Easy Spaghetti and Meatballs Recipe with Veggies

Intro

This spaghetti and meatballs recipe is an easy, cheap crowd-pleaser for tired nights, busy days, or tight grocery weeks.

The pasta, sauce, and canned vegetables all get mixed together at the end, which makes it harder for picky kids to separate everything out. I use premade meatballs so I can cook only what we need and add the right amount to each person’s bowl.

I laid out the instructions step-by-step to make this simple for beginners. It’s mostly boiling water, opening cans, and setting timers.

Disclaimer

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Ingredients

Premade precooked frozen 1 inch meatballs (1 meal’s worth)
1 pound pasta
1 jar (45 oz) spaghetti sauce
1 can (14.5 oz) sliced carrots
1 can (13.5 oz) spinach
1 can (15.25 oz) corn, optional
1 bay leaf
Italian seasoning – medium sprinkle
Granulated onion – medium sprinkle
Granulated garlic – medium sprinkle
Dried basil – little sprinkle
Dried thyme – little sprinkle

Tools

Quick Overview

Boil water.
Add rotini and set a timer for the maximum cook time listed on the box.
Stir every 3 minutes.
Strain, rinse, and set aside.
Add sauce to the pot, then add a splash of water to the empty jar, shake, and pour the extra sauce into the pot.
Drain and add vegetables and seasonings.
Mix, cover, and heat on medium.
Once bubbling, lower to medium-low. Keep covered and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring every 5–10 minutes.
With 15 minutes left, air fry meatballs at 400 F for 14 minutes, or according to package directions.
After the sauce timer, turn off the heat.
Mix the pasta into the sauce, and serve.
Add meatballs to each bowl. For small kids, cut meatballs into age-safe pieces.
If someone ends up with the bay leaf, remove it during plating.

Step-by-Step Directions

Set the pot onto the stove burner.
Use the liquid measuring cup to add the amount of water listed on your pasta package to the pot.
Cover the pot, and set the burner to high heat (maximum setting).
Use kitchen scissors to cut open plastic pasta packaging so it doesn’t spill all over.
When the water comes to a big rolling boil, add the pasta, and set a timer for the maximum cook time listed on the pasta packaging.
Stir the pasta every 2-3 minutes with tongs or a pasta spoon so it doesn’t clump together.
After the timer beeps, strain the pasta into a strainer or colander in the sink.
With the pasta still in the strainer, mix it as you rinse it with cold water using the “shower” faucet setting so it doesn’t overcook.
Let the pasta sit in the strainer while you cook the sauce.
Open the sauce jar, and keep the lid.
Pour the sauce into the now-empty pot.
Add a small splash of water to the empty sauce jar, put the lid back on, and shake it to loosen the extra sauce from the sides.
Pour the watery sauce into the pot.
Open the vegetable cans, leaving 1cm untouched so the lid stays attached.
Drain the canned vegetables by holding your finger over the center of the closed lid and pouring out the liquid into the sink.
Add the vegetables, seasonings, and bay leaf to the sauce in the pot.
Mix the sauce with the basting spoon.
Cover the pot, and set the stove burner to medium heat (halfway setting).
Check the sauce every few minutes to see whether it started bubbling. When it does, stir and lower the heat to low or medium-low (1/4 setting). The sauce should stay at a gentle simmer, with small bubbles but not a full boil.
Replace the pot lid, and set a timer for 30 minutes.
Stir every 5-10 minutes so the sauce doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot, and replace the lid each time.
Check the cook time for your meatballs, and start them cooking in the air fryer when there is still enough time left on the clock. Check your package directions and make sure the meatballs are fully heated through.
After the sauce simmers for 30 minutes total, turn off the heat.
Mix the pasta into the sauce, or let the sauce simmer longer before adding the pasta if you need more time to finish cooking the meatballs.
Spoon the pasta mixture into bowls, and add your desired number of meatballs to each bowl using tongs.
For small kids, cut the meatballs into age-safe pieces with kitchen scissors. This also helps them cool faster.
Remove the bay leaf when you come across it. Bay leaves are inedible, so remove it during plating.

Recipe Notes & Tips

Meatballs

I use premade meatballs because they are easy to portion, quick to air fry, and less messy than forming and browning ground meat. They also help reduce waste and make it easier to give everyone the amount of protein they actually need.

For the small frozen meatballs I use, the package does not include air fryer instructions, so I set the air fryer to 400 F for 14 minutes when I have 14 minutes left on my sauce timer.

Pasta

I usually cook pasta for the maximum time listed on the box, starting the timer when I add the pasta to the boiling water.

Rotini holds sauce well and is less messy for kids. Spaghetti, angel hair, or any other pasta also works. Just use 1 pound, and follow the cook time listed on the box.

Vegetables

Canned carrots help cut the acidity of the tomato sauce without adding sugar or baking soda. They also give the sauce a subtle sweet Chef Boyardee-style flavor.

Spinach blends into the sauce without changing the flavor for easy added nutrients.

Corn is optional, but my kids like it, and it adds extra fiber.

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