Homemade Marinara Sauce With Meatballs

This homemade marinara sauce is made with fresh basil and oregano mixed with crushed tomatoes, dried herbs, and spices. Add in meatballs that are made from scratch and you'll have a classic Italian dish that is full of flavor with every bite!

Pasta is hands down one of the most delicious and versatile foods on the planet. Everything from this hearty chicken alfredo pasta, to creamy and delicious pesto pasta, to a classic homemade lasagna, there are so many different ways to enjoy pasta!

While similar to this penne pasta with Italian marinara sauce, this homemade marinara sauce with meatballs has been passed down from generation to generation. And there's nothing better than a recipe that has been passed down. Especially when it's an authentic Italian recipe.

This version is made with crushed tomatoes and fresh basil and oregano. And the Italian homemade meatballs are hand rolled and placed on top of the sauce and then slow cooked in the crock pot. Using a crock pot instead of a saucepan allows for the slow melding of flavors and yields a rich and authentic taste.

This is excellent on top of any type of pasta or veggie noodles. I especially love it mixed in with this spaghetti squash and goat cheese. Not only is it good on top of pasta, it's also an excellent dipping sauce for fried mozzarella sticks or these cheesy garlic breadsticks. And, it's also great to use when making your own pizza!

Jump to:

• ✔️ Quick Recipe Overview
• ℹ️ Why This Recipe Works
• 🛒 Ingredients You'll Need
• 📋 Variations
• 🔪 Step-By-Step Recipe Instructions
• 🙋 Recipe FAQs
• 💭 Expert Tips
• 🍝 More Pasta Recipes You'll Love!
• Homemade Marinara Sauce With Meatballs

🛒 Ingredients You'll Need

The marinara sauce ingredients you'll need are below:

• Fresh Herbs: Using fresh oregano and basil is key to making this recipe work. They completely change the flavor and adds the rich authentic taste.
• Dry Seasonings: Garlic, basil, onion, and garlic powder are traditional Italian marinara sauce ingredients and pair extremely well with the fresh herbs.
• Parmesan Cheese: Freshly grated from a block will always yield best results; however, the grated parmesan cheese in a can also works.
• Crushed Tomatoes: Using canned crushed tomatoes is most convenient and provides the perfect consistency to the sauce.

To make the meatballs, you'll need these ingredients.

• Ground Turkey: For extra lean meatballs, use 99% or 93% fat-free ground turkey. 85% or 80% lean ground turkey adds more flavor due to the higher fat content.
• Turkey Sausage: ground and uncooked works best.
• Eggs: They play a key role in binding the meatball mixture together.
• Breadcrumbs: you can use panko or breadcrumb style. Both work well.
• Parmesan Cheese: freshly grated from a block will always yield best results; however, the grated parmesan cheese in a can also works.

See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.

📋 Variations

• Do not add uncooked noodles to the bottom of the crock pot before adding the sauce. There isn't enough liquid in the sauce to properly cook the noodles.
• You can choose to just make the marinara sauce and not make the meatballs.
• This recipe makes a lot of meatballs, about 50 medium-sized. You have the option to either cook all the meatballs in the crock pot with the sauce or prepare only half and freeze the rest for later.
• You can double the sauce recipe and freeze some for later use.
• Instead of using ground turkey, you can use ground beef, chicken, or pork.
• If you can't find uncooked turkey sausage, you can use pre-cooked turkey sausage crumbles. Just chop them into small pieces before adding them to the meatball mixture.
• For more garlic flavor, add in 2-3 cloves of fresh minced garlic to the homemade marinara.
• To make it spicy, add in ½ to 1 teaspoon of red pepper flakes.

🔪 Step-By-Step Recipe Instructions

Step 1: Start by making the sauce. Add the crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, fresh basil and oregano, Parmesan cheese, and seasonings to the crock pot. Stir to combine. Set aside.

Step 2: To make the meatballs, combine all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl.

Step 3: Using your hands, roll the mixture into medium-sized balls (about 1.5 to 2 inches thick). Add olive oil to the skillet and when hot, place the meatballs in the skillet. Do this in batches.

Step 4: Brown the outsides of the meatballs until slightly brown. The goal is to brown both sides of the meatballs, not cook them all the way through. They will finish cooking in your slow-cooker. From there, place the meatballs in the crock pot on top of the sauce.

Step 5: Place the lid on the crock pot, set it to low heat, and slow cook for 5 hours.

Once done, serve on top of a plate of pasta and top with fresh Parmesan cheese and fresh basil! This is the only marinara sauce recipe you will ever need. A classic Italian favorite that is incredibly easy to make and perfect for any dinner!