These delicious bison meatballs are the perfect comfort food and the best part is they are also gluten free, Whole30, and Paleo.
I love a good easy meatball recipe because they make for the best easy weeknight dinners. Meatballs are also a fun way to spice up your side dish game for parties. Having meatballs on hand at a party is a great way to keep your guests happy! I love making either these or my crockpot buffalo turkey meatballs whenever we have people over for a football game.
This bison meatball recipe is a healthier alternative to classic meatballs and pairs perfectly with your favorite marinara sauce. Using high quality ground bison (I usually get mine from Butcher Box) almond flour, egg, and seasonings keep these meatballs gluten free, Whole30, and Paleo.
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Ingredients
Substitutions
Almond flour- You can use gluten free breadcrumbs.
Tapioca flour- You can use arrowroot flour.
Bison- If you don't have bison or can't find it you can use ground beef.
Step by step
- Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray with a little cooking spray or drizzle a tablespoon oil (like olive oil or avocado oil) on the parchment paper.
- Add the ground bison to a large bowl.
- To the bowl, add eggs, almond flour, black pepper, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, Italian seasoning, and tapioca flour. Using your hands, combine everything together.
- Using your hands roll the meat mixture into 1.5 inch balls and place meatballs evenly spaced on the baking sheet. The uncooked meatballs should be about 1.5 inches and will shrink as they cook but you can make smaller meatballs if you prefer.
- Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes or until the internal temp reaches 160 degrees Fahrenheit.
Frequently asked questions
Bison has 25% fewer calories than beef and less fat making it healthier than ground beef.
Yes! You cook ground bison the exact same way you cook ground beef. Any recipe with ground beef can be made with ground bison.
Anything that tastes good with beef. Bison and beef have very similar flavors so anything you would pair with beef you can pair with bison!
Bison vs beef
Over the years I have found myself buying more and more bison instead of ground beef. Bison tastes pretty much the same as regular beef, has 25% fewer calories than beef, and has less fat. American bison is more likely to be grass fed and pasture raised making it more sustainable.
Tips/notes
When you pull the meatballs out of the oven there will be a bit of fat on the pan and around the cooked meatballs. I use a spoon to scoop off the drained fat that has collected around the meatballs.
What to serve with
I love serving these meatballs with pasta sauce, homemade gluten free pasta, and topped with parmesan cheese and fresh herbs like fresh basil and fresh parsley. Here are some other tasty ways you can serve them.
- With a side of green beans and wild rice
- With your favorite sauce like alfredo, vodka sauce, or a mushroom cream sauce
- With a classic tomato sauce, red pepper flakes, and pita bread
- With spaghetti squash or zucchini noodles
Storing and reheating
These meatballs are great the next day! You can store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. You can also put these in a freezer bag or vacuum sealed bag and store them in the freezer for two to three months.
Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating or comment! Your feedback is so important to me.
Recipe
Easy Baked Bison Meatballs (Gluten Free)
Ingredients
- 2 lbs ground bison
- 2 eggs
- ¼ cup almond flour
- 2 tablespoons italian seasoning
- 2 teaspoons tapioca flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
EQUIPMENT NEEDED
- baking sheet
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper
- To a large mixing bowl, add the ground bison, almond flour, eggs, tapioca flour, salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning. Using your hands, combine everything together.
- Using your hands, roll the meat mixture into 1.5 inch balls and evenly place them on the parchment lined baking sheet
- Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes or until they reach an internal temperature of 160 degrees
Notes
- With a side of green beans and wild rice
- With your favorite sauce like alfredo, vodka sauce, or a mushroom cream sauce
- With a classic tomato sauce, red pepper flakes, and pita bread
- With spaghetti squash or zucchini noodles
Nutrition
*nutrition information is an approximate
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Karen
They're good, not great. Followed the recipe to the T but they were missing flavor. Maybe up the spice game, add some italian seasoning to the mix? Not too sure, but they just weren't quite 5 star rating.
One huge bonus was the timing was on point, 30 min start to finish as advertised was a bonus!
Kaleena Martinez
Thank you so much for your feedback, Karen! The recipe already calls for 2 tablespoons of Italian seasoning but you can add more plus a little more garlic powder and onion powder for some more flavor! xo-Kaleena