Raise your hand if you have multiple Thanksgiving or Friendsgiving gatherings to attend this year. 👋 Well you can’t make a turkey for all of them, so how about bringing these fun Turkey and Stuffing Meatballs instead? They make a really fun appetizer, addition to a Friendsgiving potluck spread, or if you’re a million miles away from home and still need those Thanksgiving vibes, these Turkey and Stuffing Meatballs got your back. They’re super easy, have all that Thanksgiving flavor, and make great leftovers (I speak from experience).
What Kind of Stuffing Should I Use?
There are many kinds of stuffing mixes on the market, but the most common variety comes in a 6oz. box and basically just contains dried bread, dehydrated vegetables, and bouillon powder. The bread absorbs some of the moisture from the turkey and egg, and helps keep the meatballs moist, while the dehydrated vegetables and bouillon powder flavor the meatballs, and provide all the salt and seasoning necessary.
You can use any flavor, whether it be herb, turkey, pork, or any other variety. I have not tested this recipe with cornbread style stuffings, but I expect it would work just the same.
NOTE: If the directions on your stuffing mix say to add chicken broth instead of water, it is likely that bouillon powder is not included in the mix and you should use chicken broth in place of the water when making the meatballs.
What to Serve with Turkey and Stuffing Meatballs
These tasty little meatballs make a great appetizer served with mushroom herb gravy and cranberry sauce for dipping, but you can also make it a meal! Serve the meatballs on a bed of mashed potatoes or mashed sweet potatoes, steamed green beans on the side, and either gravy or cranberry sauce on top.
Can’t Find 19oz. Ground Turkey? No Problem.
I don’t know why, but some brands sell ground turkey in 19oz. packages, while others sell it in one pound (16oz.) packages. I’ve made this recipe using both amounts of ground turkey, with no additional adjustments, and it works great either way!
Turkey and Stuffing Meatballs
Servings 20 meatballsIngredients
- 1 6oz. box stuffing mix ($0.69)
- 1 cup hot water* ($0.00)
- 19 oz. ground turkey (93% lean) ($3.49)
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten ($0.26)
- 2 Tbsp butter ($0.26)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Place the dry stuffing mix in a large bowl, add the hot water, and stir until no more water pools on the bottom of the bowl. Let the stuffing sit for another 5 minutes to further soften. (Less water is added to the stuffing mix than is listed on the box in order to leave room for the absorption of moisture from the turkey and egg.)
- Add the ground turkey and beaten egg to the bowl with the partially hydrated stuffing mix. Combine these ingredients by hand until they are evenly mixed. Form the mixture into 20 meatballs, slightly larger than ping pong balls, or about 3 Tbsp each.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, then place the meatballs on the parchment. Bake the meatballs for 20 minutes in the preheated oven.
- Melt 1 Tbsp butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add half of the baked meatballs and allow them to cook in the butter until browned on most sides (about 5 minutes). Transfer the browned meatballs to a serving dish, add a second tablespoon of butter to the skillet, and repeat with the second batch of meatballs.
- Serve warm over a bed of mashed potatoes or with gravy or cranberry sauce for dipping.
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Notes
Nutrition
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Scroll down for the step by step photos!
How to Make Turkey and Stuffing Meatballs – Step by Step Photos
Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Place the contents of one 6oz. box of stuffing mix in a large bowl, add 1 cup hot water, and stir until no more water pools on the bottom of the bowl. Let the stuffing sit for five minutes more to continue to soften. You’ll be using less water than the instructions on the box list because you want to leave room for the stuffing to absorb moisture from the turkey and egg.
Add 19oz. ground turkey (93% lean) and one lightly beaten large egg. Mix these ingredients together with your hands until they are evenly combined.
Shape the mixture into 20 meatballs, each slightly larger than a ping pong ball in size (about 3 Tbsp each). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and place the meatballs on the parchment.
Bake the meatballs in the preheated oven for 20 minutes.
Next, melt 1 Tbsp butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the baked meatballs and sauté in the butter until they’re browned on most sides (about 5 minutes). Transfer the browned meatballs to a serving dish, add a second tablespoon butter to the skillet, and repeat with the second batch of meatballs.
You can serve these Turkey and Stuffing Meatballs as a mini-Thanksgiving style dinner, or as a party or Friendsgiving appetizer.
