Pepperoni Meatballs

Jamielyn Nye
Updated July 16, 2021

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• 3
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• Beef
• Eggs
• Garlic

These pepperoni meatballs have all your favorite pizza flavors in meatball form! They’re tender, moist and taste amazing. 

We love Italian food at our house…especially spaghetti and meatballs. I usually make instant pot spaghetti during the week, but love to make homemade meatballs on the weekends when I have more time. These pepperoni meatballs are a fun variation that taste amazing!

This recipe was born out of desperation. I was having a meatball craving and didn’t have any ground pork in my freezer…only ground beef. I love to make my homemade meatballs with half ground beef/half ground pork, so I decided to branch out (mostly because pepperoni was the only other meat on hand.)

The good news is that they turned out awesome! It’s like eating pizza meatballs. What’s not to love?! They taste amazing with cooked pasta and marinara sauce, but would also taste delicious on a meatball slider or sub. These pepperoni meatballs are the best of both worlds!

What you need:

• Package of pepperoni
• Mushrooms
• Onion
• Ground beef
• Eggs
• Milk
• Panko breadcrumbs
• Garlic
• Paprika

How to make pepperoni meatballs

Blend the pepperoni and veggies 

Pulse the pepperoni in a food processor until it is ground completely. Pour the mixture into a large bowl. Next add the mushrooms, onion and garlic to the food processor. Pulse until ground, then add the mixture to the bowl.

Mix in remaining ingredients 

Add the remaining ingredients to the bowl with the pepperoni and use your hands to combine. Form the mixture into golf ball sized meatballs, then place on a foil-lined baking sheet.

Bake meatballs in oven 

Bake at 450°F for 10-12 minutes, or until the meatballs are cooked through and browned on the bottoms. Serve with pasta, marinara and parmesan cheese!

Tip: Make sure to remove the little silica gel package from the pepperoni bag before adding the slices to the food processor. I learned the hard way and accidentally blended it in with the pepperoni!

More delicious meatball recipes:

• Crockpot BBQ Meatballs
• Porcupine Meatballs
• Swedish Meatballs
• Healthy Turkey Meatballs
• Crockpot Hawaiian Meatballs

Pepperoni Meatball Recipe

5 from 3 votes

These pepperoni meatballs have all your favorite pizza flavors in meatball form! They're tender, moist and taste amazing. 

Prep Time: 25 mins

Cook Time: 10 mins

Total Time: 35 mins

Servings: 25

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Ingredients 

• 6 ounce package sliced pepperoni
• 8 ounces mushrooms
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 pound ground beef
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 cup milk
• 3/4 cup panko breadcrumbs or quick oats
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 450°F. Line a large baking sheet with foil and coat with nonstick spray.
• Add the pepperoni to a food processor. Pulse thoroughly until it is ground completely. Add to a large bowl.
• Add the mushrooms, onion, and garlic to the food processor and pulse until ground. Pour into the bowl.
• Add in the ground beef, eggs, milk, breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, and paprika.
• Use your hands to combine the mixture (it works better than a spoon and makes the meatballs more tender).
• Form the meatballs into balls a little smaller than a golf ball. (Or any size you want, as long as they are uniform.)
• Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until browned on the bottoms.
• Serve with pasta and marinara!

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Notes

*Make sure to remove the fresh silica gel packet from the bag before adding pepperoni to food processor. 

This recipe makes about 25-30 meatballs.

Nutrition

Calories: 105kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 33mg | Sodium: 303mg | Potassium: 119mg | Vitamin A: 50IU | Vitamin C: 0.4mg | Calcium: 21mg | Iron: 0.7mg

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian

Author: Jamielyn Nye

Photography and recipe contributed by Karen of The Food Charlatan for I Heart Naptime.