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Are mini meatballs the key to getting more protein? Why they're having a moment.

Kaitlin Reilly
·Reporter
Updated ·5 min read
meatballs
Mini meatballs are all the rage on social media. What to know about the protein-packed snack. (Getty Creative)

If you have a kid, you probably have a bag of frozen mini meatballs in your freezer. But the tiny treats have found a new fandom among adults looking for something substantial to snack on between meals — and get their daily protein intake up.

That includes Macey, who showed off her bowl of bite-sized meatballs in a TikTok this October. “When I forget I’m a college student and can eat Trader Joe’s mini meatballs at 1 a.m. if I want to reach my protein goal,” her caption read.

Nicole, who runs the TikTok account Dope Kitchen, also loves the meaty snack: “I have a hard time eating enough protein every day, so I decided to make meatball snacks because I don't have much of a sweet tooth and I'd rather snack on a ball of meat,” she said in a TikTok before sharing a recipe for her turkey meatballs flavored with goat cheese and sundried tomato.

What’s behind the mini meatball craze? From homemade versions to frozen varieties sold by brands like Simeks, Amylu Foods and Trader Joe’s, the meat treats are in demand, and a lot of it has to do with our current protein obsession. Here’s what to know — and what dietitians make of the trend.

Both Macey and Nicole said eating mini meatballs helped them hit their protein goals. The macronutrient is having a moment of its own, with people reaching for protein bars, powders, hard-boiled eggs, jerky and, in the extreme, “charcuterie boards” loaded with steak and eggs in order to get more protein in their diet.

That’s due, in part, to a rise in fitness culture, which says that to make gains in the gym, you need to up your protein intake. But protein is good for you whether you’re hitting the gym or not. It builds muscle mass and strength, keeps you feeling full for longer, aids in muscle recovery and more. Plus, with the rise of weight loss medications, more people want to offset any muscle loss by eating more protein.

Mini meatballs are one way to do that. Simeks’ mini beef meatballs contain 10 grams of protein per serving (eight meatballs), which comes to 170 calories. Trader Joe’s party-sized meatballs — which the company tells Yahoo Life over email, are expected to be back in stores by the end of 2024 — have 14 grams of protein and 210 calories per serving (six meatballs).

Size is another appeal. The bite-sized design of mini meatballs makes them easy to snack on between meals.

If you’re looking to get more protein, is wolfing down a handful of mini meatballs the best way to do it? Because they are traditionally (but not always) made with meat, meatballs are a solid source of animal-based protein, which is considered a complete protein that contains all nine essential amino acids that our body can’t produce on its own. But a meatball, mini or otherwise, isn’t just meat; it might also contain seasonings, breadcrumbs, egg and other ingredients that (with the exception of the egg, used as a binding agent) don’t really add to its protein count. Meanwhile, four plain slices of turkey contain roughly 100 calories and 17 grams of protein, and might be a more efficient, and lower-calorie, way to sneak in some animal-based protein.

Another drawback? Katie Sanger, a dietitian focusing on functional health, tells Yahoo Life that traditional pork or beef meatballs can be “high in saturated fat and cholesterol, particularly if made from fattier cuts of meat.” But there are healthier swaps available.

“If you're opting for mini meatballs as a regular snack, consider using lean ground meats like turkey, chicken or a mix of lean and fatty cuts to balance flavor and health,” she says.

Dietitian Lisa Moskovitz, founder of NY Nutrition Group and author of The Core 3 Healthy Eating Plan, tells Yahoo Life that she recommends lightening up your meatballs (and scoring extra nutrition) by including “chopped veggies like onions, garlic, mushrooms and spinach.” Doing so “can up the fiber and nutrient density while lowering the fat content naturally as well.” Just keep in mind that this will make the meatball a healthier snack, but less of a protein bomb.

While a lot of the folks showing their mini meatballs off on social media appear to be eating them plain, you may want to have yours with sauce. Sanger recommends looking for a low-sugar marinara sauce or making your own with tomatoes, herbs, garlic and olive oil. Cream-based sauces, like alfredo, or overly sugary barbecue sauces, can “add extra calories, unhealthy fats and sugars that negate some of the health benefits of lean mini meatballs,” she adds.

Want a mini meatball without the meat? Brands like Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods both sell meatballs made with plant-based, as-close-to-meat-as-you-can-get ingredients, or you can make your own from scratch using ground faux meat.

Joy Bauer, a dietitian and nutritional adviser for Beyond Meat, tells Yahoo Life the newly reformulated Beyond Beef offers 21 grams of plant-based protein with just 2 grams of saturated fat per serving. She likes to mix it with seasonings, egg, whole-grain breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese “to create scrumptious mini meatballs my whole family devours.”

Kaytee Hadley, a dietitian and adviser for Impossible Foods, recommends the brand’s Italian-style meatballs, which offer 12 grams of protein per serving.

You can also whip up meat-free meatballs using protein-rich legumes like black beans, chickpeas and lentils. If you want more protein out of your meal, try sprinkling nutritional yeast (which has about 8 grams of protein per 1.5 tablespoon serving) or parmesan cheese (10 grams of protein per 1 ounce serving) on top.

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