They’re awesome for dipping into cranberry sauce or gravy, and make great leftovers!
MMMMM these are so yummy and quick to put together! You are a genius! I used Trader Joe’s cornbread stuffing (no high fructose corn syrup in that one!) which comes with a seasoning packet, so I combined that with the hot water. I guess I made mine smaller than yours (but they still seem big) because I made more than 20 (I lost count) and still had enough to make 3 “patties” for lunch… for quality control testing purposes. Delicious with cranberry sauce. I made them for a party today and was originally going to make turkey gravy to go with them but I think the sauce is just fine (or even on their own, we kept popping them in our mouths!). I’ll definitely make these again!
I made these and they were delicious! Easy and inexpensive too. After baking I simply transferred them to a skillet along with a jar of turkey gravy and let them simmer a bit. Served with mashed potatoes. Will be making them again and again!
So delicious! I made these for a work potluck, and every single one of them got eaten! I served them with cranberry sauce on the side, but they’re perfect on their own, too. Such an easy recipe for a great result.
Fantastic!! My husband and I have made this a few times and had a mini thanksgiving for ourselves with this delicious recipe. Thank you, Beth!
Just tried these with cornbread stuffing, even added 2 Tbsp of butter, per package direction, and they turned out super dry. Might be better to stick to white bread stuffings.
Do you think I could just bake them and skip the saute? This is my second time making these, my husband adores them!
Yes, they should be baked through after the oven step, and if not, just let them bake a few minutes longer. The skillet step just adds a nice buttery browned edge, which does add to the flavor, but you could always taste one after baking and decide if you want to go the extra mile or not. :)
Can you use ground chicken thigh meat in this recipe ? I don’t have turkey, but I have quite a bit of ground chicken in my fridge I’d like to use…. would greatly appreciate your input!
-Maru
Yes, ground chicken should also work well. I would suggest using dark meat, though.
I have about 40 + guests coming over for a Tweener Party (Dec. 1) (a party between Thanksgiving and Christmas). I know you thought form and freeze and then bake/saute would be best, but I formed/baked/sauted and am now freezing. I’ll have so many other things in and out of the oven the day of the party, I thought heating these up would be easier than me baking/sauteing and finishing up 10 other appetizers. Unfortunately, I think I made them too big, but I made a double batch, so hopefully there will be enough. For the sauce, I’m thinking about concocting a cranberry, pomegranate and Hatch Chili Red Wine sauce. I’ll make it first and taste it. If it doesn’t taste good, I’ll go with a cranberry sauce and just drink the wine:}. I’ll let you know what folks say. I dropped one on the floor and the dogs loved it!
I just made this recipe exactly (though doubled) for a work Thanksgiving and they were a hit! I was worried they would be plain because there are so few ingredients but wow – they were tasty! They tasted great right out of the oven (quality control testing ;) ) but browning them really elevated them. Thanks for a great recipe as always.
I was ready for a taste of Thanksgiving and these delivered. I had them with mashed potatoes and gravy, a shaved brussels sprouts salad, and cranberry sauce.
My ground turkey came in a 16-ounce package and I got 16 meat/stuffing balls. I saved a few for a leftover meal the next day and froze the rest for future meals.
Can these be made ahead and frozen?
Yes, you can freeze them after shaping and they should hold up well!
Can I form these and put them on a tray in my fridge until I am ready to cook them later?
Yes, that should work just fine. :)
I made a double batch for a Friendsgiving and they were a hit! I served them with gravy and spicy cranberry mustard as dipping sauces. They’ll definitely be made again and again. Not only are they delicious, but you can’t find an easier recipe.
Ooooh, I love the idea of a SPICY cranberry sauce with these!
Those dips sound great, do you mind sharing your recipes for them?
Made these last night and everyone loved them. These made me seriously reconsider making a whole turkey on Thanksgiving. Thank you Beth!
Do you know of a way to make these with already-made stuffing leftovers? I have to make GF stuffing at our house, and buying a box of GF stuffing mix just isn’t cost effective at all. Or I wonder if could make the GF recipe, just without adding the liquid ingredients, and see how many ounces that is and measure out what I need from it?
You might be able to do it with stuffing that is already made. I basically “made” my stuffing, just with slightly less liquid, so if you use stuffing that is already made hopefully they’ll just be softer? The only risk is that they might not hold together as well if they have too much moisture.