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The traditional Mexican soup gets a family-friendly spin in this easy albondigas meatball recipe for kids. These meatballs are an easy-to-make lunch option for daycare or school. Serve a dipping sauce and veggie slaw on the side to make a filling, flavorful and nutritious meal.
Albondigas is the Spanish word for meatballs. They are traditional in albondigas soup, a classic Mexican meatball soup.
Albondigas meatballs stand out because they’re loaded with flavorful and fresh herbs. We use cilantro in this kid-friendly albondigas recipe, but herbs like mint, parsley and oregano are also commonly used.
White rice is used as a binder in these meatballs, helping to create a moist, fluffy meatball texture.
Kid-friendly meatballs
Our version of albondigas is kid-friendly and easy to transport. Instead of making the meatballs into a soup, we serve them on their own, perfect for your child to dunk into their favorite dip.
These meatballs can be served as a snack, side dish, appetizer or main entree. Add a crunchy veggie or fresh slaw, and you’ve got a delicious, on-the-go lunch for your toddler or kid.
Related: Need help meal planning? Look into our Real Easy Weekdays meal plan. It’s a whole meal system (plus easy-to-follow recipes) to help busy families prepare meals and snacks daily.
Easy albondigas recipe for families
The best recipes for busy families are fast, easy and tasty. It’s also helpful when recipes allow you to batch-cook, providing extras that can be frozen for future meals. This albondigas recipe hits all those requirements.
One batch of this albondigas meatball recipe, as written, yields 30 meatballs. That’s great for families because you get food to last several days or leftovers that can be frozen and saved for another day.
This recipe is also easy to customize based on your family’s tastes and preferences. This can be especially helpful if you are trying to improve picky eating in your home.
Picky eating tip
Because this recipe can be easily customized, you can try making this recipe with ingredients and flavors your selective eater already knows and likes.
For instance, you can use any kind of ground meat in the recipe. Start with one your child knows. Gradually, you can work in new ingredients, like turkey, garlic, cilantro and chili powder, to introduce new flavors.
If your child is a picky eater, you can snag our picky eater’s guide for strategies and tips for minimizing struggles at mealtimes.
Meatballs for kids’ school lunch
Albondigas meatballs can be packed in your child’s favorite lunchbox and served as a daycare or school lunch.
Pack 3 to 6 meatballs for your child in a lunchbox with an ice pack. You can also pack a dipping sauce, jicama slaw or another veggie, a fruit and/or crackers.
For picky kids, if this is a new recipe and you plan to use the albondigas for a school lunch, make sure your picky eater is already familiar with the meatballs. Before you send a food or dish to daycare or school, make sure your toddler is already comfortable with it.
Ingredients in albondigas meatball recipe
Flavorful herbs and spices give these easy meatballs a rich, savory flavor, while rice adds an airy texture.
Here are the ingredients in these Mexican albondigas meatballs.
Spices: cumin, kosher salt, black pepper, ground oregano, paprika, chili powder
Milk
Related: Learn about protein for kids, including how much protein kids actually need each day.
Meatball recipe variations
You can swap out the ground turkey for your family’s favorite ground meat. For a more traditional take on Mexican albondigas, try this recipe with ground beef.
For vegetarian meatballs, try ground lentils, a mixture of diced mushrooms and chopped walnuts, or your favorite brand of packaged plant-based crumbles.
Substitute brown rice in place of white rice for a more nutritionally-dense albondiga.
In place of fresh cilantro, fresh mint is a popular choice.
This recipe uses both fresh and dried seasonings for convenience, but fresh herbs can be used for flavor if desired.
Love garlic? Increase the amount of garlic for a stronger flavor.
Our kid-friendly meatballs come together in one bowl before being baked in the oven.
Here’s how to make these albondigas quickly and easily.
Combine all albondigas ingredients in a big bowl, being careful not to overmix.
Scoop out 30 meatballs, using about 1 heaping tablespoon per meatball, and roll into balls. Place meatballs on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Bake at 400 degrees F / 205 degrees C for 10-12 minutes.
Serve fresh jicama slaw (recipe below) on the side for a nice, crunchy add-on. If your family is still learning to like jicama, you can check out our seasonal list of veggies for kids for different options!
Albondigas (Meatballs) and Jicama Slaw
Ramon Solorzano
The traditional Mexican soup gets a family-friendly spin in this easy albondigas meatball recipe for kids. These meatballs make a great lunch for daycare or school.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F / 205 degrees C. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
In a large bowl, gently mix together all the ingredients for the albondigas until evenly combined.
Divide meat mixture into 30 meatballs, approximately 1 heaping Tbs. / 24 g per meatball. Roll into evenly-sized balls and place on the prepared cookie tray.
Bake for 10-12 minutes or until internal temperature reaches a minimum of 165 degrees F / 74 degrees C for 15 seconds.
To make slaw, in a mixing bowl, add all ingredients and gently mix until evenly combined.
Notes
Substitute brown rice in place of white rice for a more nutritionally dense albondiga.
If you are making rice fresh, for this recipe add another 15 minutes to the prep time. Also, make sure to begin with cooking the rice to have it ready when assembling the albondigas.
