Meatball Stroganoff is a cozy twist on the classic beef stroganoff, swapping tender meatballs for steak in a creamy mushroom and onion sauce. It's rich, comforting, and budget-friendly, with a hint of Dijon mustard and fresh herbs for extra flavor. Serve it over noodles, mashed potatoes, or rice for a hearty meal the whole family will love.
I had beef stroganoff on my mind but no steak on hand, so I improvised with ground beef and made meatballs instead - and the result was terrific. These tender meatballs simmer in a rich, creamy stroganoff sauce made with mushrooms, onions, and crème fraîche (which won't curdle like sour cream). It's a made-from-scratch comfort food classic - no canned soups, just real ingredients. And while it's not a quick meal, it's absolutely worth the effort.
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Why You'll Love Meatball Stroganoff
- Budget-friendly - All the classic stroganoff comfort without the steak price.
- Flexible prep - Make meatballs ahead or use quality store-bought as a shortcut.
- Make-ahead - The sauce holds beautifully overnight; meatballs reheat well.
- Gluten-free friendly - Works with GF noodles or traditional egg noodles.
- Serving options - Great over noodles, mashed potatoes, rice, or on its own for lower-carb.
For another classic hearty meal, make my lasagna with no-boil noodles, either GF or not.
Ingredients You'll Need
Make meatballs ahead of time and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze and thaw when ready to enjoy.
Beef Meatballs
- Lean ground beef: I've made meatballs with 93/7, 90/10, and 85/15 lean to fat ratios and prefer the 93/7. The meatballs are still tender and flavorful, especially with the rich creamy sauce.
- Breadcrumbs: Gluten-free bread crumbs or wheat bread crumbs help hold the meatballs together. I use homemade gluten-free breadcrumbs, or for store-bought, Aleia's.
- Milk: Low fat or whole milk.
- Egg: Large egg, helps bind the meatballs.
- Onion: Yellow or brown onion adds flavor.
- Parmesan cheese: Finely grated.
- Garlic: Fresh cloves are best for that pungent garlic flavor.
- Herbs: Use fresh Italian parsley and fresh thyme.
Stroganoff Sauce
- Butter: Use unsalted butter so you control the salt.
- Onion: Yellow or brown onion.
- Broth: Beef broth or beef stock. See chef's tip below.
- Tomato paste: Adds richness and depth of flavor. Rather than a can, try a tube.
- Mushrooms: Brown cremini mushrooms or white mushrooms. Buy them whole and slice them yourself, they are fresher.
- Creme fraiche: French sour cream is richer than regular sour cream and won't curdle or break the sauce.
- Worcestershire sauce: Not traditional, but adds a nice depth of flavor.
- Mustard: Creamy Dijon mustard adds flavor and emulsification.
- Flour: Use either a gluten-free flour blend or all purpose flour.
- Fresh herbs: Fresh tarragon adds great flavor, or use fresh thyme, or fresh dill. Fresh parsley adds color at serving if desired (I use extra tarragon).
- Nutmeg: Just a little to add a sweet, nutty, and warm undertone of flavor.
- Wine or spirits: A little brandy, cognac, dry white wine, or red wine contributes to the layers of flavor, (optional).
Please see the recipe card for measurements, salt, and black pepper or white pepper.
Chef's tip on beef broth: Not all beef broths are created equal. There are many poor quality broths with unhealthy ingredients made from powders, extracts, and filler broths. A few I recommend are Kettle & Fire Beef Bone Broth, Butcher's Bone Broth (beef), and Bonfide Provisions (check freezer sections). They have clean, high quality ingredients and flavor. Be sure to read labels.
Substitutions and Variations
- In a hurry - Make the sauce from scratch using good-quality store-bought meatballs. Beef, turkey meatballs, or chicken all work well. Use bite-sized for best results.
- Homemade option - For baked turkey meatballs, use this recipe.
- Herbs - Swap dried herbs for fresh (like tarragon or thyme), using ½ to ⅓ as much.
- Crème fraîche - If unavailable, use full-fat sour cream (not low-fat) and add at the very end to prevent curdling.
