Meatballs in sauce cooked in a jar, simple, light, and loved by both adults and children. Here’s another recipe, dated June 2016, in a restored version, with new photos and improved doses and steps. Jar-cooked meatball recipes are always very appreciated. To satisfy everyone, I’ve created many recipes.
At the end of this article, you’ll find several, but for now, let’s get back to the beef meatballs recipe, enriched with vegetables and cooked in sauce. You can add the vegetables you like most; in the photo, you can see chicory, spinach, chard, or even broccoli.
I find it a great way to get kids to eat vegetables. In the recipe, I’ll also give you two versions of the meatballs cooked in a jar: one with raw meatballs and the other with meatballs pre-fried in an air fryer or, if you don’t have one, in the microwave. Clearly, the first version will be lighter with softer meatballs, while the second will be a bit drier but definitely tastier, for more demanding palates. The choice is yours.
The advantage of cooking meatballs in a jar is that you can store them in the fridge for 15 days, thanks to the vacuum formed in the jar. To be honest, I make a batch of fried meatballs on Sundays, perhaps to add to the Calabrian ragù, but I make sure to prepare more mixture and make some jars. This way, my daughter will have a ready meal to take to work or enjoy when I’m away teaching jar cooking classes.
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Ready, set, jars, go!!

meatballs in sauce with vegetables cooked in a jar

Difficulty: Easy
Cost: Economical
Rest time: 30 Minutes
Preparation time: 30 Minutes
Portions: 4
Cooking methods: Microwave
Cuisine: Italian
Seasonality: All seasons

433.61 Kcal

calories per serving

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Energy 433.61 (Kcal)
Carbohydrates 21.61 (g) of which sugars 6.40 (g)
Proteins 30.65 (g)
Fat 23.98 (g) of which saturated 7.89 (g)of which unsaturated 7.94 (g)
Fibers 4.79 (g)
Sodium 1,467.77 (mg)

Indicative values for a portion of 332 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA^* and FoodData Central^** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.

^* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ^** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov

Shopping List for 16 Meatballs

9 oz ground beef
5 slices white bread (or 4 oz of stale bread)
0.5 cup milk (to soak the bread)
2 eggs (small)
0.7 oz Grana Padano DOP (grated)
0.7 oz Pecorino Romano (or aged pecorino, grated)
2 sprigs parsley
1 clove garlic
2 pinches salt
1.5 cups tomato sauce
10 oz spinach, cooked, in the microwave (or chicory or chard)

What You Need for This Recipe

You can purchase jars suitable for jar cooking on Decorazioni Dolci, using the discount code WECK10.

4 Jars 500 ml with thin or thick seal
1 Bowl glass
1 Cutting Board
1 Knife (small with straight blade)

How to Make Meatballs with Sauce Cooked in a Jar

First, prepare the meatball mixture: soak the slices of bread in the milk, or let the bread soak in the milk, to which you have added some water. Spread the minced meat in the bowl, crack the eggs into the center, and also add both types of cheese, chopped parsley, garlic, salt, and pepper. Squeeze the bread, add it to the mixture, and knead everything with one hand until well mixed. If it’s too soft, add a little breadcrumbs; otherwise, add a little milk. Let the meatball mixture rest for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, spread 1/3 cup of tomato sauce and 2.5 oz of precooked vegetables at the bottom of each jar. Mix.
With moistened hands, form 16 meatballs and place 4 in each jar. With the help of a teaspoon, distribute a little sauce over the meatballs. Clean the jar rims, close, and latch.
Set the microwave to your tested power* (I use 750 watts), place a jar inside, and set the cooking time to 6 minutes. When finished, remove the jar from the microwave and let it rest closed for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, cook the other jars.
Once the jars have cooled to room temperature, store them in the refrigerator. The meatballs will keep for 15 days. To open the jars, simply unlatch them, place one at a time in the microwave, and heat for 2 minutes on the defrost setting (to avoid thermal shock to the glass) and then proceed, at your own power, for about 3 minutes. Serve the meatballs in sauce cooked in a jar and enjoy your meal.

Rosella’s Tips…

Remember, it’s essential to read the instructions for cooking in a jar and to test your microwave.

Below you will find how to fry meatballs in the air fryer or microwave.

How to Fry Meatballs

To make meatballs in the air fryer, place them in an aluminum tray that fits in the basket, spray them with a little oil, and cook at 392°F for 10 minutes.

For precooking them in the microwave, arrange them on a Crisp plate or a heating tray greased with a little oil and cook for 8 minutes either with the Crisp function or the microwave + grill function (at 650 W).