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Home » Recipes » Recipes

Easy Keto Cast Iron Meatballs

Published: Jul 6, 2022 · Modified: Dec 29, 2022 by Lara Clevenger, Registered Dietitian This post may contain affiliate links - read my disclaimer for full details... Leave a Comment

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These Cast Iron Meatballs are so juicy and easy to make! Make homemade keto meatballs in less than 30 minutes on the stove top!

cooked keto meatballs in a keto spaghetti sauce topped with basil
Table of Contents
  • Keto Cast Iron Meatballs
  • Why you'll love this recipe
  • Ingredients for Keto Cast Iron Meatballs
  • Tools to make this recipe
  • How to make keto meatballs in cast iron skillet
    • Recipe notes
  • Substitutions
  • How to serve
  • Easy Keto Cast Iron Meatballs Recipe
  • Easy Keto Cast Iron Meatballs
    • For the Meatballs
    • For Cooking
    • Toppings

Keto Cast Iron Meatballs

These low carb meatballs are great for a busy weeknight meal. Perfect for those comfort food cravings without breaking the bank!

These juicy meatballs are delicious no matter how you eat them! Whether you eat them with zucchini noodles, spaghetti squash with keto marinara sauce, in a meatball casserole, or make low carb meatball subs. You can't go wrong!

These meatballs are great for a keto diet! Made with minimal ingredients, they're naturally high in fat, moderate in protein and low in carbs! You might also like this bacon wrapped keto meatballs recipe.

These tender meatballs are naturally gluten-free because it uses almond flour instead of bread crumbs.

cooked keto meatballs in a keto spaghetti sauce topped with basil

Why you'll love this recipe

  • High protein - 21g of protein for just 5 meatballs!
  • Great for entertaining -This is a large recipe and makes 45 meatballs, perfect for serving a crowd
  • Low in Carbs - Just 3 total carbs per serving (2 net carbs)

Ingredients for Keto Cast Iron Meatballs

This almond flour keto meatball recipe is made with all beef instead of a combination of ground beef, pork and or Italian sausage.

ingredients photo for air fryer keto meatballs
  • ground beef - I use 80/20 ground chuck because I prefer a fattier meatball. You can also do half ground pork and half ground beef, or even ground turkey!
  • eggs - large eggs and no need to be at room temperature
  • onion - grated or minced. Just make sure they're super small. We only use a small amount to add flavor since onions are moderately high in carbs
  • fresh garlic - I love to add garlic to almost everything. You can substitute garlic powder if needed.
  • fresh basil and fresh parsley - pop of flavor and color
  • parmesan cheese - low moisture cheese to help bind and add flavor
  • seasonings - coarse salt and ground black pepper, but feel free to add Italian seasoning and other seasonings as you like
  • almond flour - used in this meatball recipe instead of bread or breadcrumbs to keep the carb content low
  • heavy cream - helps with moisture and adds extra fat
  • water - to add if you're ground beef mixture needs a little more liquid to form into balls
  • oil - I use avocado oil for cooking the meatballs
  • homemade keto spaghetti sauce - or you can use a store bought marinara sauce like Rao's if you don't want to make your own
  • Toppings: parmesan cheese and fresh basil
cooked keto meatballs in a keto spaghetti sauce topped with basil

Tools to make this recipe

For this stove top cooking method, the only tool you will need for this recipe is a well seasoned cast iron skillet.

How to make keto meatballs in cast iron skillet

  • In a large bowl add the ground beef, eggs, onion, garlic, basil, parsley and parmesan cheese.
  • Mix until well combined.
  • Then add the salt and pepper.
  • Next add the almond flour and heavy cream. Mix until the meat mixture is easily able to form a loaf.
  • If the mixture is too dry add the water 1 tablespoon at a time. 
  • Next form the meat into 2 inch balls. Place these aside on a large plate or tray.
  • In a large cast iron skillet, heat up the avocado oil over medium heat.
  • Add some meatballs but be sure to not overcrowd the skillet. Brown the meatballs on all sides and cook until the meatballs reach an internal temperature of 165F with a meat thermometer. Around 10-15 minutes.
  • Transfer cooked meatballs to a paper plate and cook the rest of the keto meatballs. Once all have been cooked, add desired amount of keto spaghetti sauce and meatballs to the cast iron skillet.
  • Cook until the sauce is warm. Top with parmesan cheese and fresh basil.
large bowl with ground beef, eggs, almond flour and herbs
ground beef mixture in large glass bowl
ground beef mixture in large glass bowl
ground beef mixture in large glass bowl
ground beef mixture in large glass bowl
raw keto meatballs being cooked in a cast iron skillet
keto meatballs being cooked in a cast iron skillet
cooked meatballs on paper towels
cooked keto meatballs in a keto spaghetti sauce

