Meatballs in Mushroom Sauce (Healthy)

These healthy meatballs in mushroom sauce make a fantastic family meal or potluck dish that’s suitable for any occasion.  Made from scratch, this recipe is brimming with flavour and nutritious ingredients. Step-by-step instructions included. Ready in 40 minutes.

These meatballs in mushroom sauce are low in fat and big on flavour.  The 5-ingredient meatballs are cooked in a deliciously rich (but low-fat) sauce that takes minutes to prepare.

Meatballs are easy to make but not all meatballs turn out light, fluffy and moist.  My tried and tested method of making super fluffy meatballs involves a couple of simple steps.

1. Use a soft roll rather than breadcrumbs to combine with the meat.
2. Pulse all the ingredients (rather than stir by hand) until they are fully combined and come together in a sticky mixture.

It is important to follow these steps, especially as the recipe uses low fat meat, which, if not prepared correctly, can be a little dry.

Meatballs in mushroom sauce ingredients and substitutions

The meatballs

• Ground meat with around 7% fat.
• Milk: helps to keep the meatballs moist.
• Soft roll: soaks up the milk and makes the meatballs fluffy. Use 1.5 slices of soft white bread instead if preferred.
• Seasoning and onion granules: add flavour.

The mushroom sauce

The simple chunky mushroom sauce is also made completely from scratch and using very few ingredients. It's rich and creamy but without too many calories.

• Mushrooms: I used regular, closed-cup mushrooms but you can use chestnut mushrooms instead or in addition to the regular mushrooms.
• Onion.
• Olive oil.
• Water.
• Corn flour/cornstarch: thickens the sauce.
• Parsley: this can be replaced by fresh thyme (use leaves from 2 sprigs) or 1 teaspoon of dried.
• Fromage frais: substitute creme fraiche or sour cream (*Note: both are a lot more calorific).
• Single cream: adds creaminess. Use light cream or half and half.

What meat to use

I used turkey to make these meatballs in mushroom sauce, but chicken, pork, lamb or beef will work too.  Whichever meat you choose make sure it’s low in fat but not fat free, such as chicken breast for example (it contains very little fat).  I used ground turkey (dark meat) with 7% fat.

Top tip

Beef alone may not produce the softest meatballs so you may want to consider combining it with pork or turkey.

Step-by-step recipe instructions

1.To make the meatballs, start by tearing the roll into small chunks (use whole wheat or white roll) and combining it with 2 tablespoons of milk.

2. Place in a blender and pulse until crumbly. Then add the meat and seasoning and pulse a few times until the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated.

3. Form the meatballs and set aside while you prepare the sauce.

4. To make the mushroom sauce start by frying the onion with a little oil until softened.  Add the finely chopped mushrooms, parsley and seasoning and cook over a medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring often.

5. Stir in the corn flour (until no longer visible), add the water and stir to combine.

6. Add the cream and fromage frais (fromage blanc) and stir.

7. Cook for another minute or so until the mixture thickens.

8. Then simply pop the meatballs into the sauce, cover and simmer for about 10 minutes or until the meatballs are fully cooked (turn them over gently once or twice during cooking and stir the sauce so it doesn’t stick to the pan). Remove from the heat and serve immediately.

Can I make the mushroom sauce creamy

Yes, you can! I like the chunky texture of this mushroom sauce, but you can make it creamy if you prefer. Once cooked simply puree the sauce then pour back into your casserole dish, add in the raw meatballs and cook as per Instructions.

Top tips

• Using a soft roll (rather than breadcrumbs) soaked in a bit of milk, and blitzing the meatballs mixture will produce fluffy and moist meatballs.  
• You can use any meat though bear in mind that beef meatballs may not be as soft as turkey (beef is not as tender as turkey).
• You do NOT need to cook the meatballs before combining with the sauce.
• You can prepare the meatballs ahead. Either prepare just the meatball mixture or form the meatballs as well (without cooking them).  Whatever you choose to do ensure it’s covered before popping in the fridge overnight.
• You can also make the mushroom sauce in advance. Once the sauce has cooled completely transfer it into a bowl, cover and refrigerate overnight.  When you are ready to put the recipe together heat up the sauce in a large shallow dish first, then add in the (raw) meatballs and simmer until the meatballs are cooked through.
• It's best to serve these meatballs in mushroom sauce immediately.
• Storing: Keep refrigerated, covered, for up to 3 days.
• Freezing: Cool completely before freezing.  Transfer to an airtight container (1 large or a few smaller ones if you want to freeze individual portions) and freeze for up to 3 months.

Serving suggestions

These meatballs with mushroom sauce are great with mashed potatoes or pasta, but you could also serve them with something less conventional, such as bulgur wheat or buckwheat. Also delicious with fresh crusty bread.

Related recipes

• Easy Turkey Meatballs in Tomato Sauce (Healthy)
• Meatballs in Healthy White Sauce
• Healthy Meatball Casserole
• 4-Ingredient Healthy Chicken Meatballs with Pesto

Check out also this collection healthy, easy one pot chicken recipes!

Keep in touch!

If you make these meatballs in mushroom sauce I'd love to know how they turned out for you.  Let me know in the comments below, thanks!

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