Looking for a light and healthy beef meatball recipe? These easy baked beef meatballs are made using only simple, wholesome ingredients like ground beef and mixed veggies
The meatballs are easily baked in the oven (or fried) until they’re tender and juicy, then served up with a delicious sweet and tangy mango sauce that’s perfect for drizzling overtop.
Since these beef meatballs are made without breadcrumbs, the recipe it’s gluten free and dairy free friendly, so everyone can enjoy it!
Just like my other Swedish meatball recipe, this is a delicious and healthy beef meatball recipe that’s packed with lean protein, made lighter with added veggies and paired with a mango based sauce.
They would go well with any mashed or roasted veggies, a simple cabbage and carrot salad or some fermented shaved carrot salad ….or over rice, quinoa, buckwheat or pasta.
More Recipes Made With Ground Meat
- Healthy Stuffed Cabbage Rolls
- Gluten Free Swedish Meatballs + Dairy Free Sauce
- Healthy Chicken Fritters / Pancakes (Fried Or Baked)
- Best Lazy Cabbage Roll Casserole
Ingredients
- Ground beef – use lean beef or mix it with other ground meats like turkey or pork.
- Mixed veggies – I used zucchini, carrots, onion and garlic. These will lighten up the meatball’s texture, give them more softness and flavor.
- Egg – for binding properties. You can omit the egg if you like, they will still hold well together.
- Seasonings – rosmery, salt and pepper, to taste.
- Mango sauce – you can make it in advance.
How To Make These Beef Meatballs
- Prepare the veggies, grate the zucchini, carrot, garlic and finelly dice the onion. Squeeze the juice out of grated zucchini with a cheese cloth. Place everything in a bowl.
- Add the egg, the seasonings and the ground beef, mix with your hand until well combined.
- Roll the beef mixture into meatballs, making them slightly larger than you want your finished meatballs to be, as they will shrink slightly during cooking.
- To cook the beef meatballs, you can bake them in the oven at 410 F for about 25 minutes (use a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper), or fry them in a pan with some oil until golden brown on all sides.
- To give these baked meatballs a crispy brown crust, turn the “broil” function of the oven for the last 2-3 minutes of baking.
- Make the mango sauce by combining everything in a blender, check my other post for instructions. Initially I made it for chicken and fish dishes but apparently it goes very well with beef too!
- Pour the creamy sauce over the beef meatballs and stir to combine with the juices.
- To serve hot, bring back the baking sheet (with beef meatballs covered with mango sauce) in the oven for additional 5-8 minutes.
Storing Tips
These beef meatballs are best eaten right away, but they can also be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. To reheat, simply microwave or bake in a preheated oven until warmed through (about 10-15 minutes).
To freeze – is best to freeze the beef meatballs uncooked. When cooking the beef meatballs from frozen, increase the baking time by about 10-15 min. The mango sauce is best made fresh, it doesn’t freeze well.
If you made this beef meatball recipe, leave a comment and let me know your thoughts! Enjoy!
Light Beef Meatballs + Mango Sauce (Healthy, GF, DF)
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 medium-small zucchini - grated
- 1 medium carrot - grated
- 1 small onion - finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic - minced
- 1 large egg
- ¾ tsp sea salt
- ¾ tsp coriander seed powder
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- 1.5 cup mango sauce
Instructions
- Prepare the veggies, grate the zucchini, carrot, garlic and finelly dice the onion. Squeeze the juice out of grated zucchini with a cheese cloth. Place everything in a bowl.
- Add the egg, the seasonings and the ground beef, mix with your hand until well combined.
- Roll the beef mixture into meatballs, making them slightly larger than you want your finished meatballs to be, as they will shrink slightly during cooking.For an easier rolling grease your hands with a touch of oil. It will also help with browning and crust forming during baking.
- To cook the beef meatballs, you can bake them in the oven at 410 F for about 25 minutes (use a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper), or fry them in a pan with some oil until golden brown on all sides.
- To give these baked meatballs a crispy brown crust, turn the “broil” function of the oven for the last 2-3 minutes of baking.
- Make the mango sauce by combining everything in a blender. Initially I made it for chicken and fish dishes but apparently it goes very well with beef too!
- Pour the creamy sauce over the beef meatballs and stir to combine with the juices.To serve hot, bring back the baking sheet (with beef meatballs covered with mango sauce) in the oven for additional 5-8 minutes.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator.
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Annabel G.
Tuesday 28th of February 2023
Delicious 🤤 thank you!
HealthyTasteOfLife
Tuesday 28th of February 2023
Thank you!