Cooking frozen meatballs in the air fryer is quick and easy. Crispy on the outside and juicy inside, these meatballs are perfect for serving with your favorite sauce or dip.
You’ll also like these Air Fryer Frozen Burritos and Air Fryer Frozen French Fries.
Suitable for gluten free, low carb, keto, paleo diets. Post includes Weight Watchers points.
If you’re looking for an easy snack or meal or a fun way to get your kids involved in the kitchen, start with teaching them how to cook frozen meatballs in air fryer. Yep, these air fryer frozen meatballs are a quick and simple way to get kids to love cooking.
The air fryer magically transforms frozen store-bought meatballs into perfectly cooked meatballs in just minutes. And the kids will love coating these in marinara sauce, BBQ sauce, sweet chili sauce. You can also add air fryer frozen meatballs to pasta, or just gobble them up as is.
Table of Contents
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Cooking Frozen Meatballs Easily
Cooking frozen meatballs in the air fryer is so quick and straightforward to do you will want to keep a bag on hand in the freezer all the time. They make the perfect snack for game nights, movie nights, or after school.
Air fryer frozen meatballs also make the perfect quick appetizer when unexpected company shows up, just like these Air Fryer Frozen Onion Rings or these Air Fryer Frozen Chicken Wings.
Meatballs cook up perfectly in the air fryer. They go from frozen to slightly crispy with a tender, juicy interior. Plus, you won’t be using any oil, so they are healthier yet full of flavor.
Enjoy these air fryer meatballs as a snack or combine them with marinara and serve over pasta for a quick and easy dinner the whole family will love.
Why Make This Recipe
- Quick and Easy – Simple and ready in under 10 minutes.
- Crispy and tender – Crispy on the outside. Tender and juicy on the inside.
- Kid-friendly – Perfect for snacking.
- Affordable – Just grab a bag of budget-friendly frozen meatballs.
- Versatile – Coat or dip the air fryer frozen meatballs in your favorite sauce.
Tools Needed
Ingredient Notes
- This recipe uses store-bought precooked frozen meatballs that have not been thawed. They are cooked straight from frozen.
- No oil is used for cooking these.
- Frozen meatballs do come in a variety of sizes. You may need to adjust your cooking time slightly for mini meatballs, larger meatballs, or if you are not using precooked frozen meatballs.
Ready to see how easy it is to make air fryer frozen meatballs? Grab a bag and I will show you…..
How To Cook Frozen Meatballs In Air Fryer
Get the complete ingredients list and instructions from the recipe card below.
- Preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees F / 200 degrees C.
- Place frozen meatballs inside the air fryer basket, cooking in batches if needed.
- Air fry for 9-11 minutes, or until golden brown just on top. Turn meatballs halfway through cook time, or shake the basket halfway through.
- Serve as is, add them to sauce, or serve with a dipping sauce on the side.
Expert Tips
- Don’t crowd the air fryer basket. Place frozen meatballs in a single layer, leaving a bit of space will allow the air to circulate, so the exterior gets nice and crispy.
- As per the instructions preheat the air fryer for best results.
- You will probably only fit around 20 meatballs at a time, so you plan to cook meatballs in batches.
- Good frozen meatballs can be served as is or coated in sauce.
- No extra oil is needed for this recipe.
- Gently shake the air fryer basket halfway through cooking time to turn the meatballs.
Air fryer temperatures can vary depending on the make and model. I recommend starting with less cook time, checking for doneness, then adding more time as needed.
Variations
- Switch up the seasoning – Frozen meatballs are available in a variety of flavors, or even unflavored. Italian, Asian, or Greek are all popular options. Select a meatball that will work best with your final application.
- Use different meatballs – You can use this recipe to cook frozen turkey meatballs, chicken meatballs, Swedish meatballs, or vegan meatballs.
- Serve with a sauce – coat the cooked meatballs in marinara sauce, bbq sauce, or any favorite sauce.
