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10 New Ways with Meatballs

Try these innovative versions of a comfort classic from the West's culinary crossroads

Text by Juliet Glass and Sunset food editors
1 /10 Photo by Iain Bagwell

Puttanesca Meatball Sliders

Transform the Italian meatball sandwich into the perfect appetizer: Make it bite-size, and add an olive-caper sauce.

Recipe: Puttanesca Meatball Sliders

2 /10 Photo by Iain Bagwell, styling by Kevin Crafts

Shrimp and Pork Meatball Wraps with Vietnamese Dipping Sauce

Wrap one of these gingery meatballs with shredded vegetables in lettuce, then dunk in a tart-sweet-spicy sauce.

Recipe: Shrimp and Pork Meatball Wraps with Vietnamese Dipping Sauce

3 /10 Photo by Iain Bagwell, styling by Kevin Crafts

Creamy Lemon Soup with Lamb Mint Meatballs

These lamb and mint meatballs are meant to be tiny, so you get one in nearly every spoonful of velvety soup.

Recipe: Creamy Lemon Soup with Lamb Mint Meatballs

4 /10 Photo by Annabelle Breakey, styling by Karen Shinto

Campanile's Spaghetti and Meatballs in Red Sauce

This dish illustrates the principle that, as chef Mark Peel says, "It's not what you do, it's how you do it."

The meatballs have three kinds of meat for flavor; they're made carefully and not overworked; and the sauce is clingy.

Recipe: Campanile's Spaghetti and Meatballs in Red Sauce

5 /10 Photo by Christina Schmidhofer

Lamb and Eggplant Meatball Pita Sandwiches

Eggplant always seems to have a love-it-or-hate-it audience. But "even people who claim they don't like eggplant love these easy meatballs," says recipe submitter Christine Datian.

Recipe: Lamb and Eggplant Meatball Pita Sandwiches

6 /10 Ngoc Minh Ngo

Spicy Pork Skewers

Moroccan meat skewers, or kefta, are made with beef and formed into sausage shapes. Our variation uses ground pork and a hefty dose of spices rolled into little meatballs.

Recipe: Spicy Pork Skewers

7 /10 Photo by Thomas J. Story

Moroccan Spiced Lamb Meatballs

Meatballs are easy to make, and they’re a good way to get everyone at a party involved in the cooking. These get a pep from fresh ginger along with the fragrant Moroccan spice blend ras el hanout.

Recipe: Moroccan Spiced Lamb Meatballs

8 /10 Photography by Dan Goldberg (Styling: Karen Shinto)

Stuffed Chipotle Meatballs

These meatballs come with a surprise–hard boiled eggs in the center. Be sure to serve them over rice to sop up the rich, spicy sauce, and top with cilantro for a little color.

Recipe: Stuffed Chipotle Meatballs

9 /10 Photo by Annabelle Breakey, styling by Dan Becker

Caramelized Vegetable and Meatball Soup

This soup is built on root vegetables roasted until sweet, dense, and crisply browned. Roast meatballs at the same time, pour in broth, and you have soup straight from the oven.

Recipe: Caramelized Vegetable and Meatball Soup

10 /10 Photo by Leigh Beisch

Singapore Turkey Stew

Coconut milk smoothes out the assertive Chinese five-spice blend in this quick turkey dish.

Recipe: Singapore Turkey Stew