Olive Garden Spaghetti and Meatballs - CopyKat Recipes (2024)

Make delicious Olive Garden spaghetti and meatballs at home with this easy copycat recipe. Serve this comforting and crowd-pleasing Italian meal with an Italian salad and breadsticks for a true Olive Garden experience.

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What Makes the Olive Garden Spaghetti and Meatballs So Good?

Heating frozen store-bought meatballs in jarred pasta sauce may be an easy dinner, but it isn’t exactly a memorable one. This Olive Garden recipe for Spaghetti and Meatballs brings one of the chain’s most popular menu items to your home dining table. Make extra to freeze, and you’ll have a quick meal that is so much better than takeout.

Why You Should Try This Recipe

Spending the afternoon preparing homemade meatballs and tomato sauce from scratch may be a bit too daunting for some; however, this recipe for pasta and meatballs isn’t that difficult to make. The addition of the dried red pepper flakes in both the sauce and the meatballs adds a hint of heat to keep things interesting, while the brightness of the tomato sauce perfectly balances the all-beef meatballs.

Olive Garden Recipe Spaghetti and Meatballs Ingredients

For the marinara sauce, you’ll need:

• Olive oil
• Garlic cloves
• Tomato puree, canned
• Diced tomatoes, canned
• Italian seasoning blend
• Dried basil
• Red pepper flakes
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Sugar

For the meatballs, you’ll need:

• Ground chuck
• Plain bread crumbs
• Whole milk
• Egg, beaten
• Italian seasoning
• Dried parsley
• Red pepper flakes
• Onion powder
• Granulated garlic
• Salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Non-stick cooking spray or vegetable oil

To finish the meatballs and spaghetti, you’ll need:

• Spaghetti
• Parmesan cheese, grated
• Fresh parsley, chopped

How to Make It

To cook the marinara sauce:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large stockpot or a dutch oven over medium heat.
2. Slice the cloves of garlic and add to the hot oil. Saute the garlic cloves until they are golden. Use a slotted spoon to remove them from the pot. Discard or save for making garlic bread.

3. Add the tomato puree and diced tomatoes to the pot. Be careful! There may be a little splattering.
4. Use a wooden spoon to stir in the Italian seasoning, dried basil, red pepper flakes, salt, and freshly ground black pepper.

5. Reduce the heat to low and cover the pot with a lid. Simmer for 30 minutes. At this point, you can start making the meatballs.
6. After 30 minutes, taste the sauce. If it is a little too tart, stir in some sugar and cook for a few more minutes.

To make the meatballs:

1. Combine the meatball ingredients (ground beef, plain bread crumbs, whole milk, beaten egg, Italian seasoning, dried parsley, red pepper flakes, onion powder, granulated garlic, salt, and freshly ground black pepper) in a large bowl.

2. Use your fingertips to incorporate all the ingredients together gently. Avoid squeezing the meat if you don’t want to wind up with dense meatballs.
3. Cover the mixing bowl with plastic wrap and stick it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
4. While the meat mixture is in the fridge, finish with the marinara sauce.
5. After the meat has been in chilling for 30 minutes, remove it from the fridge, and preheat the oven to 425°F.
6. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil and lightly coat the foil with non-stick cooking spray or oil.
7. Wet your hands. Form the meat mixture into one and 1/2-inch diameter balls and lay them on the prepared baking sheet.

8. Bake the meatballs in the oven until browned, about 10 to 15 minutes. Turn the meatballs halfway through the cooking time. Use an instant-read thermometer to check that the internal temperature of the meatballs is at least 165°F before removing them from the oven.

If you prefer pan-fried meatballs, you can fry the meatballs in a pan instead of baking them.

To finish the pasta and meatballs:

1. While the meatballs are in the oven, cook the spaghetti according to the package directions.
2. Drain the pasta and add it to the warm sauce. Stir well.
3. Plate the spaghetti and top it with warm marinara sauce and two or three meatballs.
4. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley and grated parmesan cheese.

What to Serve With It

A garden salad lightly dressed with balsamic and oil and a couple of slices ofgarlic breadgo pretty well with this dish. Don’t forget to serve a nice bottle of red wine. The medium body and higher acidity of a Chianti make the perfect pairing for pasta and meatballs.

How to Store the Leftovers

The meatballs and the pasta sauce in this recipe keep wonderfully in the fridge or freezer. Just make sure the food is at room temperature before putting it away.

You can keep the sauce and meatballs together in a covered container in the fridge for up to three days. However, for the best results, separate the meatballs from the sauce and put them in separate containers before freezing for up to two months.

While you can toss cooked pasta with a bit of olive oil and keep it overnight in the fridge, it will have a much better consistency if you cook it fresh.

What’s the Best Way to Reheat Spaghetti and Meatballs

The best way to reheat the meatballs and sauce is on the stovetop over medium-low heat.

Thaw the meatballs and sauce overnight in the fridge if you have the time. If you are in a hurry, try using the QUICK DEFROST setting on your microwave.

To reheat pasta with the sauce and meatballs, place the leftovers in a shallow bowl and cover the top with a paper towel. Microwave on HIGH for one minute and 30 seconds, stir the pasta, and heat for another 30 to 45 seconds or until hot.

More Olive Garden Copycat Recipes

• Cheese Stuffed Shells
• Chicken and Shrimp Carbonara
• Chicken Parmesan
• Chicken Scampi
• Crispy Chicken Fritta
• Eggplant Parmigiana
• Formaggio Pizza
• Fried Mozzarella
• Shrimp Alfredo
• Steak Alfredo

Get recipes for Olive Garden homemade soups.

Favorite Italian Pasta Recipes

• Skillet Lasagna
• Spaghetti alla Puttanesca
• Stuffed Manicotti

Check out more easy Italian food recipes and the best Olive Garden dishes on CopyKat!