Prep Ahead and Storage
- Prep Ahead – For the crunchiest exterior and juiciest interior, do not make ahead. If you are serving these meatballs in a sauce, you can make them ahead of time and store them in the fridge. Add them to your sauce until heated through.
- Store – Leftover meatballs should be stored in an airtight container inside the fridge for up to 3 days.
FAQs
Cooking times can vary. The size and style of your air fryer can affect cooking times, as can the size of your meatballs.
Smaller meatballs will cook quicker, while larger meatballs may take a bit longer. Begin checking your frozen meatballs at 9 minutes until you get a feel for your specific air fryer, adding additional time as needed.
In most cases, the frozen meatballs you purchase at the store are already fully cooked and you are just reheating them. You will want to watch for a slightly golden exterior but don’t cook them too long. Overcooked meatballs will be dry.
If you make and freeze your own meatballs, cook them through before freezing and then follow these instructions for heating them directly from the freezer. No thawing is necessary.
More Air Fryer Frozen Foods Hacks.
Want even more tips for how to cook frozen foods in the air fryer? Then check out these helpful posts:
- Air Fryer Frozen Burritos.
- Air Fryer Frozen Onion Rings.
- Air Fryer Frozen Chicken Wings.
- Air Fryer Frozen French Fries.
- Air Fryer Frozen Pizza.
- Air Fryer Frozen Corn Dogs.
- And meat lovers, you can even make some juicy Air Fryer Meatloaf from scratch.
Dipping Sauce Serving Suggestions
- 5 Mins Bang Bang Sauce.
- 5 Mins Yum Yum Sauce.
- 5 Mins Remoulade Sauce.
- Homemade Chick-fil-a Sauce.
- Marinara sauce.
- BBQ sauce.
- Good ol’ ketchup.
More Meatball Recipes You’ll Love
- How To Cook Frozen Meatballs.
- Easy Instant Pot Meatballs.
- 3 Ingredient Grape Jelly Meatballs.
- Air Fryer Turkey Meatballs.
Weight Watchers Points
There are 10 Blue Plan SmartPoints in one serving of this.
Thank you for reading my Air Fryer Frozen Meatballs recipe post. And please come visit again as I continue to slice, dice, and dream up affordable Air Fryer recipes, Instant Pot Recipes, Southern Recipes, Crockpot Recipes and more. Thanks for supporting Recipes from a Pantry, food blog.
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Air Fryer Frozen Meatballs
Ingredients
- 16 ounces (454g) pre-cooked frozen meatballs 1 bag
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees F / 200 degrees C.
- Remove frozen precooked meatballs from the package and place them in the air fryer basket. You should be able to fit around 20, depending on the size of your air fryer. Cook in batches if needed
- Cook for 9-11 minutes, or until golden brown just on top. Shake the basket halfway through the cooking time to turn them.
- Remove meatballs and serve as is, or with a dipping sauce of your choice.
Recommended Products
Notes
- Don’t crowd the basket of the air fryer. Leaving a bit of space will allow the air to circulate, so the meatballs’ exterior is nice and crispy.
- You will probably only fit around 20 meatballs at a time so that you can cook these in batches.
- No extra oil is needed for this recipe.
- Gently shake the basket halfway through cooking to turn the meatballs.
- Air fryer temperatures can vary depending on the make and model. I recommend starting with less cook time, checking for doneness, then adding more time as needed.
- Storage – keep leftovers in an airtight container inside the fridge for 3 days.
- There are 10 WW Blue Plan SmartPoints in one serving of this.
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Yum! This looks so delicious and tasty! My son is going to love this recipe!
What a wonderful way to quickly cook meatballs. Can’t wait to try this with the ones I premade and have in the freezer now.
Oh my, I love how quick and easy this is! I just got a new air fryer for Christmas, so I can’t wait to try these out!
What an easy way to make frozen meatballs. I would never have thought to use the air fryer, but it makes so much sense. Thanks for the tip!
Never realized how easy it would be to make them in the air fryer! Love it!