Meatballs and Rice

This meatballs and rice recipe doesn’t combine meatballs and cooked rice as an entree. Instead, the rice acts as a binder in the meatballs themselves. We’ve tested several dozen meatball recipes, some made from scratch and some using store-bought meatballs. This recipe is one of the quickest, despite being scratch-made, because it uses an Instant Pot or other electric pressure cooker. It’s an easy way to put dinner on the table in well under 30 minutes.

Ingredients for Meatballs and Rice:

• Egg: The egg binds together the meat, rice and flavorings.
• Instant rice: Most meatball recipes call for a starchy ingredient to help bind the meat, and in this case it’s instant rice rather than breadcrumbs.
• Onion: Chopped onion gives the meatballs a pleasantly savory flavor.
• Parsley: The fresh parsley gives the meatballs a more pleasing appearance, with its flecks of deep green.
• Ground beef: Lean ground beef gives the meatballs most of their bulk and a beefy flavor.
• Tomato soup: A can of tomato soup provides the sauce with flavor and color.
• Worcestershire sauce: Worcestershire sauce’s complex flavor adds savory, peppery notes.
• Cooked rice and fresh parsley: They’re optional, but the meatballs are excellent when served with hot, fresh rice and a garnish of additional parsley.

Directions

Step 1: Make the meatballs

KRISTINA VANNI FOR TASTE OF HOME

In a bowl, combine the egg, rice, onion, parsley, salt and pepper. Crumble the ground beef over the rice mixture and mix them together lightly but thoroughly. Shape the beef mixture into 1 ½-inch balls. Arrange the meatballs on a trivet in a 6-quart electric pressure cooker. Combine the condensed soup, water and Worcestershire sauce, and pour this mixture over the meatballs.

Step 2: Cook the meatballs

KRISTINA VANNI FOR TASTE OF HOME

Lock the pressure cooker’s lid and close its pressure release valve. Set it to cook for 10 minutes at high pressure. Once the 10-minute cooking cycle is complete, quick-release the pressure. Let the meatballs stand for 5 minutes before serving. If desired, serve the meatballs over rice and top them with additional chopped parsley.

KRISTINA VANNI FOR TASTE OF HOME

Meatballs and Rice Recipe Variations

• Switch up the meat: If you’re looking for a protein change, or if something else happened to be on sale this week, you can definitely run with an alternative. Ground pork meatballs and lamb meatballs are both good options. So are ground turkey and ground chicken, if you’re looking for lighter and leaner. If you’re a hunter (or know one), ground venison is another option that’s very lean.
• Lose the rice: The instant rice in this recipe isn’t just a filler. Some form of breading plays a key role in meatballs and meatloaf, helping bind the meat together and retain moisture. If instant rice isn’t something you keep on hand, replace it with a more conventional ingredient such as soft breadcrumbs. Use another meatball recipe as your guide, but then revert to this recipe’s instructions once they’re ready for the pressure cooker.
• Change the sauce: The tomato-soup sauce in this recipe has the twin advantages of being quick and convenient. That said, there are plenty of other sauces you could use to give the dish a different flavor each time. Swap the tomato soup for cream of mushroom, or a different cream soup, for an easy change. Alternatively you could cook the meatballs in beef gravy, sweet-and-sour or teriyaki sauce, or your favorite barbecue sauce thinned with some water. As long as it’s liquid enough for the rice to cook, and to not clog the pressure cooker’s valves, you’re good to go.

How to Store Meatballs and Rice

Any leftover meatballs and sauce should be transferred to a food safe container with a tight-fitting lid, and kept in your refrigerator.

Can I make meatballs and rice ahead of time?

Yes, meatballs are always a good candidate for cooking ahead. They reheat nicely in their sauce, and the extra time gives opportunity for their flavors to develop fully. Feel free to make them 1 or 2 days ahead, and reheat them when mealtime rolls around.

How long will my meatballs keep?

Like most leftovers they’re good for 3 to 4 days in the fridge, provided you refrigerated them promptly after the meal. For longer-term storage, freeze the meatballs and sauce in meal-sized portions. If you’ve packaged them well, they’ll be good for 3 to 6 months.

Meatballs and Rice Tips

KRISTINA VANNI FOR TASTE OF HOME

My meatballs fall apart, am I doing something wrong?

Unfortunately, the candid answer to this question is “Probably, yes.” The recipe as written was tested and approved by our Test Kitchen, so review the instructions carefully and try again. It’s all too easy to misread the instructions or measure an ingredient incorrectly, especially the first time you make a recipe. Both the egg and the rice act as binders to hold the meat together.

Can I cook these meatballs on the stovetop?

You sure can, though you’ll need to change a few things. Start with beef that’s no more than 80% lean. In a pressure cooker you can get away with leaner beef, because it cooks so quickly. On the stovetop you’ll want that little bit of extra fat, to keep the meatballs juicy as they simmer. Skip the instant rice in favor of ½ cup of regular long-grain rice. You won’t need an egg as a binder in these meatballs, because the long-grain rice is “thirstier” and binds the meat more reliably. Instead, add ½ cup of water to the meat mixture. Shape small meatballs, brown them in a deep skillet or Dutch oven, then add the sauce and simmer them for an hour.

What should I serve with these meatballs?

We suggest serving them over hot, fresh rice, but any other cooked grain works just as well. So do noodles, or even soft polenta. The only other thing you’ll need to make a complete meal is a suitable vegetable side dish.