Recipe notes

  • This recipe makes 45 meatballs. You can cut the recipe in half or you can make the entire batch, but freeze leftover meatballs raw. Leftovers means lots of tasty meals!
  • How to freeze meatballs: Place raw meatballs on a parchment lined baking sheet and place them in the freezer until they are frozen. Then transfer the frozen meatballs to a glass container or large baggie.
  • Cook from frozen: add an additional 10-15 minutes to the cooking time if you are cooking frozen meatballs in a cast iron pan. Make sure that none are stuck together and you cook them in a single layer.
  • You can also cook these keto meatballs in an air fryer!

Substitutions

If you want to make this recipe Paleo, sub out the parmesan cheese for ground up pork rinds (1:1 ratio) and the heavy cream for almond milk or coconut milk (1:1 ratio). Don't worry it'll still have that traditional Italian flavor!

You can substitute half of the ground beef for pork, Italian sausage, turkey or your favorite ground meat. This will change the flavor profile slightly but they will still make a delicious dinner.

Update! If you want to use all ground turkey you're in luck!

I've recently written a post on how to make keto frozen turkey meatballs, air fryer turkey meatballs and baked keto turkey meatballs.

cooked keto meatballs in a keto spaghetti sauce topped with basil

How to serve

Serve the meatballs with a homemade keto spaghetti sauce or a store bought one like Rao's Marinara. I'm partial to my homemade sauce 🙂

Serve with low carb noodles, zoodles, or palmini noodles for an easy meal!

If you loved this recipe, check out this air fryer keto meatballs recipe and this bacon wrapped keto meatballs recipe also made in the air fryer.

cooked keto meatballs in a keto spaghetti sauce topped with basil
PHOTO COLLAGE OF RECIPE WITH THE WORDS "VIEW MEAL PLANS"

Easy Keto Cast Iron Meatballs Recipe

hero image for keto cast iron meatballs

Easy Keto Cast Iron Meatballs

Lara Clevenger, Registered Dietitian
These Cast Iron Meatballs are so juicy and easy to make! Make homemade keto meatballs in less than 30 minutes on the stove top! 
4.67 from 3 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes mins
Cook Time 15 minutes mins
Total Time 30 minutes mins
Course Entree
Cuisine American
Servings 9
Calories 364 kcal

Equipment

  • cast iron skillet

Ingredients
  

For the Meatballs

  • 2 pounds ground beef I used 80/20
  • 2 large eggs
  • ¼ cup onion minced or grated
  • 3 cloves garlic minced
  • 2 tablespoon basil fresh, finely chopped
  • 2 tablespoon parsley fresh, finely chopped
  • ⅓ cup Parmesan cheese shredded or grated
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon pepper
  • ½ cup almond flour
  • 2 tablespoon heavy cream
  • 1-2 tablespoon water

For Cooking

  • 2 tablespoon Avocado oil
  • Keto Spaghetti Sauce

Toppings

  • Parmesan
  • Fresh Basil

Instructions
 

  • In a large bowl add the ground beef, eggs, onion, garlic, basil, parsley and parmesan cheese. Mix until well combined.
  • Then add the salt and pepper. Next add the almond flour and heavy cream. Mix until the meat mixture is easily able to form a loaf. If the mixture is too dry add the water 1 tablespoon at a time.
  • Next form the meat into 2 inch balls. Place these aside on a large plate or tray.
  • In a large cast iron skillet, heat up the avocado oil over medium heat.
  • Add some meatballs but be sure to not overcrowd the skillet. Brown the meatballs on all sides and cook until the meatballs reach an internal temperature of 165F with a meat thermometer.
  • Transfer cooked meatballs to a paper plate and cook the rest of the keto meatballs. Once all have been cooked, add desired amount of keto spaghetti sauce and meatballs to the cast iron skillet.
  • Cook until the sauce is warm. Top with parmesan cheese and fresh basil.

Notes

Makes about 45 keto meatballs

Nutrition

Calories: 364kcalCarbohydrates: 2gProtein: 22gFat: 30gSaturated Fat: 10gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 119mgSodium: 403mgPotassium: 312mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 237IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 89mgIron: 3mg
Keyword cast iron meatballs, keto meatballs, skillet meatballs
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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Hi, I’m Lara, a Registered Dietitian and Personal Trainer with a passion for food and travel.

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