Skip to content
GlobeCooks
Meat & poultry

Meatball

A meatball is made with meat and may include bread crumbs, onion, egg, or butter. Cooks bake, boil, simmer, braise, deep-fry, steam, or stew meatballs, and pair them with potatoes, lingonberry jam, or spaghetti.

  • Meat
  • May contain egg
  • May contain dairy
  • May contain milk

About the plain ingredient, not packaged products; general information, not medical advice. Details

Cooked most in
Europe, Africa, The Americas
Top country
Algeria
Meatball, in dish

Photo: Obsidian Soul · CC0 1.0 · Wikimedia Commons

In the kitchen

How to use meatball

Typical ways to cook or use it

  • Bake
  • Boil simmer
  • Braise
  • Deep fry
  • Steam
  • Stew

Made from

Goes well with

Nutrition

What 100 g of meatball holds

Per 100 g, frozen. Averages from USDA; real values vary by variety, season and growing conditions.

Protein 32%Fat 50%Carbohydrate 18%of the macronutrients by weight

Nutrition per 100 g of meatball, frozen
Energy286 kcal · 1,196 kJ
Protein14 g
Fat22 g
of which saturated7.6 g
Carbohydrate8.1 g
of which sugars3.5 g
Fibre2.3 g
Sodium666 mg
Cholesterol66 mg
Nutrition per 100 g of meatball, frozen: minerals and vitamins
Potassium296 mg
Calcium80 mg
Iron1.8 mg
Magnesium31 mg
Zinc1.7 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)22 µg
Folate36 µg
Vitamin B121 µg

Source: USDA FoodData Central (food 171638), public domain. Minerals and vitamins are listed only where USDA measured a non-zero amount.

Around the world

Where meatball is cooked

6 dishes in the catalogue use meatball. Here is where they come from.

Dishes by continent

Countries whose dishes use it most

Counts are catalogued dishes from each country that list meatball among their ingredients.

Origins

  1. 1985

    IKEA introduced Swedish meatballs in its cafeterias in 1985.

On the table

Dishes made with meatball

6 dishes in the catalogue use it.

  • Mi Kocok

    Indonesia

  • Spaghetti with meatballs

    United States

  • Bird's nest

    Belgium

  • Galilean balls

    Spain

  • Mtewem

    Algeria

  • Meatballs with rice

Dish lists come from Wikidata; a dish counts when its recorded ingredients include meatball.

Good to know

Diet and allergens: meatball in detail

These notes describe the plain ingredient. Packaged and prepared products vary, so read the label; for allergies and medical diets ask a doctor or dietitian.
Allergens
Sometimes eggs (only when the optional ingredient is used)Sometimes milk (only when the optional ingredient is used)
Animal origin
From: meatSometimes egg (only when the optional ingredient is used)Sometimes dairy (only when the optional ingredient is used)

Around the world

What meatball is called

Names in 58 languages, from Wikidata.

  • Spanish

    albóndiga · albondiga · almóndiga

  • French

    boulette de viande · meatball

  • Italian

    polpette

  • Portuguese

    almôndega

  • German

    Fleischklößchen · Fleischbällchen · Hackbällchen

  • Dutch

    gehaktbal

  • Greek

    κεφτές · κεφτεδάκια · κεφτεδάκι

  • Turkish

    köfte · Kofta

  • Russian

    фрикадельки · фрикадели · фрикаделька · мясной шарик

  • Polish

    klops · klopsy · klopsiki

  • Arabic

    كرات اللحم

  • Persian

    کله‌گنجشکی

Show all 58 languages

  • Albanian

    qofte me mish

  • Armenian

    կոլոլակ · կոլոլակ (ուտեստ)

  • Asturian

    albóndiga · bola

  • Austrian German

    Fleischbällchen

  • Basque

    haragi-bola · albondiga

  • Bavarian

    Fleischpflanzl

  • Belarusian

    фрыкадэлькі

  • Bikol

    meatball

  • Brazilian Portuguese

    almôndega

  • Bulgarian

    кюфте

  • Cantonese

    肉丸

  • Catalan

    mandonguilla

  • Cebuano

    bolabola

  • Chinese

    肉圓 · 肉丸

  • Czech

    masová koule

  • Egyptian Arabic

    بفتيك boftek · بفتيك Boftek

  • Esperanto

    viandobulo

  • Filipino

    almondigas

  • Finnish

    lihapulla · lihapyörykkä · lihapyörykät · lihapullat

  • Galician

    albóndega

  • Georgian

    ტეფტელი

  • Gothic

    𐌼𐌹𐌼𐌶𐌰𐌺𐍂𐌿𐍀𐍀𐍃

  • Guarani

    so'o josopy

  • Hakka Chinese

    ngiuk-yèn

  • Hebrew

    כדור בשר

  • Hungarian

    húsgombóc · húspogácsa · fasírt · fasírozott

  • Inari Sami

    piärgupullá · piärgupuláh

  • Indonesian

    bola daging

  • Japanese

    ミートボール

  • Javanese

    daging glindhing

  • Kazakh

    фрикадельки

  • Korean

    고기 완자 · 미트볼

  • Latvian

    Frikadeles

  • Lombard

    mondeghin

  • Malay

    bebola daging

  • Malay (Arabic)

    ببولا داݢيڠ

  • Northern Sami

    biergogáhkku · biergogáhkut · biergobállu · biergobállut

  • Norwegian Bokmål

    kjøttkake · kjøttboller · kjøttbolle

  • Norwegian Nynorsk

    kjøttkake

  • Punjabi

    ਮੀਟਬਾਲ

  • Romanian

    chiftea · pârjoală · chiftele · pârjoale

  • Serbian

    ћуфте

  • Sicilian

    purpetta

  • Simplified Chinese (China)

    肉丸 · 肉圆

  • Skolt Sami

    vueʹǯǯpäll · vueʹǯǯpääll

  • Slovenian

    mesne kroglice

  • Swedish

    köttbullar · köttbulle

  • Swiss High German

    Fleischklösschen · Fleischklößchen

  • Thai

    ลูกชิ้น · มีตบอล

  • Ukrainian

    коттбуллар

  • Vietnamese

    thịt viên

Sources and credits

Data

Wikidata item: Q4831844

Photos

Photo: Obsidian Soul · CC0 1.0 · Wikimedia Commons