- Garlic - No fresh on hand? Garlic powder will do in a pinch, ¼ teaspoon per clove.
For another delicious dish with mushrooms, try mushroom duxelles, a classic French spread.
Chef's Tip - Why These Meatballs Stay Tender
The secret is a panade - a simple mix of bread (like breadcrumbs) and liquid (like milk or broth) that locks in moisture. It a culinary trick that keeps the meatballs juicy and prevents them from turning dense, which is why these meatballs stay so tender.
If you love savory, creamy sauces, try my recipe for sour cream pork chops (it uses creme fraiche too).
How to Make Meatball Stroganoff
For meatballs
Tool tip: To portion the meatballs, I use a handy little inexpensive gadget called a squeeze disher or scoop. It makes it easy and fast. I use the bite-sized #40 size disher (¾ ounce). You can use a larger size remembering the numbers of meatballs will be smaller in number and you'll need to adjust your baking time.
Pre-heat the oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment.
For Stroganoff sauce
In case you've never made a classic sauce like this, I'm sharing a lot of photos to guide you through. It takes about 25 minutes in total. With a little patience and plenty of stirring you'll have a fantastic stroganoff sauce.
Serving Suggestions
Beef Stroganoff meatballs is best served over wide flat pasta noodles (GF or regular), egg noodles, rice, or mashed potatoes. For a lower carb dinner, simply serve meatballs and sauce in a bowl.
Meatball stroganoff is a complete meal between the meatballs, sauce and pasta. The only thing you need is a tossed green salad on the side for balance. Use this salad recipe to make a nice homemade French vinaigrette.
Storing
Leftover meatball stroganoff (or made ahead meatball stroganoff) holds in the refrigerator for up to 3 days stored in an airtight container.
I usually make my meatball beef stroganoff a few hours ahead of time (or a day ahead) then pop it into a 350°F oven covered with aluminum foil to heat back up (to 165°F).
Freezing
The meatballs freeze well on their own but the sauce does not because of the dairy (it gets grainy). To freeze sauce ahead of time, omit the creme fraiche. To serve, heat the thawed sauce in a pan until hot, then whisk in the creme fraiche and warm through.
Recipe FAQS
Tradition says use sour cream, but for a rich, creamy stroganoff sauce that won't curdle or break, use French sour cream, called Creme Fraiche. It's works much better.
For the best results, make the meatballs and sauce ahead of time then heat it in a slow cooker to serve. It's a great make dish that made ahead re-heats well.
Absolutely! Meatballs are a terrific make-ahead dish. Make meatballs and refrigerate for up to 3 days, or cool completely and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator to use, then combine and heat with your choice of sauce.
Cook the meatballs separately (first), then add them to the sauce when the sauce is done to heat through. This can be done on the stovetop or in the oven in a casserole dish, covered.
More Dinners with Great Sauces
If you love a good sauce, try these recipes as well!
Did You Make This Recipe?
If you make meatball beef stroganoff, please add your comment. I appreciate your feedback and enjoy hearing from you. If you loved it, please give it a 5-star rating! They really help other readers.
📖 Recipe
Meatball Stroganoff
Equipment
- Rimmed baking sheet half sheet size
- 12" saute pan or fry pan
Ingredients
Beef meatballs
- 6 tablespoons plain breadcrumbs gluten-free or wheat
- 6 tablespoons milk
- 1 large egg
- 2 large garlic cloves zested or finely chopped
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ¼ cup finely grated parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped thyme leaves or ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- ¾ cup onion, very finely chopped ½ a medium onion
- 1 pound lean ground beef 93/7 or 90/10 lean to fat
Stroganoff sauce
- 1 pound white mushrooms or cremini
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter divided use
- 1 cup chopped onion ½ a medium
- 2 tablespoons brandy, cognac, or dry white wine optional
- 3 tablespoons flour GF blend or all purpose
- 2 cups low sodium beef broth
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 2 teaspoons tomato paste
- 1 tablespoon fresh chopped tarragon or thyme or ⅓ to ½ amount dried
- 1 tablespoon worcestershire GF if needed
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper or white pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg
- 7-8 ounces creme fraiche
Instructions
Get ready
- Pre-heat the oven to 375°F. Line a half sheet baking sheet with parchment paper.
