A simple and quick meal that will be ready in 30 minutes or less. Enjoy these meatballs with pasta, in a baguette or however you’d like! Cheesy Meatball Skillet is the perfect easy recipe for a delicious dinner everyone will love!
It’s harvest time and that means our garden is full of fresh produce. We love eating anything involving tomatoes or basil this time of year and it brings us such happy memories. My husband spent two years in Italy and I traveled there so we both absolutely love Italian food. This Cheesy Meatball Skillet is seriously out of this world good and I am so excited to share this recipe with you all!
One thing that really takes this dish to another level is this Mezzetta Napa Valley Homemade Marinara. I have seriously never had such an amazing tasting pasta sauce in my life and I’m not joking! As soon as I opened the jar, immediately I could tell a difference from other pasta sauces. The color was so vibrant, I quickly grabbed a spoon to taste it. It was outstanding! It’s made of real food, 100% hand-selected plum tomatoes, no added sugar, and no paste. I love that it’s a family company that has been owned for over 80 years. My husband couldn’t believe how good it was and that I really didn’t add anything to the sauce. It just came out that amazing! I can’t wait to try all of their flavors.
This one-skillet dinner was so easy to make. First I prepared the meatballs, which didn’t take long at all then I browned them in the skillet.
Next, I added the delicious Mezzetta Marinara sauce to the skillet.
I added in the browned meatballs and gently got those moved around in their delicious Marinara sauce bath! (Note: I made my meatballs pretty big but feel free to make them smaller.)
Last step was to cover it with mozzarella cheese and either cover it or my preferred method is to get the cheese melty and gooey and slightly browned by finishing it off in the oven.

Oh my. There are no words for how beautiful and delicious this dish is! My picky little guy who usually takes a while to begin eating ate this up in no time and even asked for more! You can serve this up however you’d like. In a baguette to make a delicious meatball sandwich, as is, over pasta, or however you please! It tastes fantastic as leftovers and I enjoyed it again with some of my Freezer Garlic Texas Toast. This is a recipe I will be making over and over again!
Cheesy Meatball Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 jar (24.5 oz.) Marinara (I used Mezzetta)
- 1 ¼ cup shredded mozzarella
- Optional for topping: grated parmesan cheese and fresh basil, chopped
Meatballs:
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- ½ cup Italian breadcrumbs
- ½ cup grated Parmesan
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients for the meatballs and mix together with your hands.
- Scoop out about 1 golf ball sized meatball mixture, roll it in your hands to make meatballs. (Can use a cookie or ice cream scoop.)
- Add just enough oil to cover the bottom of the skillet and brown the meatballs 1/2 a batch at time over medium heat until evenly browned, about 5-8 minutes.
- Remove meatballs and drain on paper towels. Drain any excess oil from the skillet.
- Reduce heat to medium low and pour the marinara sauce in the skillet.
- Add the meatballs back to the skillet and gently roll them around to coat them in the marinara sauce. Simmer for 5 minutes or until internal temperature of meatballs are 165 degrees F
- Top with mozzarella cheese and some grated Parmesan cheese if desired. Cover and simmer until cheese melts or broil at 450 degrees F for 3-5 minutes for browned cheese.
- Dish and serve hot sprinkled with grated Parmesan and chopped fresh basil if desired.
Slightly adapted from The Cooking Jar
**Giveaway is now closed**
#FallForFlavor with Mezzetta’s giveaway to Win the Perfect Pasta Night!
1 Grand Prize Winner– Perfect Pasta Night. Cooking kit includes: Six (6) Mezzetta® Napa Valley Homemade™ Pasta Sauces + Dried Pasta + Apron + Grocery Tote + Chef’s Hat + Cheese Grater + Recipe Cards + $500 grocery gift card.
10 Runner-Up Winners– Six (6) Mezzetta® Napa Valley Homemade™ Pasta Sauces + Recipe Cards
What are your favorite fall recipes?





Yum!! I love the idea of using these in a sandwich! It looks pretty easy too 🙂
Thanks Amberly! I want to try these in a sandwich next time. I think it’d be amazing! 🙂
This looks SO yummy!! Pinned to try this week!
Thanks Lindsay! 😀
This meal looks amazing! I pinned it to try this week. I’m hoping my picky eater will have the same reaction as yours. =)
Thank you Aliza! I hope your picky eater loves it! 🙂
Oh my gosh! This made me so hungry. Those meatballs look perfect! Thanks for the recipe.
Thanks so much Annette! 🙂
Those look yummy! I have a daughter who would LOVE it!
Thanks Jill! This recipe was amazing! So fast and crazy good!
This looks amazing Becky! That close up shot of the meatball with the gooey cheese all over it, I just want to reach through the screen and take a bite!
Thank you Aimee! 🙂 My boys loved being my helpers! (I’m just glad they didn’t drop the spoon!) lol
Thank you for sharing the information on Cheesy Meatball Skillet. I appreciate the clear and easy-to-follow recipe, as well as the delicious combination of flavors. The addition of melted cheese to the meatballs creates a comforting, flavorful dish, and I’m excited to try it out for a satisfying meal.
You’re welcome!