This Bison Meatballs (Air Fryer) recipe makes a juicy, flavorful batch of Italian bison meatballs. The air fryer makes it easy, but there are also instructions for the oven baked as well.
What does bison meat taste like?
Bison tastes like beef but leaner, maybe slightly more mild or more delicate. If you’re concerned that it’s gamey, it’s not. At all.
What seasoning is good on bison?
My favorite kind of meatballs is Italian that you can eat with pasta and a good marinara sauce (or nomato sauce). I’ve used lots of Italian herbs and spices to make these the perfect Italian bison meatballs.
What is the secret to good meatballs?
The secret is using good quality meat (grass fed vs conventional) and including something to help maintain moisture. Lots of recipes call for breadcrumbs but since we’re gluten and grain free, we’re using pumpkin puree. This also keeps it Paleo, helps add a hidden veggie and increase nutritional value.
Bison meatball ingredients
- Ground Bison
- Ground Pork
- Pumpkin Puree: Make sure not to use pumpkin pie filling.
- Fresh Basil: Dried is not a good substitute.
- Fresh Parsley: Dried is not a good substitute.
- Italian Seasonings: Homemade is best.
- Salt
- Ground Black Pepper: Optional for AIP
- Onion Powder
- Dried Sage
How to make Air Fryer Bison Meatballs
1. Combine all the ingredients into a large mixing bowl.
2. Take a golf ball-sized amount of meat and then roll it in your hand. Place on a baking sheet.
3. Put meatballs (or however many will fit into your air fryer) into the air fryer at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. You’ll need to cook in batches to cook at 24 meatballs. When it’s finished cooking, remove from the oven and serve immediately.
How to freeze bison meatballs
If you’d like to freeze the meatballs, place them on a baking sheet. Take care to space them evenly so that they don’t touch each other. Place the baking sheet into the freezer for a few hours. Once the meatballs have frozen you can remove them from the baking sheet, place them in a plastic bag (or whatever container you’d like to store them in the freezer), and then place them back in the freezer until you are ready to use.
Tips for making the BEST Air Fryer Bison Meatball recipe
- If you don’t have an air fryer, you can bake these in the oven. You’ll need to preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake for 20 minutes.
- If you don’t have access to bison, you can use ground beef.
- Make sure to use pumpkin puree and not to pumpkin pie filling.
- Serve with marinara sauce (or nomato sauce) and pasta or BBQ sauce.
- I’m currently using an older air fryer model from Costco. It’s like this model. However, the capacity is small, and the machine take up a lot of space. I’d prefer to have a toaster oven/air fryer. It can be used for multiple purposes and has a larger capacity for cooking or baking. I’ve seen really good reviews on this model.
What to serve with bison meatballs
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Bison Meatballs (Air Fryer)
Equipment
- Air Fryer
Ingredients
- 1 pound Ground Bison
- 1 pound Ground Pork
- 1/4 cup Pumpkin Puree
- 1/4 cup Fresh Basil chopped
- 1/4 cup Fresh Parsley
- 3 teaspoons Italian Seasonings Homemade is best
- 1 teaspoons Salt
- 1 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper optional for AIP
- 1 teaspoon Onion Powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Sage
Instructions
- Preheat air fryer to 400 degrees. Combine all the ingredients into a large mixing bowl.
- Take a golf ball-sized amount of meat and then roll it in your hand. Place on a baking sheet.
- Put meatballs (or however many will fit into your air fryer) into the air fryer at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. You’ll need to cook in batches to cook at 24 meatballs. When it’s finished cooking, remove from the oven and serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- If you don’t have an air fryer, you can bake these in the oven. You’ll need to preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake for 20 minutes.
- If you don’t have access to bison, you can use ground beef.
- Make sure to use pumpkin puree and not to pumpkin pie filling.
- Serve with marinara sauce (or nomato sauce) and pasta or BBQ sauce.
- I’m currently using an older air fryer model from Costco. It’s like this model. However, the capacity is small, and the machine take up a lot of space. I’d prefer to have a toaster oven/air fryer. It can be used for multiple purposes and has a larger capacity for cooking or baking. I’ve seen really good reviews on this model.
Helpful Info for All Recipes
- I always use extra virgin olive oil in all of my recipes unless stated otherwise.
- I always use Himalayan sea salt or Celtic sea salt, unless otherwise noted.
- The majority of my recipes are strict AIP or include notations for reintroductions. However while I make every effort to label non-AIP ingredients and recipes sometimes they slip past me. If you have questions, please ask in advance.
Did you make this recipe? I love hearing your thoughts on my recipes so please rate and comment below.
These meatballs were so easy and delicious! They even tasted good with Coconut Aminos for an asian flavor! Thanks for the recipe!
Great. And I love the idea of coconut aminos.
Any idea how I could sub for the ground pork? Thanks!
Pork gives a lot of fat and flavor to the recipe. I'd stick with pork if you can. If not, you can try beef.
Cook the meatballs they were so delicious I'm Nightshade free and also egg free and they were made with pumpkin very delicious will make again and I made them with just plain turkey
Thanks so much for sharing! I'm so glad you liked the recipe.
This has become a family favorite in our house! I used canned pumpkin. The meatballs are moist and flavorful. Definitely follow the recipe and make them the size of baseballs. I was skeptical the first time I made them but they come out perfectly cooked. I've also made these using grass fed ground beef and ground pork together, and trust me, they don't come out tasting quite as good as turkey and pork. Thanks for the recipe Beth!
I'm so glad! Thanks for sharing.