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These healthy Thanksgiving Turkey Meatballs and Gravy combine ground turkey, stuffing mix, sautéed onions and celery, and fresh herbs in an easy homemade gravy. Perfect for a small Thanksgiving, Friendsgiving, or a cozy weeknight dinner!
Thanksgiving Turkey Meatballs
I love the flavors of Thanksgiving dinner, but I don’t always want to roast a whole turkey to enjoy them. These Thanksgiving turkey meatballs have stuffing, sautéed onions and celery, and fresh herbs for that classic holiday flavor. My family loved them, especially with the homemade gravy spooned over mashed potatoes, but they’re also great over egg noodles. It’s an easy way to make a smaller Thanksgiving meal or enjoy those flavors any night of the week.
Why You’ll Love These Thanksgiving Turkey Meatballs
I tested these meatballs a few times, and they were a hit with my family! I even brought some over to my 94-year-old neighbor, who loved them too.
- All the Thanksgiving flavors in one easy dish you can make any time of year.
- Juicy turkey meatballs, and the gravy makes them even better!
- Perfect Thanksgiving flavors for any weeknight, especially if you don’t want to roast a whole turkey.
- Make-ahead-friendly: If you’re serving this dish to company, I’ve included some tips below on how to do most of the work before your guests arrive.
Ingredients You’ll Need
I’ve broken the ingredients into 2 groups: turkey meatballs and homemade gravy. See the recipe card below for the exact measurements.
Meatballs
- Binders: A large egg and seasoned dried stuffing mix bind the meatball mixture together. I used Mrs. Cubbison’s stuffing best, but any brand works.
- Turkey or chicken stock or broth: Soak the stuffing in the broth to soften it before mixing it with the other ingredients. You can buy broth or use homemade.
- Olive oil for sautéing the veggies
- Seasoning: Salt, black pepper, and poultry seasoning (Bell’s is my favorite; it contains dried herbs, ginger, marjoram, and pepper, and it has no salt.)
- Aromatics: Diced yellow onion and minced garlic
- Celery: A classic Thanksgiving stuffing ingredient
- Herbs: Fresh sage for the meatballs and parsley for garnish
- 93% lean ground turkey is a high-protein, low-fat option.
- Grated Parmesan for a salty, savory flavor
Gravy
- Turkey or chicken stock or broth is the base of the gravy.
- Herbs: Simmering sprigs of fresh sage and thyme in the gravy infuses the gravy with flavor.
- Seasoning: Kosher salt, black pepper, poultry seasoning
- All-purpose flour thickens the gravy.
- Unsalted butter adds richness.
How to Make Turkey Meatballs and Gravy
The brand of stuffing used in the Thanksgiving meatballs will affect their flavor and how much salt you need, so cook a little meatball to confirm if it’s well seasoned. See the recipe card at the bottom for printable directions.
For the Meatballs
- Soften the stuffing: Whisk the egg and stock, then stir in the stuffing mix. Let it sit until it’s soft.
- Sauté the aromatics: Pour olive oil into a skillet over medium heat. Add the onions, celery, salt, and pepper, and cook for 8 to 10 minutes. Next, add the garlic, sage, poultry seasoning, and 2 teaspoons of water, and cook for 2 minutes. Spoon the mixture into the bowl with the stuffing and refrigerate for about 10 minutes, until the veggies have cooled.
- Mix everything together: Stir the turkey, Parmesan, and the remaining salt and pepper into the cooled stuffing mixture.
- Test for seasoning: Form 1 meatball and cook it in the skillet or under the broiler. Then, taste it to see if it needs more seasoning. If so, add it to the mixture; otherwise, form the remaining meat into 30 small meatballs about the size of a ping pong ball.
- Broil the meatballs on a foil-lined, oil-sprayed sheet pan for 5 to 6 minutes, until browned. Broiling is an easy way to brown them without having to stand at the stove rotating them. Just set a timer and don’t get distracted. They can go from perfectly cooked to burnt in minutes.
For The Quick Turkey Gravy
- Simmer the broth: Pour 3 ½ cups of broth into a large pot over medium heat, and add the sage, thyme, salt, and pepper. Bring it to a boil, decrease the heat to low, cover the pot, and simmer for 15 minutes. Then, remove the herb sprigs.
- Make the slurry: Blend the remaining broth with the flour and poultry seasoning in a blender. Then pour in the 1 cup of hot broth and blend again.
- Finish the gravy: Pour the broth/flour mixture into the pot (this will help thicken it), then whisk in the butter until melted. Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed.
