These gluten-free turkey meatballs are perfect. The meatballs can stand on their own, but we added peppers, onions, and cheese to make the dish feel complete. There are no breadcrumbs in the meatballs, so they're totally gluten free (and low carb!), but they're still super moist and flavorful.
Jump to:
Why We Love These Meatballs
I follow a gluten-free diet most of the time, so I don't eat a ton of meatballs when we go out. Meatballs usually contain breadcrumbs, which soak up juices from the meat and keep the meatballs moist. I left breadcrumbs out of these meatballs, and instead opted for chopped mushrooms, which add moisture as they cook, preventing the meatballs from drying out. You're left with super moist gluten-free turkey meatballs.
Turkey is a little lighter than traditional beef or pork, but you can't tell in this recipe. The peppers and onions pair perfectly with the marinara sauce and make this recipe feel more like a full meal. Oh, and the cheese. There's so much gooey cheese.
Looking for other gluten-free Italian-inspired recipes? Try our hearts of palm pasta with pesto or pizza sheet pan eggs.
Key Ingredients and Substitutions
Ground Turkey: We used 85% lean for some extra moisture.
Mushrooms: We used baby bellas but any mushroom will work.
Parmesan cheese: It's so much better if you buy fresh parmesan (on the block), and grate it yourself, but pre-grated is fine if you're in a rush (we frequently use pre-grated to save time).
Bell peppers: I used one orange and one yellow, but you can use whatever color you like. Green would work too—I just don't like cooked green peppers that much.
Fresh mozzarella cheese: Fresh mozzarella is so much better than shredded, but you can substitute shredded if you prefer.
Marinara sauce: We love Victoria Marinara Sauce or Rao's. We get both at Costco for a great price, but most grocery stores carry them too.
See recipe card for full ingredient list and amounts.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 400°F, and line a sheet pan with parchment paper (or spray it with nonstick spray).
Step 2: In a large bowl, combine ground turkey, mushrooms, onion, egg, garlic, basil, parsley, parmesan, Worcestershire sauce, Italian seasoning, salt, black pepper, and crushed red pepper. I find that it's easiest to mix it up with my hands—if that's not your speed, use a spoon.
Step 3: Once everything is combined, form the mixture into the meatballs. We made 16, but that will vary based on how big your make yours—ours were about an inch and a half in diameter.
Step 4: Bake for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, flip the meatballs and cook for another 20 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. The cook time will vary based on the size of your meatballs, so keep an eye on them and check the temperature frequently.
Step 5: When the meatballs have about 15 minutes left, add olive oil and onions to a cast-iron pan (or oven-safe pan) and cook for two minutes over medium-low heat, stirring constantly to prevent them from burning.
Step 6: Add bell peppers and cook for an additional five minutes. Then add the garlic and cook for a minute. Add the marinara sauce and crushed red pepper and turn the heat to low.
Step 7: Once the meatballs are done, put them into the pan with the peppers and sauce and cover with mozzarella. Then broil on high for about 5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted (check on them frequently—it happens fast!). Enjoy!
Serving Ideas
Enjoy them by themselves: I eat a gluten-free diet 90% of the time, so I actually prefer eating these meatballs and peppers by themselves. The peppers make this dish feel like a complete meal, and it's super satisfying to me on its own.
Make a meatball sub: These meatballs are perfect for throwing onto a loaf of crusty french bread or a baguette because they're already covered in sauce and cheese. The peppers make it complete. Toast the bread first!
Over pasta: These meatballs and peppers would also be great thrown over spaghetti (like traditional spaghetti and meatballs but with peppers and cheese).
Frequently asked questions
You can definitely use store-bought meatballs if you’d like to skip a step. We recommend following the steps on the bag to make sure they’re properly cooked if they don’t come pre-cooked. If you have time, though, we always think homemade is better.
Of course you can! We went with turkey to lighten this recipe up a bit, but you can certainly opt for other meats. One of our favorite combos is ⅓ ground beef, ⅓ ground veal, and ⅓ ground pork. Our local grocery store sells a combo pack of all three ground meats.
They’re killer by themselves, but if you want to add a side, we recommend serving them over noodles or (for a healthier option) cauliflower rice.
📖 Recipe
Gluten-Free Turkey Meatballs with Peppers
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
These gluten-free turkey meatballs are perfect. The meatballs can stand on their own, but we added peppers, onions, and cheese to make the dish feel complete. There are no breadcrumbs in the meatballs, so they're totally gluten free (and low carb!), but they're still super moist and flavorful.
Ingredients
For the meatballs:
1 pound 85% lean ground turkey
1 cup mushrooms, finely chopped (see note)
1 egg
½ sweet onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon fresh basil, chopped (see note)
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped (see note)
½ cup grated parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce (use a gluten-free brand)
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
For the peppers and sauce:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 sweet onion, sliced
2 bell peppers, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups marinara sauce (we use Rao's)
½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
4 ounces fresh mozzarella
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F, and line a sheet pan with parchment paper (or spray it with nonstick spray).
- Add the meatball ingredients to a large mixing bowl and mix until well-combined. I find that it's easiest to mix it up with my hands—if that's not your speed, use a spoon.
- Form the meatball mixture into the meatballs. We made 16, but that will vary based on how big your make yours—ours were about an inch and a half in diameter.
- Bake for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, flip the meatballs and cook for another 20 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees. The cook time will vary based on the size of your meatballs, so keep an eye on them and check the temperature frequently.
- When the meatballs have about 15 minutes left, add olive oil and onions to a cast-iron pan (or oven-safe pan) and cook for two minutes over medium-low heat, stirring constantly to prevent them from burning.
- Add bell peppers and cook for an additional five minutes. Then add the garlic and cook for a minute. Add the marinara sauce and crushed red pepper and turn the heat to low.
- Once the meatballs are done, put them into the pan with the peppers and sauce and cover with mozzarella. Then broil on high for about 5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted (check on them frequently—it happens fast!). Enjoy!
Notes
We use baby bella mushrooms.
You can substitute the fresh basil for 1 teaspoon of dried basil.
You can substitute the fresh parsley for 1 teaspoon of dried parsley.
Nutritional information is only an estimate.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop/Baking
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: ¼ of recipe
- Calories: 479
- Sugar: 17.3 g
- Sodium: 1356.3 mg
- Fat: 24.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 28.4 g
- Protein: 38.1 g
- Cholesterol: 149.9 mg
Sharie S says
I had these last night for dinner in a Meatball Sub and they were amazing! I love the flavor and the mushrooms are a great addition keeping them nice and moist.