French Onion Meatballs are a tasty recipe that is full of flavor! They are the perfect weeknight meal or you can serve them as an appetizer at a party. 

french onion meatballs served on a plate with mashed potatoes, gravy, and roasted green beans

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French Onion Meatballs Recipe

All weeknight meals should be stress-free, don’t you think? With a few dishes and ingredients involved as possible. 

With just four ingredients, these French Onion Meatballs check all those boxes and more. You will want to make them again and again. 

Even your kids can help make them! Seriously, this has become a favorite recipe in our family for this reason. 

And they are so full of flavor. We love making them to get that French Onion Soup (that you can also make in the Instant Pot) taste when it’s not quite soup weather. 

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

This recipe is so easy to put together and you’re going to love it. 

  • You only need four ingredients, so it’s easy on the budget. 
  • Meatballs are always a family-friendly dinner item. 
  • You can serve them at a party as an appetizer. 
  • They’re easy to make, which is perfect for a stress-free weeknight meal. 

Plus, they’re perfect for kiddos to help in the kitchen. They will love forming these Lipton onion soup meatballs and rolling them in their hands.

Ingredients you’ll need for Lipton Onion Soup Meatballs

You only need four ingredients to make these flavorful meatballs.

  • ground beef – Feel free to make these with your favorite type of meat. You can use ground chicken, ground elk, ground turkey, ground pork, ground bison or even a mixture. 
  • egg – The egg works as a binder to hold everything together. Make sure you check your eggs for freshness first. 
  • onion soup mix – I use Lipton Onion Soup Mix. I always keep one or two in the pantry for when I get a hankering for these meatballs!
  • panko bread crumbs – I love panko bread crumbs for meatballs because they hold up well. 
ingredients for french onion meatballs

What is Onion Soup Mix?

Instant onion soup mix is key for these meatballs. It’s a dehydrated mix of dried onion, beef bouillon, onion powder, parsley, celery seed, paprika, salt, and pepper.

It’s so handy to have on hand and mix into dishes, so I usually keep it in my pantry. 

You can find it in the soup aisle of the grocery store. Lipton makes a great one, but there are other brands as well. 

How to Make French Onion Meatballs

Making these meatballs is very easy! Here’s what you need to do: 

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. 
  2. Add the ground beef, egg, onion soup mix, and panko breadcrumbs to a large mixing bowl. 
  3. Combine until it’s all mixed through. I find that using my hands works best for this and keeps me from over mixing. (This step is always fun for the kids too!)  
  4. Form the mixture into 20 equal sized balls and place the meatballs evenly spaced on a parchment lined baking sheet
  5. Bake for 20 minutes or until cooked through. 
  6. Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool about 5 minutes before serving. 
  7. Let cool completely before storing in an airtight, food-safe container for up to 5 days. 

How long to bake meatballs at 350°F

Meatballs can be baked for about 20 minutes at 350°F on a parchment-lined baking sheet

Always check the internal temperature for doneness with a meat thermometer. 

For beef meatballs, they should be 160°F. Poultry meatballs should be 165°F. 

Tips & Tricks for onion soup mix meatballs

Don’t over mix the ground beef mixture. You want to mix it until it’s just combined. Over mixing can cause your meatballs to be chewy. 

When forming the meatballs, I like to use a 2 tablespoon cookie scoop and then smooth them in my hands. 

If you have leftover meatballs, they are easily frozen and reheated in the oven. 

What to serve with meatballs

Meatballs are so good with so many things! 

  • You can enjoy them on their own with a yummy veggie made while they bake, like sauteed butternut squash
  • You can also enjoy them à la Swedish Meatballs, with this amazing brown gravy for meatballs, some berry jam and mashed potatoes
  • Oh, and you can’t forget the classic spaghetti and meatballs! Serve them on top of spaghetti or any other noodle along with your favorite pasta sauce
  • Another way is to add them to a sub roll to enjoy as a meatball sandwich. You could use gravy or marinara sauce. Don’t forget the melty cheese! I recommend provolone or gruyere for that amazing French onion soup flavor. 
  • For an appetizer, you could serve them with warm jelly or French onion dip. Don’t forget the toothpicks! 
  • You could also enjoy them over a salad or a bowl of grains to add some protein into the mix. 
french onion meatballs with gravy served on a plate with mashed potatoes and roasted green beans

How to store meatballs

Store meatballs in an airtight, food-safe container for up to 5 days. 

If you wish to freeze meatballs, flash-freeze them on a baking sheet for about 30 minutes, then add them to a freezer-safe container. This keeps the meatballs from sticking together. 

How to reheat meatballs

You can reheat meatballs in a skillet, in the oven or in the microwave. 

In the skillet: Warm a skillet over medium heat and stir the meatballs around until heated through, about 10 minutes. 

In the oven: Heat the oven to 250°F. Place the meatballs on a baking sheet and heat the meatballs in the warm oven for 10-15 minutes. 

In the microwave: Place the meatballs on a plate. Cover with a paper towel and heat on high for 1 minute. Add more time in 30-second increments if needed. 

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Meatballs with Onion

By: sweetlysplendid.com
5 from 8 votes
Prep 10 minutes
Cook 20 minutes
Total 30 minutes
Servings: 20 meatballs
French Onion Meatballs are a tasty recipe that is full of flavor! They are the perfect weeknight meal or you can serve them as an appetizer at a party.

Ingredients 

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F.
  • Add the ground beef, egg, onion soup mix, and panko to a large mixing bowl.
  • Combine until it’s all mixed through. I find that using my hands works best for this.
  • Form the mixture into 20 equal sized balls. I like to use a 2 tablespoon cookie scoop and then smooth them in my hands.
  • Place the meatballs evenly spaced on a parchment lined baking sheet.
  • Bake for 20 minutes or until cooked through.
  • Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool for about 5 minutes before serving.

Video

Nutrition

Serving: 1meatball, Calories: 67kcal, Carbohydrates: 2g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 5g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 0.3g, Cholesterol: 16mg, Sodium: 181mg, Potassium: 77mg, Fiber: 0.2g, Sugar: 0.1g, Vitamin A: 1IU, Vitamin C: 0.1mg, Calcium: 8mg, Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Appetizer, Dinner, Main Course, Main Dish, Main Dishes
Cuisine: American

Hi! I’m Kara!

Kara loves all things food and spending time with her family and dogs. She has a passion for cooking and loves making yummy, family-friendly recipes.

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