Make the Meatballs (can be made ahead)
- Combine the breadcrumbs, milk, egg, garlic, salt and pepper in a medium bowl and mix well. Allow to stand for about 5 minutes for breadcrumbs to hydrate.
- Add salt, cheese, herbs, and onion and mix well. Add the ground beef and gently mix with your hands. Disposable kitchen gloves are helpful. Mix completely until ingredients are well distributed but don't overwork the meat.
Portion meatballs
- With either a #40 disher (aka cookie scoop) or a tablespoon, portion meatballs onto the baking pan. They should be bite sized or the size of a small golf ball. You should get approximately 30 meatballs.
Bake meatballs
- Bake meatballs for 16-17 minutes until they reach 165°F internally measured with a digital thermometer. Remove pan from the oven. If serving immediately keep warm while you make the sauce. Alternatively cool and refrigerate for 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months, labeled and dated. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator to use.
Clean the mushrooms (start sauce)
- Using a paring knife, trim the stems of the mushrooms flush with the base and discard stems. Cup 2-3 mushrooms in your hands and rinse them quickly under a trickle of cold water. Dry on paper towels.
Make the sauce
- Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a 12" saute pan or fry pan, add the chopped onion and cook until softened, about 3 minutes. Add sliced mushrooms and cook until the moisture is released and almost gone, 8-10 minutes. Add brandy if using, and cook until almost gone. Pour the onions and mushrooms into a bowl and set aside near the stove until needed.
- Add the 2 remaining tablespoons of butter to the pan and melt over medium low heat, add the flour and whisk to combine. Cook for 2-3 minutes to remove the raw flour taste. Slowly add broth to the pan, whisking to create a smooth sauce. Cook and whisk until the sauce is thickened, 8-10 minutes. Whisk in the Dijon and tomato paste until smooth, then stir in the tarragon, worcestershire, salt, pepper, and nutmeg until smooth. Stir in the onions and mushrooms. Lastly, add the creme fraiche and stir.
To serve
- To serve, add the meatballs to the pan and heat through until meatballs are hot. Serve over noodles, rice, or mashed potatoes. At this point you can cool the stroganoff and place in an airtight container and refrigerate for 3 days before re-heating and serving.
Notes
Substitutions
- Substitute ½-3/4 teaspoon granulated garlic powder for the fresh garlic.
- Swap dried herbs for fresh at half the amount.
- For gluten-free flour blend I use King Arthur.
- If using spirits and you don't keep it on hand, buy an airline size bottle at a liquor store.
- If using white wine, get the mini, airline sized bottles at the grocery store.
Freezing meatballs
After meatballs are completely cooled, place them in a single layer on a baking sheet and freeze for 2-4 hours before transferring them to a container or bag. This ensures they're individually frozen and don't stick together. If using frozen cooked meatballs, thaw them first before adding to the sauce.Freezing sauce
This is not a dish that freezes finished well because freezing disrupts the emulsion of the dairy and it may become grainy. If you want to freeze it, leave out the crème fraîche and stir it in after reheating the thawed sauce. Add the thawed meatballs and heat through until hot.Meatballs nutrition (per 6 meatballs)
For the nutrition calculation I've separated out the meatballs because they are good with other sauces. It's a great basic beef meatball recipe. Serving: 6 meatballs provides 265 kcals, 24 g protein, 13g fat, 13g carbs, 1g fiber.Nutrition
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Roselle Haas says
There are NO INGREDIENTS FOR SAUCE!!
Sally Cameron says
Oh my gosh Roselle, thanks for letting me know part of the recipe disappeared! Not sure what happened but I have recovered it from an archive and it is all back in one piece. I hope you will try it! It's sure good. Thanks again.
Porsche guy says
Wow! This was fantastic! The sauce is so rich and creamy. Loved it over fresh fettuccine noodles. Have not cooked much with tarragon and really enjoyed it. I did as you suggested and made the meatballs ahead. Had friends over to try it and they loved it too.