- Finish cooking the meatballs: Add the browned meatballs to the gravy, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes. Uncover the pot to let some liquid evaporate and the
Variations
- Save Time: You can use store bought gravy
- Protein: Swap ground turkey for chicken.
- Gluten-free: Use your favorite GF stuffing and flour, like Cup4Cup.
- No poultry seasoning? Use a mix of any dried herbs you have, such as rosemary, thyme, parsley and/or sage.
Serving Suggestions
Make-Ahead Tips
Broil the meatballs ahead of time and refrigerate. When you’re ready to eat, make the gravy and warm the meatballs in it. You can also make the entire dish a day ahead and reheat it over low heat, adding a splash of broth to loosen the gravy as needed, but the gravy tastes best made the same day.
If you just want to get some of the prep out of the way, you can make the meatball mixture and shape it into balls 2 days in advance. Then, refrigerate the meatballs in an airtight container until you’re ready to broil them.
How to Store and Reheat
- Refrigerate the meatballs and gravy for up to 4 days.
- Freeze for up to 3 months.
- Reheat: Thaw in the fridge, then reheat in the microwave or in a small saucepan over low heat on the stove. If the gravy has become too thick, add a splash of broth.
More Turkey Recipes You’ll Love
Below are more Thanksgiving turkey recipes to make this November, and I also have a large collection of Ground Turkey recipes for any time of year.
Yield: servings
Serving Size: 5 meatballs with sauce
Meatballs
- 1 large egg
- ¾ cup turkey stock, chicken stock or broth, homemade or store-bought
- 1 ½ cups seasoned dried stuffing mix, 3 ½ ounces, such as Mrs Cubbisons
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ small yellow onion, about 4 ounces, finely diced (about ¾ cup)
- 2 medium celery stalks, about 3 ½ ounces, finely diced (about ¾ cup)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided, plus additional to taste
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
- 3 garlic cloves, minced (about 1 tablespoon)
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh sage leaves
- 1 ¼ teaspoons poultry seasoning, I use Bells
- 1 ½ pounds 93% lean ground turkey
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese, about 3/4 ounce
- parsley, chopped for garnish
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Make the meatballs: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the egg and stock until smooth and well-combined. Add the stuffing mix, stir to combine, and set aside to let the stuffing soften.
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In a medium skillet, warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion, celery,½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic, sage, poultry seasoning, and 2 teaspoons of water and cook, stirring constantly, until tender, about 2 minutes. Scrape the mixture into the bowl of softened stuffing mix and chill in the refrigerator until the sautéed vegetables are completely cooled, about 10 minutes.
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When cool add the ground turkey, grated parmesan cheese, and remaining ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Use wet hands to mix until well-combined.
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Since the seasoning of the meatball mix will depend heavily on the brand of stuffing you use, cook off a small tester patty of the mix and taste for seasoning. Adjust the meatball mixture with more salt if needed. Using wet hands, form 30 small meatballs the size of a ping pong ball (about 2 tablespoons each), placing the meatballs onto a large sheet pan covered with foil (sprayed with oil) as you form them.
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Arrange a rack in the upper third of the oven and turn on the broiler. Broil the meatballs until the top and sides are browned, about 5 to 6 minutes, careful not to burn. Set aside.
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Make the gravy: Meanwhile, in a large pot over medium heat, combine 3 ½ cups of the turkey or chicken stock with the sage, thyme, salt (use less if your stock is salted) and black pepper to taste and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover with a lid, and simmer for 15 minutes. Discard the herbs.
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Meanwhile, in a blender add the remaining ½ cup of cold or room temperature stock with the flour and poultry seasoning and blend until smooth. Add 1 cup of the hot stock into the blender to temper and blend again, then pour into the pot with the simmering stock, whisking until thickened, 2 minutes. Add the butter and whisk until melted, taste for salt and adjust as needed.
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Gently transfer the browned meatballs into the simmering gravy and cook, covered, for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, uncovering the last 5 minutes, to thicken.
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Transfer the meatballs and gravy into a large serving bowl or platter, garnish with parsley, and serve hot.
Last Step:
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- If you want to make this faster, you can use store bought gravy or a gravy packet.
- I haven’t tested but I think this would be fine to use your favorite GF stuffing and flour, like Cup4Cup.
- Ground chicken can be used in place of turkey.
Serving: 5 meatballs with sauce, Calories: 343 kcal, Carbohydrates: 21.5 g, Protein: 27 g, Fat: 16 g, Saturated Fat: 5 g, Cholesterol: 123 mg, Sodium: 903 mg, Fiber: 1 g, Sugar: 3 g
