I was that kid that always wanted to eat dinner at their friends’ houses. Not because I was being starved at home, but because I loved food and was genuinely curious about what other people were eating. My friend Shanie’s mom served me these Classic Porcupine Meatballs once, and let’s just say, I never forgot them. If you love meatballs, next try these easy and healthy Turkey Zucchini Porcupine Meatballs.
I don’t know if it was just because I had never had Porcupine Meatballs before or because they were so comforting, but I LOVED them.
I haven’t been able to stop thinking about them lately, so over the holiday, I messaged Shanie’s mom and asked for the recipe. She sent it to me and also ideas for lots of variations that she does with them.
I’ve already made them two different ways. Both were a hit with the family, and I have no intention of stopping. Fair warning, you will be seeing more porcupine meatball recipes, friends.
More Recipes with Ground Beef or Turkey
- Classic Shepherd’s Pie
- Cabbage Roll Casserole
- Egg Roll in a Bowl
- Classic Taco Soup
- Ketchup Sloppy Joes
- Hearty Stuffed Pepper Soup
Besides being delicious, there are lots of reasons to love these fun meatballs. First of all, you can use any kind of ground meat that you want. I have been using ground turkey, which makes them nice and healthy.
Second, most kids love meatballs, so being able to hide things like zucchini, carrots or mushrooms, green peppers, or whatever veggie your kids normally turn their nose up to is a great feeling. I have used zucchini and carrots in mine, and no one has even flinched or complained. They are too busy being happy that Mom made meatballs again.
How to Make Classic Porcupine Meatballs
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Spray a glass 9×13 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl combine the ground meat, grated veggies, chopped onion, uncooked rice, salt, pepper, and parsley. Mix by hand until well combined.
- Next, form the mixture into 12-15 meatballs, using about 1/4 cup of the mixture for each meatball.
- Place the meatballs evenly spaced apart in the prepared 9×13 baking dish.
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk the condensed soup (or homemade version) with 1 3/4 cups water, and then pour over the meatballs.
- Cover tightly with foil and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
- Spoon extra sauce over the top of the meatballs and serve with your favorite steamed veggies and salad or over rice.
I used a Homemade Condensed Tomato Soup Substitute. It is so easy and a great alternative if you want them gluten-free or if you don’t like using canned soups.
I hope your family enjoys this comforting meal as much as mine does.
Tips for Making Classic Porcupine Meatballs
- You can use any kind of ground meat.
- You can add up to 1 cup of finely grated carrots or zucchini.
- If you don’t have condensed tomato soup cans on hand or want a gluten-free recipe, you can use my Homemade Condensed Tomato Soup Substitute.
- An important step to remember is to make sure to cover the meatballs with foil before you put them in the oven. The foil keeps the moisture in, which the rice needs to get nice and tender.
- The dried parsley is optional, but I like to add it to help my kids get used to having green specks in their food. I feel like this is a small thing I have always done that helps my kids be less picky….just passing that on….and don’t get me wrong. They still have plenty of things they are picky about, but for the most part, they don’t cry about small green specks in their food.
- Serve over rice or with your favorite steamed veggies or salad.
Chef’s Tools:
More comfort food
- 1½ lbs ground beef or turkey
- 1 cup finely grated carrots or zucchini (optional)
- ½ cup uncooked long-grain white rice
- ¼ cup finely chopped onion
- ½ tsp salt
- ⅛ tsp ground pepper
- 1 tbsp dried parsley (optional)
- 2 cans condensed tomato soup or two recipes of Homemade Condensed Tomato Soup
- 1¾ cups water
- dash of Worcestershire sauce (optional)
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Spray a glass 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl combine the ground meat, grated veggies, chopped onion, uncooked rice, salt, pepper, and parsley. Mix by hand until well combined.
- Next, form the mixture into 12-15 meatballs, using about ¼ cup of the mixture for each meatball.
- Place the meatballs evenly spaced apart in the prepared 9x13 baking dish.
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk the condensed soup (or homemade version) with 1¾ cups water, and then pour over meatballs.
- Cover tightly with foil and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
- Spoon extra sauce over the top of the meatballs and serve with your favorite steamed veggies and salad or over rice.
I made these the other night, wasn’t sure what I’d think with tomato soup… but they were so yummy. My husband said they reminded him of the meat inside a cabbage roll without the cabbage (which is how he likes them!). Thanks for introducing me to something new!
Yay Toni! Glad you guys liked them. Hope you are all doing well, we miss you guys!
Can you make them and let them cook,if so, about how how long? Thanks
I’m talking about cooking in a slow cooker
Hi Kim, I haven’t tried it in a slow cooker,but it should work as long as they are covered well. I would also try not to stack them on top of each other if possible.
I have cooked the in the slow cooker on the high setting for 4 hours .
My family and friends absolutely love them
yay! I am so glad to hear that!
I make these all the time. Yes you can make in slow cooker. Great with mashed potatoes using the tomato gravy!!
Love hearing this Erinn! I’ll have to try them over mashed potatoes!
I have never seen this recipe anywhere but my mom’s recipe box or the old church cookbook from the 70s! The only difference is my recipe calls for partially cooked rice, a little soup mixed in with the meat, and a tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce mixed with the soup (gives the sauce a little depth). This is one of my favorite comfort meals. I haven’t had it since going gluten-free so thank you for the tomato soup substitute! Can’t wait to have it this week.
Hi Rachel! I love the idea of adding some worcesterchire sauce. Thank you so much for mentioning that! I am so glad you found my site and also reminded me that I haven’t made this in a while. Adding them to my menu for next week. 🙂 Also glad the soup recipe can help you make them gluten free!
Can you use brown long grain rice?
I don’t think it will cook completely. Brown rice typically takes longer to cook, so if you want to try it, you will need to increase the cooking time and bake them until the rice is the consistency you prefer.
These are so fun
#octobergiveaway
These are my fave, I grew up eating them. Always on mashed potatoes though! Making them again this week yum!
I’m so glad you like them! I’ll have to try it on mashed potatoes sometime! Sounds delish!
Maria…I got a chuckle when you talked about hidden veggies in foods to get children to eat. I am a bit of a “food disguiser” myself. I have a daughter who does not like fish. When she was little we would tell her it was CHICKEN!! She’s grown up now and if we have breaded fish of any kind, I will heat up some kind of sauce ( pasta sauce or Alfredo andput some melted cheese on the fish and she EATS it !!
LOL, that is awesome Barbie! We mom’s gotta do what we gotta do, right! 🙂