 🙂
Kristen Kohne says
Just made this for my family and it is a huge hit!!! I did not have sausage and I am having an aversion issue with poultry (ever since my second pregnancy...if it tastes too chickeny or turkey-y I can't take it!) so I used ground pork and ground beef. Next time I'll change it up and try the turkey and sausage. Only other thing is that my lovely 3 yr old, who is trying to assert herself at every turn, saw the "green things" in the meatballs. Next time I'll peel the zucchini! 🙂
Rachele says
This is a great way to make meatballs! I am so excited that my kids are eating zucchini!
Thanks for sharing.
Angela says
I just made this. It's in the oven now and looks really good. I did get more than 24 meatballs though. I guess I made them smaller. Can't wait to try them.
Nathalie says
Did you ever use spaghetti sauce for this recipe, or you prefer tomato sauce?
Taryn says
I do use spaghetti sauce. I never know what to call it. It seems it is called different things regionally. I like Classico Roasted Garlic since it doesn't have added sugar.
Sarah says
I am so excited about this recipe! My husband requested it after seeing I shared it on my FB page! The meatballs are in the oven!
Carol says
What did you serve this with/how did you eat it? Since we can't put it on bread or noodles?
Taryn says
I just ate it with a fork and knife. I served green beans and salad on the side. My kids did have pasta with it.
Emily says
Any idea how much shredded zuch equals "1 zucchini"? Sizes vary 😉 Excited to give this a try!
Taryn says
This was a medium zucchini. So about 1 cup shredded. A little more or a little less won't matter in this recipe 🙂
Lisa | Drop The Sugar says
Looks delicious! I like to make a meatball parm, but it's a bit different than yours. I do like to use italian sausage + ground beef for the meat balls. Even without adding spices, the flavor is just amazing.