Try this recipe with ground beef for a more traditional take on Albondigas.
Add a ¼ tsp. of Tajin or chile con limon seasoning to the jicama slaw for added flavor.
Albondigas can be frozen and thawed for future use.
Ingredients with a “W” next to them are WIC-eligible items. WIC is the supplemental nutrition program for women, infants and children in the United States. It provides food to families with pregnant or postpartum women and young children. WIC-eligible items will vary based on location.
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About Kids Eat in Color
Created by experts, Kids Eat in Color is the leading resource for families seeking evidence-based information and strategies on child nutrition and feeding.
I'm a father of three young, active children, an avid reader of all things sports nutrition and a triathlon athlete. When I'm not filling my kids' lunchboxes, chasing them around the park or beating my wife at Mario Kart, you can find me creating recipes and developing menus for restaurants, including Applebee's, Coco's, Shari's and more. Making sure children have access to nutritionally dense food is a passion of mine, so I have partnered with organizations like "No Kid Hungry."
This free veggie exposure shopping list and menu planner will give you ideas for bringing more veggies into your home (AND help you get your little one closer to eating them!).
The traditional Mexican soup gets a family-friendly spin in this easy albondigas meatball recipe for kids. These meatballs are an easy-to-make lunch option for daycare or school. Serve a dipping sauce and veggie slaw on the side to make a filling, flavorful and nutritious meal.
Albondigas meatball recipe
Albondigas is the Spanish word for meatballs. They are traditional in albondigas soup, a classic Mexican meatball soup.
Albondigas meatballs stand out because they’re loaded with flavorful and fresh herbs. We use cilantro in this kid-friendly albondigas recipe, but herbs like mint, parsley and oregano are also commonly used.
White rice is used as a binder in these meatballs, helping to create a moist, fluffy meatball texture.
Kid-friendly meatballs
Our version of albondigas is kid-friendly and easy to transport. Instead of making the meatballs into a soup, we serve them on their own, perfect for your child to dunk into their favorite dip.
These meatballs can be served as a snack, side dish, appetizer or main entree. Add a crunchy veggie or fresh slaw, and you’ve got a delicious, on-the-go lunch for your toddler or kid.
Related: Need help meal planning? Look into our Real Easy Weekdays meal plan. It’s a whole meal system (plus easy-to-follow recipes) to help busy families prepare meals and snacks daily.
Easy albondigas recipe for families
The best recipes for busy families are fast, easy and tasty. It’s also helpful when recipes allow you to batch-cook, providing extras that can be frozen for future meals. This albondigas recipe hits all those requirements.
One batch of this albondigas meatball recipe, as written, yields 30 meatballs. That’s great for families because you get food to last several days or leftovers that can be frozen and saved for another day.
This recipe is also easy to customize based on your family’s tastes and preferences. This can be especially helpful if you are trying to improve picky eating in your home.
Picky eating tip
Because this recipe can be easily customized, you can try making this recipe with ingredients and flavors your selective eater already knows and likes.
For instance, you can use any kind of ground meat in the recipe. Start with one your child knows. Gradually, you can work in new ingredients, like turkey, garlic, cilantro and chili powder, to introduce new flavors.
If your child is a picky eater, you can snag our picky eater’s guide for strategies and tips for minimizing struggles at mealtimes.
Meatballs for kids’ school lunch
Albondigas meatballs can be packed in your child’s favorite lunchbox and served as a daycare or school lunch.
Pack 3 to 6 meatballs for your child in a lunchbox with an ice pack. You can also pack a dipping sauce, jicama slaw or another veggie, a fruit and/or crackers.
For picky kids, if this is a new recipe and you plan to use the albondigas for a school lunch, make sure your picky eater is already familiar with the meatballs. Before you send a food or dish to daycare or school, make sure your toddler is already comfortable with it.
Ingredients in albondigas meatball recipe
Flavorful herbs and spices give these easy meatballs a rich, savory flavor, while rice adds an airy texture.
Here are the ingredients in these Mexican albondigas meatballs.
Related: Learn about protein for kids, including how much protein kids actually need each day.
Meatball recipe variations
Related: Is your child’s diet full of the best iron-rich foods for kids? Read our blog to find out.
How to make albondigas
Our kid-friendly meatballs come together in one bowl before being baked in the oven.
Here’s how to make these albondigas quickly and easily.
Related: For your next meatball night, try marinated Korean Bulgogi Meatballs with rice.
What to serve with albondigas meatballs
While traditionally Mexican albondigas are served in a soup, this version serves them on their own.
Whether you’re serving the meatballs for lunch, snack, on the side or as an appetizer, we suggest adding a kid-friendly dipping sauce to the side. An creamy avocado dipping sauce would work well here.
Serve fresh jicama slaw (recipe below) on the side for a nice, crunchy add-on. If your family is still learning to like jicama, you can check out our seasonal list of veggies for kids for different options!
Albondigas (Meatballs) and Jicama Slaw
Ingredients
Albondigas
Jicama Slaw
Instructions
Notes
Nutrition