These Veggie Packed Air Fryer Meatballs are made with zero egg and use plant foods as the binder to pack in a healthy protein and vegetable snack or meal!
Y’all know my love affair with the Instant Pot is tried and true, and has lasted many years now. I have a small collection of those plug in pressure cookers, and I have no plans on turning my back on them.
And when the Air Fryer storm started to form over the kitchen appliance gulf, I turned my head. I mean who needs another gadget, this is ridiculous people. So I held off for a long time, like probably a couple years. And then this bright shiny air fryer caught my eye. It didn’t have a crappy nonstick basket. It was all stainless. It could dehydrate, toast, convection bake, fit a GF pizza in it, air fry, and toast. I put it off a little longer and then I just couldn’t stand it anymore. I actually tossed my toaster oven and threw caution to the wind.
So here’s why I caved:
- I was replacing my toaster oven not adding an additional appliance
- My air fryer does WAY more than air fry so I knew I could use it for multi-purpose
- I wanted to embrace other ways to get dinner ready faster, and the air fryer seemed to promise that very thing
- I love experimenting and finally couldn’t pass up the opportunity to try out some ideas I had
If you haven’t yet tried my Air Fryer Ranch Gnocchi, you should definitely start there. And then try these Veggie Packed Air Fryer Meatballs too!
Veggie Packed Air Fryer Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 2 cups chopped butternut squash
- 1/2 an onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper (omit for AIP)
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika (omit for AIP)
- 1 tablespoon ghee
Instructions
- In a skillet over medium heat, saute the butternut squash and onion in the ghee
- Once soft, remove from heat and mash gently by fork
- Combine the cooked veggies with the raw ground beef and shape them into meatballs
- Place the meatballs on your air fryer tray and insert into your air fryer
- Cook them on the air fryer setting at 350 for 10 minutes
- These meatballs are softer than meatballs using mostly meat (with egg/flour binder). They are very tender even when cooked through
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