French Onion Cheese Stuffed Meatballs
One skillet French Onion Cheese Stuffed Meatballs is a savory and flavorful twist on French onion soup! Juicy meatballs stuffed with gruyere cheese and smothered in a caramelized onion and red wine gravy and topped with golden and crispy cheese. Serve over mashed potatoes or pasta for a hearty and delicious dinner.
Ingredients
Meatballs:
- 1 pound ground beef
- ¼ cup breadcrumbs
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 ounces provolone cheese cut into ½ inch cubes (16 pieces)
- 1 tablespoon frying oil
Gravy:
- 4 tablespoons butter, divided
- 2 yellow onions halved and thinly sliced
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ¼ cup white wine (can substitute chicken broth)
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- ¼ cup flour
- 2 cups beef broth
- ¼ cup red wine (can substitute more beef broth)
- ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
Finishing touches:
- 1 cup gruyere or swiss cheese shredded
- ½ cup provolone cheese shredded
- ½ cup parmesan cheese shredded
- Fresh thyme for garnishing optional
- Mashed potatoes or pasta for serving
Instructions
- Add ground beef, breadcrumbs, egg, onion powder, salt, and pepper to a small bowl and mix together. Roll beef mixture into 12-16 golf ball-size meatballs and stuff each meatball with one cube of cheese; roll around in your hands to seal it up. If the meatballs become warm they won't hold together as nicely while cooking. If that happens, cover the meatballs and place them in the refrigerator for an hour (or briefly in the freezer) before frying.
- Heat a large oven-safe skillet over medium heat with oil. Place the meatballs in the skillet and cook for about 8-10 minutes, turning a few times until the meatballs are mostly cooked through. The meatballs will cook more in the gravy. Once done, transfer the meatballs to a plate and cover to keep warm.
- Melt 2 tablespoons butter in the skillet over medium heat. Add sliced onions and sugar and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add white wine to deglaze the skillet, scraping browned bits on the bottom. Cook for another 10-15 minutes until onions are caramelized.
- Turn to medium-high heat and add garlic and 2 more tablespoons of butter to the skillet with the onions; cook for one minute. Add flour and mix into onions; let cook for another minute. Slowly add beef broth to the skillet, mixing and scraping browned bits on the bottom of the skillet. Bring to a boil to thicken the gravy, about 2 minutes.
- Reduce heat to medium-low. Stir in the red wine, Worcestershire, salt, and pepper. Return meatballs to the skillet, cover and cook for about 10 minutes, or until meatballs are cooked through. Remove from heat.
- Remove the lid and sprinkle with gruyere (or swiss), provolone, and parmesan cheese. Set the oven to low broil and place the skillet in the oven on the top rack. Broil for 2-3 minutes or until the cheese is melted and slightly golden (watch closely so the cheese doesn't burn).
- Garnish with fresh thyme and serve warm over mashed potatoes or pasta.
Notes
If you don’t have an oven-safe skillet, use a large frying pan with tall sides, and before you cover the meatballs with cheese and broil in the oven (step 6), transfer the meatballs and gravy to an oven-safe baking dish. Alternatively, you can skip broiling in the oven. Instead, add the cheese over the meatballs, cover, and cook on the stove for an additional 5 minutes or so until the cheese is melted. But, I highly recommend using the broiler because golden, crispy cheese is amazing!
Nutritional information is automatically calculated by a third party software and is only an estimate, not a guarantee. This information is provided as courtesy, and you are solely responsible for all decisions related to your health.
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