French Onion Meatballs are the deliciously tender, fantastic weekend comfort meal that the entire family will love. It’s simple to make and and even easier to enjoy.
This recipe is rich and delicious and a total comfort food with the melty, gooey cheese and toast points. Just imagine French Onion Soup, but in the form of a meatball. I cannot get enough of this one. It’s a perfect weekend treat that will leave your people singing your praises.
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Who doesn’t love a good, juicy meatball? These French Onion Meatballs are beyond delicious! Not only that, but they are also so simple to make because we par bake them in the oven. No babysitting them in a skillet and no moving them around potentially causing them to fall apart. No one has time for that.
While the onions caramelize, I form and bake the meatballs. While the meatballs are in the oven, I make the sauce. At that point, all that’s left to do is nestle those lovely meatballs into the French onion sauce, top it with grated gruyere, and let it get ooey, gooey, melty in the oven.
Whatever you do, do skimp on serving this with slices of crusty bread to sop up that glorious sauce. That would be an injustice to you and yours. I just cannot stand for such a thing.
french onion meatballs ingredients
- Onions
- Butter
- AP Flour
- Ground Beef
- Panko Breadcrumbs
- Whole Milk
- Eggs
- Worcestershire Sauce
- Fresh Thyme Leaves
- Garlic
- Parmesan Cheese
- Beef or Chicken Broth
- Dijon Mustard
- Kosher Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper
- Gruyere Cheese
- Mozzarella Cheese
how to make french onion meatballs
THE FRENCH ONION SAUCE
We begin with the onions. This part is going to take a minute, so be patient. But, the good news is that while the onions do their thing, we’ll work on the meatballs. And, this sauce is the stuff dreams are made of. Believe me now. Thank me later.
First, add the sliced onions along with some butter and a hefty pinch of kosher salt to a cast iron skillet on medium-high heat. They will need anywhere from 30-45 minutes to cook down and caramelize. What I mean by that is that they should be a deep golden brown color by the end of the cooking process.
Make sure you stir the onions often and keep an eye on them. Onions have a lot of natural sugars and can burn easily. If you suspect they might be burning, simply add a splash of water and carry on. Stir them well every few minutes or so, and you will be just fine. And, while they cook down and get nicey-nice, we will move on to forming and par baking the meatballs.
THE MEATBALLS
To being our French Onion Meatballs, grab a mixing bowl. In goes the ground beef and panko breadcrumbs. Next, add the milk, eggs, Worcestershire sauce on top of the breadcrumbs so they begin soak up the liquid. This will help to make a succulent meatball. Add in the parmesan cheese, garlic, thyme, and salt and pepper. Using your hands, gently fold all of the ingredients together to combine. You don’t want to over mix or you will end up with a tough meatball.
Using a tablespoon scoop, portion out the meatball mixture onto two, parchment lined baking sheets. Par-bake the meatballs in a 400° oven for 15 minutes. They’ll finish cooking in the sauce so don’t worry about them not being done. Once the meatballs are doing par baking, turn the oven down to 350°.
FINISHING THE FRENCH ONION MEATBALLS
Once the onions have cooked down and become a deep golden brown, we make the sauce. Add the flour to the onions, whisking it around for a few minutes to remove any raw flour taste. Slowly incorporate the hot beef broth along with the thyme leaves and a little dijon. Whisk until the mixture is all combined. Taste for salt levels and add any if so desired.
Add the meatballs to the skillet with the French onion sauce by gently nestling them into it. Top with as much gruyere and mozzarella as your heart tells you to and place the skillet into a preheated 350° oven for 20-25 minutes or until nice and bubbly.
SERVING
The favorite way to enjoy French Onion Meatballs in our house is over a bed of buttered egg noodles because that is generally what my kids request. I spoon copious amounts of that glorious sauce on top of mine. You should do this as well.
I can’t put into words how good that sauce truly is. You’ll want to drink it. At the very least, you’ll want to sop up any leftover with a crusty piece of bread. I promise.
recipe frequently asked questions
All you have to do to make this recipe gluten-free is to your favorite GF flour and GF Panko breadcrumbs. To keep this recipe dairy-free, just use avocado oil instead of butter for the sauce.
If it were me, I would serve these meatballs on top of a pile of buttery mashed potatoes. If you’re keeping it a little lower-carb, try my Mashed Cauliflower. Another great option would be a very simple, buttered noodle. Which is exactly what my kids requested and what you will see in the pictures. Use this compound butter to toss the noodles in and you’ll be verrrrry popular.
STORING FRENCH ONION MEATBALLS
Store leftovers in the fridge for 3-4 days in an airtight container.
This recipe would also be great to freeze. Store the meatballs and gravy in a freezer-safe, air-tight container. When you’re ready to use it, simply let it thaw out in the fridge, top with cheese, and heat through for serving. It’s the perfect recipe to have on hand for those busy evenings!
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French Onion Meatballs
Ingredients
- 2 large onions, sliced
- 4 tbsp butter
- 3 tbsp AP flour
- 2-2½ cups beef (or chicken) broth
- 2 tsp fresh thyme leaves, divided
- 1 heaping tsp dijon mustard
- 2 lbs ground beef
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup whole milk
- 3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 2 eggs
- 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese, grated
- ½ cup gruyere cheese, grated
- ½ cup mozzarella, grated
- kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste
- toasted bread and buttered egg noodles, for serving
Instructions
Caramelize the Onions
- Add the sliced onions along with the butter and a hefty pinch of kosher to a cast iron skillet on medium-high heat. They will need anywhere from 30-45 minutes to cook down and caramelize. Stir and check on them often. If you think they might be burning, add a splash of water and turn down the heat a bit.
- While the onions caramelize, grab mixing bowl for the meatballs
Make the Meatballs
- Add the ground beef and panko breadcrumbs to the mixing bowl. Next, add the milk, eggs, Worcestershire sauce on top of the breadcrumbs so they begin soak up the liquid.
- Add in the parmesan cheese, garlic, 1 teaspoon of the thyme, and kosher salt and pepper (to taste). Using your hands, gently fold all of the ingredients together to combine.
- Using a tablespoon scoop, portion out the meatball mixture onto two, parchment lined baking sheets. Par-bake the meatballs in a preheated 400° oven for 15 minutes. Once the meatballs are doing par baking, remove them from the oven and turn it down to 350°.
Finish the Sauce
- Once the onions have cooked down and become a deep golden brown, make the sauce. Add the flour to the onions, whisking it around for a few minutes to remove any raw flour taste. Slowly incorporate the hot broth along with the remaining thyme leaves and dijon. Whisk until the mixture is combined. Taste for salt levels and add any if so desired.
Finishing The French Onion Meatballs
- Add the meatballs to the skillet with the French onion sauce by gently nestling them into it. Top with the gruyere and mozzarella and place the skillet into a the 350° oven for 20-25 minutes or until nice and bubbly.
- Serve and enjoy!
Nutrition
Thank you!
I am so incredibly happy that you are here! I hope you try my French Onion Meatballs recipe and fall in love with it. If you make this recipe, please share and tag me on Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok! And, please leave a comment or star rating below. I absolutely love seeing each and every one of your kitchen masterpieces. And, as always, if you ever have any questions about any of my recipes, please don’t hesitate to contact me!
Happy Cooking!
–Rufus
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tastes exactly like french onion but without the soup, great for the kids, too!