Whole30 Slow Cooker Turkey Meatball Recipe
Whole30 Slow Cooker Turkey Meatballs are the perfect weeknight meal! This recipe is packed with flavor and has an easy homemade marinara as well! Gluten free, paleo, low carb and even has some hidden veggies! Super easy to make and you can even freeze these as part of meal prep!
Servings 4
Calories 211kcal
Equipment
- Crockpot
Ingredients
- 1 lbs. ground turkey
- ¼ cup grated zucchini about 1 small zucchini, grated
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 ½ tsp. dried basil
- 1 tsp. dried oregano
- ½ tsp. sea salt
Tomato Sauce
- 28 oz crushed tomatoes (1 can)
- 15 oz diced tomatoes (1 can) drained of excess water
- 1.5 tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tbs. balsamic vinegar
- 2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. sea salt
Instructions
- Start by grating the zucchini. Once the zucchini has been grated, use your hand or a towel and squeeze out all the excess water. Do this in batches and don’t rush this process.
- Add the zucchini to a large mixing bowl. Add the tomato paste, balsamic vinegar and spices to the bowl, stir well.
- Add the turkey meat to the zucchini and spices. Stir well but don’t over mix.
- Make the Whole30 Marinara and add it to the bottom of the crockpot.
- Using your hands, carefully form the turkey zucchini meatballs. NOTE: these will seem very loose and barely stick together. This is normal, just be careful with the meatballs.
- Place the meatballs directly into the Whole30 approved marinara sauce.
- Cover the crockpot and cook on low for 4 hours or high for 8 hours.
Video
Notes
Turkey meatballs are best made with darker meat turkey. I prefer 93% lean ground turkey.
Once cooked you can store these slow cooker meatballs in the fridge for 3 days.
To freeze before cooking, carefully form the turkey meatballs and freeze them on a single baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Once fully frozen, you can add them to a freezer safe bag or container. Freeze the sauce separate. The night before, defrost the Whole30 spaghetti sauce. Add the frozen meatballs directly to the defrosted sauce and cook on low for 10 hours or high for 4-6.
To freeze after cooking, freeze the meatballs with the sauce in a freezer safe container. Store in the freezer for up to a month. Defrost in the fridge.
Make ahead tips:
- Make the meatballs and instead of putting them directly into the tomato sauce, place them on a dinner plate. Cover the plate with plastic wrap and store in the fridge overnight.
- In a large mason jar or easy to close container, combine the ingredients for the Whole30 marinara sauce.
- The next morning, add the sauce to the bottom of the slow cooker, carefully add the meatballs and turn it on for the required cooking time.
Nutrition
Calories: 211kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 3g | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 9g
