Take meatballs to a whole new level, by stuffing them with fresh mozzarella cheese! Ground beef, italian seasonings, and classic meatball ingredients are combined and then shaped to cover a delicious, melty piece of cheese inside. You're going to love these Giant Stuffed Meatballs with Mozzarella Cheese.

platter of cheese stuffed meatballs with one cute open

I'm going to admit something here, I'm a bit of a meatball fiend. I LOVE really well done meatballs. The kind that you find at romantic italian restaurants. Those meatballs that are teeming with flavor and almost melt in your mouth with how tender they are.

So while I love myself a good, easy frozen meatball. I set out to create a restaurant quality mozzarella stuffed meatball to enjoy at home. And I am happy to report-- these 100% deliver!

For another delicious recipe using fresh mozzarella, try Fried Mozzarella Balls or Pesto Tortellini Pasta Salad.

What makes these giant stuffed meatballs so special?

finished stuffed meatballs and sauce in is cast iron skillet

Two things:

First, grating the onion. So often, when making meatballs at home, I found that the onion pieces were too crunchy or noticeable even after being full cooked in the oven.

By grating the onion, you get that delicious, rich onion flavor permeating the entire meatball, without compromising the buttery fork tender texture.

And second, finishing the jumbo stuffed meatballs by baking them in sauce ensures that they remain moist and flavorful. This surrounds them in a liquid, so they are essentially braised to finish off the cooking process.

A little sauce is also added right into the raw meatball mixture to moisten it as well.

Do you sense a theme here? Moisture and flavor are what make stellar meatballs!

Ingredients for cheese stuffed meatballs

ingredients for giant stuffed meatballs on a white background

ground beef
ciliegine mozzarella cheese balls
onion
garlic
milk
breadcrumbs
egg
italian seasoning
salt
parmesan cheese
crushed tomatoes with basil (or marinara sauce)

Instructions for Giant Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

Peel onion and carefully grate onion on to a plate or into a bowl.

In a large bowl, add ground beef, grated onion, minced garlic, egg, milk, italian seasoning, bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, 2 tbsp. of crushed tomatoes and salt.

ingredients for stuffed meatballs in a clear glass bowl

Use your hands to squish everything together until it is well incorporated.

Divide the mixture into 12 meatballs. They should be the size of large golf balls.

Flatten each meatball and place in the palm of your hand. Place a piece of fresh mozzarella cheese into the middle of the meat mixture.

meatballs shown in the process of being filling with cheese

Pinch together to fully encompass the cheese with the meat, so that the mozzarella stays inside while cooking.

Place mozzarella stuffed meatballs in a cast iron skillet or other oven safe dish and bake for 20 minutes, until the internal temp of the meatballs reaches 165 degrees.

finished stuffed meatballs in a skillet ready to go in oven

Cover with remainder of the can of crushed tomatoes and place back in the oven for an additional 10 minutes.

Top with fresh basil or parsley, as well as red pepper flakes, if desired.

platter of finished meatballs coated in tomato sauce

What to serve with giant meatballs stuffed with cheese

Italian meatballs can be served with anything you would normally enjoy for an italian dinner. Things like:

garlic bread
pasta
breadsticks
salad

I enjoy these large meatballs alongside giant stuffed shells or a plate of classic spaghetti.

giant baked meatball stuffed with cheese shown up close

Top Tip

You may find after you bake the meatballs initially, before adding the sauce, that there is a good deal of fat in the pan. This will depend on the fat ratio in the ground beef you use.

You may want some of the fat to be drained . It’s no big deal-- simply use a spoon, or better yet, a turkey baster and remove the fat that has accumulated.

You could avoid this by using a ground beef with a very high meat to fat ratio, however this will take away flavor and may make your meatballs more dry.

I personally did not drain any fat-- what little bit that accumulated did an awesome job flavoring the crushed tomatoes for a rich sauce.

Cooking Tomato Sauce in Cast Iron

Some people advise against cooking tomatoes or other acidic products in cast iron. I find that as long as the pan is well-seasoned, there isn’t a problem. Lodge Cast Iron (the brand I use), says it is just fine to cook with acidic products in cast iron in moderation.

If you don’t have a seasoned cast iron pan or would rather not use yours, a deep glass baking dish will work just fine!

platter of finished giant cheese stuffed meatballs

Can you Freeze Stuffed Meatballs?

Yes, you can. These cheese filled meatballs freeze extremely well and heat up in the oven very nicely. There is not much more by way of prep work when it comes to doubling or tripling the recipe, and you will be thanking yourself later when you have delicious meatballs waiting for you in the freezer.

I would freeze them raw, and then cover them when cooking. Add an additional 10-15 minutes to the cook time to ensure they are fully cooked before adding in the sauce.

You can also bake them and freeze them already cooked through.

Giant Stuffed Meatballs with Mozzarella Cheese