Easy Meatballs & Mushroom Gravy is the kind of dinner that calls for an extra spoonful of sauce. The meatballs are tender, the gravy gets a little tang from Dijon, and a scoop of creamy beef tallow mashed potatoes catches whatever runs off the meatballs. You can make the whole plate without touching a knife.
This recipe is sponsored by Wild Fork Foods.
Easy Meatballs & Mushroom Gravy
Equipment
- 1 Mixing bowl
- 1 Skillet
- 1 Lid
- 1 Microwave
- 1 Kitchen Scissors
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 24 oz Wild Fork Meatball Mix
- ½ cup Italian Seasoned Breadcrumbs
- ½ cup Water Add gradually, up to this amount
- 2 Dorot Basil Cubes
- 2 Dorot Crushed Garlic Cubes
- 1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
- ½ teaspoon Wild Fork Butcher Salt & Pepper Blend
- 1 tablespoon Ghee plus more if needed
Gravy and potatoes
- 16 oz Marinated Mushroom Medley
- 2 tablespoon Ghee
- 2 tablespoon All Purpose Flour
- 1 Dorot Crushed Garlic Cube
- 3 Dorot Glazed Onion Portions
- 2 cups Water About 2 cups available, start with 1½ cups
- 1 teaspoon Beef Bouillon Powder
- 2 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
- 2 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
- 21 oz Beef Tallow Mashed Potatoes
Instructions
Directions
- Gradually add up to ½ cup water to the breadcrumbs. Rest about 5 minutes until soft with no pooled water. Stir in the basil, two garlic cubes, meatball Dijon, Worcestershire, and seasoning.½ cup Italian Seasoned Breadcrumbs, ½ cup Water, 2 Dorot Basil Cubes, 2 Dorot Crushed Garlic Cubes, 1 tsp Dijon Mustard, 1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce, ½ tsp Wild Fork Butcher Salt & Pepper Blend
- Mix into the meat until evenly combined and slightly tacky. Cover and refrigerate at least 30 minutes, preferably overnight. Shape into about 12 meatballs.24 oz Wild Fork Meatball Mix
- Heat 1 tablespoon ghee over medium to medium high heat. If desired, fully cook and taste a small test patty. Brown the meatballs in batches, letting a crust form before turning. Transfer to a plate.1 tbsp Ghee
- Discard all rendered meatball fat and keep the browned bits. Cook the mushrooms in their marinade without adding fat. Transfer them and their cooking liquid to a clean bowl.16 oz Marinated Mushroom Medley
- Stir the fresh ghee and flour together in the skillet for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the remaining garlic cube and onion portions and stir until thawed.2 tbsp Ghee, 2 tbsp All Purpose Flour, 1 Dorot Crushed Garlic Cube, 3 Dorot Glazed Onion Portions
- Dissolve the bouillon in 1½ cups water and gradually whisk into the roux. Return the mushrooms and their liquid, leaving any visible excess oil behind. Add more water as needed. Bring briefly to a boil, add the gravy Dijon and Worcestershire, then lower the heat.2 cups Water, 1 tsp Beef Bouillon Powder, 2 tsp Dijon Mustard, 2 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
- Return the meatballs and simmer gently, covered, until the centers reach 160°F (71°C). Allow about 8 to 12 minutes and check the temperature. Taste before adding extra seasoning.
- Heat the mashed potatoes according to the package directions and serve with the meatballs and gravy.21 oz Beef Tallow Mashed Potatoes
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Tried this recipe?Mention @DadGotThis or tag #DadGotThis!Why you'll want to make Easy Meatballs & Mushroom Gravy
I like a dinner where the side dish is as much a part of the meal as the meat. Here, the potatoes give the gravy somewhere to go. A forkful of browned meatball, a piece of mushroom, and a little mashed potato gets you the whole dinner in one bite. And once you've got that combination, it's hard to leave the last of the gravy on the plate.
The Dijon is what makes me go back for another bite. There's a little in the meatballs and a little more in the gravy, where you can taste it against the richness of the ghee and beef bouillon. Worcestershire brings a savory note, and the caramelized onions lend sweetness. The sauce has enough going on that I like to taste it before deciding it needs any more seasoning.
This is also a good dinner for the nights when I want something that feels like I cooked without spending half the evening at the cutting board. Frozen garlic and basil do the work of chopping and measuring fresh herbs. The onions are already caramelized, the mushrooms come marinated, and the potatoes are ready to heat. I can put my attention where I want it, on getting a nice crust on the meatballs and making a gravy I want to eat by the spoonful.
The little details that make Easy Meatballs & Mushroom Gravy worth it
If you've ever had a meatball that was firm all the way through, you know why I care about the texture here. A panade is just breadcrumbs softened with liquid. The seasoned crumbs take up the water first, so they go into the mix soft. Add the water gradually and look for crumbs that are hydrated without liquid pooling in the bowl. That's a better cue than using every drop just because you measured it.
I like to give the mix at least half an hour in the fridge. That makes this a dinner I can get started early, while I'm already in the kitchen. If I'm planning for tomorrow, I can cover it and leave it in the fridge overnight. When I'm ready to cook, I divide the mixture into about a dozen portions. Keeping them about the same size makes it easier to judge how they're cooking.
There's one optional bit of kitchen business I'll happily volunteer for. Cook a small test patty all the way through and taste it. It takes a pinch of the mix, and it tells you how the basil, garlic, and seasoning actually taste together before you roll the batch. Plus, whoever is doing the cooking gets first dibs.
Mushroom gravy you'll want on the potatoes, too
Marinated mushrooms bring their own liquid to the skillet, and I want that flavor in the gravy. Pouring off the meatball fat first lets the mushrooms cook in their own marinade. The fresh ghee in the roux is there for a reason. It gives the flour a measured amount of fat to work with, while the browned bits left in the skillet are still there to flavor the sauce.
I like the finished gravy loose enough to spoon easily and thick enough to coat a meatball. Start with the smaller amount of water in the card and use the rest as needed. The mushrooms bring liquid with them, so the gravy may be right where you want it before you've added all the water. Taste it at the end, when you can judge the bouillon, Dijon, and Worcestershire together.
If the gravy separates while it's waiting to go on the table, it can come back together. Lift the meatballs out, gently warm the gravy, and stir in a little water until it looks smooth again. Lower the heat before returning the meatballs. That's a handy thing to know when everyone's ready to eat and you're looking down at a skillet you were pretty sure was done.
Put it all on one plate
I serve three meatballs per person with a scoop of the beef tallow mashed potatoes and enough gravy to get some mushrooms onto each plate. You could spoon the sauce just over the meatballs, but I like to let it run over the potatoes, too. A fork can get you a piece of everything, though I wouldn't blame anybody for reaching for a spoon at the end.
If you want to make this on a busy night, mix the meatballs earlier in the day and let them chill until you're ready. The potatoes can heat while the meatballs finish in the gravy. Then all that's left is to get four plates on the table and see who asks for the extra sauce.
Shop the Wild Fork ingredients
- Beef, Pork & Veal Meatball Mix
- Dorot Frozen Glazed Onions
- Dorot Frozen Garlic
- Dorot Frozen Basil
- 4th & Heart Original Ghee
- Butcher's Salt & Pepper
- Via Emilia Mushroom Medley (12 oz package)
- La Casa Rosa Beef Tallow Mashed Potatoes
Did you know Dad is on YouTube?
Go check out Dad's YouTube channel for all kinds of great cooking videos and food related content.
Leave a Reply