Cocktail Meatballs With Creamy Mustard Sauce
These savory Cocktail Meatballs are the ultimate party meatball recipe – juicy beef and pork baked to perfection, served with a creamy, tangy mustard dipping sauce.
Irresistible Cocktail Meatballs For Your Next Party!
If you need an appetizer for a party, don’t overthink it. Everybody loves meatballs, so meatballs are what you should make. But we’re skipping the grape jelly and ketchup (thanks but no thanks, 1960’s).
These Cocktail Meatballs are both no-frills AND full of flavor and yes, that is possible. The meat is combined with spices, dried herbs and a bit of Parmesan cheese for huge depth of flavor, and a spoonful of horseradish adds a kick that balances the rich flavors so well.
Don’t sleep on the dipping sauce. It’s only a handful of ingredients, but the combination of Greek yogurt, grainy mustard and fresh chives add a special touch to this simple party dish.
Why You’ll Love This Party Meatball Recipe
- Always a crowd favorite. Who doesn’t like meatballs?
- Perfect as a holiday party meatball recipe, but also weeknight-friendly for dinner!
- No frying required. Baking them keeps them lighter and less messy.
Meatball Appetizer Recipe Ingredients
A full recipe card, including exact ingredient amounts, appears at the bottom of this post.
- ground beef + ground pork – this combination of ground meat creates juicy, flavorful meatballs with just the right amount of fat for this cocktail meatballs recipe.
egg– to bind the meat mixture together.- panko breadbrumbs – helps these homemade meatballs stay light, never dense. Gluten free breadcrumbs work fine here.
- Parmesan cheese – adds umami and saltiness.
- dried basil – provides a hint of sweet, aromatic flavor.
- horseradish – adds a slightly spicy kick and depth of flavor.
- parsley – adds freshness and a subtle herbal flavor.
- garlic and onion powder – enhances the overall savory taste without adding too much moisture.
- smoked paprika – adds just a gentle smokiness.
- salt and pepper – always essential.
What’s The Best Meatball Appetizer Sauce?
While these meatballs are delicious enough to serve on their own, we firmly believe it’s not a true party without a dipping sauce. You can stir this together in minutes using ingredients you probably already have on hand. Except the chives, you’ll have to buy those. Or skip them, no judgement. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Greek yogurt – the creamy base of the dipping sauce.
- sour cream – adds extra richness and tang.
- whole grain mustard – adds a robust mustard flavor and a little crunch from the whole mustard seeds.
- (regular) Dijon mustard – deepens the mustard flavor and adds a little heat.
- chives – adds a mild onion flavor and fresh color to the sauce.
How To Make Savory Cocktail Meatballs
- MIX. In a large bowl, mix together the egg, beef, pork, breadcrumbs, Parmesan, basil, horseradish, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper and paprika.
- FORM + BAKE. Using your hands, gently form the mixture into 1-inch balls and place them on a large baking pan. Transfer to the oven and bake until the internal temperature of the meatballs reaches 160 degrees F.
- SAUCE. While the meatballs are baking, stir together the yogurt, sour cream, whole grain mustard, chives and Dijon mustard to make the sauce. Serve the meatballs with the sauce.
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Cocktail Meatball Recipe Home Chef Tips
- Avoid overmixing the meat mixture, as this can result in dense and tough meatballs. Mix only until the ingredients are just combined.
- If you have one, use a small cookie scoop for evenly sized small meatballs that cook consistently. Or, use a food scale to weigh them. Or, skip all that and just eyeball them and they’ll be totally fine.
- This recipe for cocktail meatballs makes a generous 32 meatballs, but if you don’t need that many, you can just halve all of the ingredients. But you can still use the whole egg.
- For a party, serve the meatballs with toothpicks for dunking into the sauce.
Storage And Reheating
- Refrigerate: If you have leftovers of this meatball appetizer recipe, transfer them to an airtight container and place them in the fridge uncovered for a few hours until they are fully chilled, then cover them with the lid and keep in the refrigerator up to 3 days.
- Reheat: In a 350 degree F oven for about 10 minutes or until heated through. An air fryer is also great for reheating meatballs!
- Freeze: Wrap tightly and freeze baked meatballs (without sauce) up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating.
Recipe For Cocktail Meatballs FAQs
A good rule of thumb for 1-inch size meatballs is about 4 to 5 meatballs per person as an appetizer, or 8 to 10 per person as a main course.
Rubbery meatballs are usually due to overmixing the meat mixture. Be gentle when combining the ingredients.
The best size for cocktail meatballs is about 1 to 1-1/2 inches in diameter. This is an easy size to serve and eat for appetizers.
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Cocktail Meatball Recipe
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Ingredients
For the Meatballs:
- 1 egg beaten
- 1 ½ pounds lean ground beef
- ½ pound ground pork
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon dried basil leaves
- 1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons onion powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
For the Creamy Mustard Sauce:
- 1 container plain Greek yogurt 5.3 ounces
- ¼ cup sour cream
- ¼ cup whole grain mustard
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives plus additional for garnish
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Instructions
- Make the Meatballs: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line rimmed baking pan with parchment paper.
- Add egg, beef, pork, breadcrumbs, Parmesan, basil, horseradish, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper and paprika to large bowl. Mix gently with hands until just combined.
- Roll mixture into 1-1/2-inch balls and arrange on prepared pan. Transfer to oven and bake 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown and internal temperature reaches at least 160 degrees F, turning once.
- Meanwhile, make the Creamy Mustard Sauce: In small bowl, stir together yogurt, sour cream, whole grain mustard, chives and Dijon mustard.
- Serve meatballs garnished with extra chives, with sauce on the side for dipping.
These meatballs look amazing! I can’t believe I have never tried making meatballs before!!
Say what?!? Come on over, we’ll have a meatball-making PARTY!