Meatball recipes often use flour, well the good ones do anyway. It helps give the meatball the right amount of stick combined with the right amount of tenderness. If you follow a paleo or gluten-free diet, obviously you can't use a traditional meatball recipe, but it's easy to replace a gluten based flour with almond or coconut flour.
Another issue I have with meatballs is that they often aren't flavorful enough. Sure they are good, but could you eat it without sauce? Or is it the sauce giving it the flavor. Personally I want the meatball to be able to stand on it's own, with a bit of sauce to compliment it.
I coated mine with a bit of red sauce but I do want to work on a sweet chili sauce for them. Because who doesn't love those meatballs coated in chili sauce and grape jelly? But I will have to experiment with the ingredients to keep them as close to paleo as possible. We strive for 80-90% here. Right now our diet is still in transition so the number isn't that high. Once we have switched over completely we will aim for that but probably actually do even better unless we happen to eat out.
Anyhoo.
I know you just want the gluten-free meatball recipe...
These were really, really good. Not overly moist but not dry and hard either. They stayed together until broken with a fork and they were tender and SOOOO flavorful.
Ingredients
- 1 lb leaf ground beef - grass-fed preferred
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 2 tablespoon coconut flour
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 small onion finely chopped or 2 tablespoon minced onion
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ⅛ - ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper - optional, they do give them a bit of a kick if you use it
- 2 tablespoon dried parsley
- 1 ½ tablespoon dried cilantro
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F
- In a small pan, melt coconut oil until liquified, add onions and sautee for 1-2 minutes
- In a medium sized bowl combine the ground beef and the spices until mixed
- Whisk egg and mix into beef mixture, then add coconut oil and onion mixture
- Combine everything thoroughly
- Mist a baking sheet or large glass casserole dish with olive oil or grease with butter
- Roll meatballs into balls depending upon the size you prefer and place in dish or on pan
- Bake for around 25-30 minutes until thoroughly cooked
Sonia
These were easy and tasty...I used ground turkey though.
Kate
These meatballs are delicious! The cayenne gives it just the right amount of kick! Thanks for sharing!
Kim
Thanks for the feedback, I appreciate it!
meg
I must admit, I didn't actually follow this recipe... I was just looking for a bread replacement in my meatballs ;p You used coconut flour, so I thought, "Why not the garbanzo bean flour I have?" I tried it and they are now cooking up quite nicely! Thank you so much for making my newly gluten-free life a little easier! 🙂
Kim
No problem, thanks for sharing, it might help someone else!
Yariv
Just prepared these meatballs and they came out real nice considering they have no milk or gluten. I would add a tsp of salt to the mix though.
Kim
Great tip, thanks!
Krista Ferrell
I just made these and they were so easy and sooooo delicious! I made a double batch and am freezing them in sets of 5 for easy lunch/dinner options next week!
Kim
Yay, glad you enjoyed them, I do the same thing freezing them!
kristin
These sounds delicious, going to give them a try!
Lea @ Doula Training
I am a bit intrigued about the flavor when cayenne pepper is added.
Hmm.. looks really delish to me.
Crunchy Beach Mama
Thanks Kim! Just starting to eat more Paleo around here and need some new recipes. Pinning!
Nichol
Ooh they look really good and sound it too. I would love them with the Cayenne but my family wouldn't. Looks like I'll have to mix up some, roll and add in cayenne for myself:)
Jenny @ MyLittleMe
I am going to have to try these! I'm craving meat!
Kelly @ A Girl Worth Saving
Yum! I'm going to make this for dinner sometime this week 🙂
Mandy
I've just started reading a book on paleo eating, so I'm bookmarking this recipe. These look amazing!
Kim
I want to try them again with some veggies in them too. Carrots, and a few others...i am going to experiment.
Which Paleo book are you,reading?
Rhea
yum. I love meatballs. I make them all the time. I usually use almond flour though, I like it better than coconut for these things.
Kim
All I had was coconut flour, I have to plan a trip to whole foods soon.
Cat Davis - Food Family Finds
Those look great for spaghetti n meatballs - minus the cayenne (ouch)
Kim
My son and I love it spicy! Abby likes a little bit of a kick.