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Why You’ll Love My Recipe
If you grew up in the 1970s, there’s a good chance your mom made Classic Retro Porcupine Meatballs! These tender meatballs are mixed with rice, then simmered in a rich tomato sauce until they’re “prickly” and full of cozy flavor. They’re comforting, budget-friendly, and perfect for picky eaters (trust me, both of my kids loved them)!
These porcupine meatballs are a classic, right up there with my Grape Jelly Meatballs or The Best Easy Homemade Meatballs Recipe. Serve them with Buttery Mushroom Rice and make sure you drizzle the delicious sauce over the top!
Reader Review
This recipe is terrific. Very easy and fast. We thought it was delicious. Since I don’t like tomato soup, I used Bloody Mary mix. Thank you for sharing another great recipe. I rely on you and look forward to seeing you in my inbox.
Karlynn’s Recipe Notes
- Skill Level: This recipe is tried and true, easy to make, and completely no-fuss. It’s been made over and over for a reason!
- Total Time: Dinner is ready in about 1 hour, with around 30 minutes of hands-off simmering time.
- Variations: Feel free to use all beef for your meatballs, or mix in finely chopped onion and garlic for extra flavor. Serve these meatballs with rice, Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes, or Classic Homemade Garlic Bread to soak up every bit of the delicious sauce.
- Tools For This Recipe: You will need a large frying pan, a large mixing bowl, a large lidded sauté pan, and a spoon for stirring and serving.
What You’ll Need for Ingredients
Ground Meat: A combination of beef and pork (1 pound of each) gives these meatballs the perfect balance of flavor and tenderness. Karlynn’s Tip: Use lean ground beef, then let the pork add just enough fat for extra moisture and richness.
Long-Grain Rice: The long-grain rice cooks right inside the meatballs, helping them hold together while giving them their signature “porcupine” look. No need to make your rice in advance!
Onion Soup Mix: This mix is what gives porcupine meatballs their classic flavor. Karlynn’s Tip: Store-bought mix works great, or you can try my Homemade Onion Soup Mix for more control over the salt and seasoning.
Tomato Soup: A single can (10–11 ounces) of tomato soup creates the smooth, comforting sauce. Feel free to use your favourite brand here!
Worcestershire Sauce: Worcestershire sauce adds an unmistakable savory taste that’s classic in beef dishes. Karlynn’s Tip: A store-bought Worcestershire is great, but if you’re feeling adventurous, my Homemade Worcestershire Sauce allows you to customize the tang and depth.
How To Make Classic Retro Porcupine Meatballs
This is a quick overview of the recipe. The full list of ingredients & complete step-by-step instructions are in the recipe card below.
- Pour the canola oil into a large frying pan.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the rice, water, soup mix, garlic powder, ground beef and ground pork. Mix well and form into 1 1/2 inch meatballs.
- Fry the meatballs until golden brown on all sides, cooking until they reach a safe internal temperature of 160°F, as recommended by the USDA.
- Drain the excess fat, then combine the last four ingredients and pour over the top of the meatballs.
- Place a lid on the sauté pan and simmer on medium-low heat for 20-30 minutes, until the rice in the meatballs is cooked. Stir every 10 minutes or so.
Karlynn’s Tips and Tricks for the Perfect Classic Retro Porcupine Meatballs
- Make Enough for Leftovers: This recipe uses two pounds of ground meat and makes 24-25 big meatballs. Trust me, you’ll want extras – they’re even better the next day!
- Make It a Double: You can absolutely double this recipe! Just make sure you use a larger skillet so the meatballs have plenty of room to cook evenly.
- Skillet Over Roaster: I swear my mom used to dump everything for porcupine meatballs straight into a roaster, cook it, and call it dinner! Feel free to try this method if you’d like. That said, I like using a skillet because it skips a transfer step and makes browning easier.
Storage Instructions
These Classic Retro Porcupine Meatballs hold up beautifully after cooking and are perfect for leftovers or make-ahead meals!
Refrigerator: Store cooked meatballs in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. They stay tender and reheat wonderfully on the stovetop or in the microwave.
Freezer: Once completely cooled, place your meatballs (with sauce) in a freezer-safe container or zip-top bag. They’ll keep for up to 3 months, following USDA food safety guidelines. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and reheat gently before serving!
More Delicious Meatball Recipes
If you love Meatball recipes, you’ll want to try these next:
- Sweet & Sour Pork Meatballs are sweet, tangy, and packed with flavor – this is truly one of the BEST meatball recipes out there!
- My Meatballs with Mushroom Sauce bring rich and savory notes, with truffle oil taking them completely over the top.
- These Crock Pot Meatballs with Mushroom Gravy are slow-cooked to perfection and loved by readers for good reason!
These Classic Retro Porcupine Meatballs took me straight back to my childhood! This was a regular dinner at our table growing up, and they’re just as delicious now.
Give them a try, enjoy every bite, and don’t forget to leave a comment to share how yours turned out! You know that I always love hearing how you make these classics your own.
Happy Cooking!
Karlynn
Classic Porcupine Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- ½ cup uncooked long grain rice
- ½ cup water
- 1 tablespoon onion soup mix
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound ground pork
- 10 ounce tomato soup, can
- ½ cup water
- 1 ½ tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
- Place the canola oil in a large frying pan.
- In a large mixing bowl combine the rice, water, soup mix, garlic powder, ground beef and ground pork. Mix together well (I always just use my hands since I have to form meatballs anyways) and form into 1 1/2 inch meatballs, around 22-25. They will be loose because of the water, but you need the moisture in there for the rice, trust me they will cook up nicely!
- Heat a large lidded saute pan and then fry all of the meatballs until golden brown on all sides. When starting, fry them for a long time on the first side, cooking them until they are really browned so that when you flip them they don’t fall apart.
- When all of the meatballs are done , drain the excess fat off, then combine the last four ingredients together and pour over top of the meatballs.
- Place a lid on top of the saute pan and simmer on medium-low heat for another 20-30 minutes, until the rice in the meatballs is cooked, stirring every 10 minutes or so. I actually just shake the lidded pan back and forth to move things around.
- Serve and enjoy! We make rice and serve these and the sauce over top.
Notes
- You can double the sauce if you want a lot of sauce in this recipe easily, it will fit in the large saute pan.
- The only thing that I sometimes change in the traditional recipe is to use half ground beef and half ground pork. I find that the ground pork makes for juicier meatballs. You can use all ground beef if you like, but I suggest trying them with ground pork, they are so delicious!
- You can definitely double this recipe (I did) you simply need a larger skillet for the meatballs.
- I also use two pounds of ground meat in the basic recipe, if you are going to go to all that effort then you should make enough for a few leftovers as well! This meatball recipe yields around 24-25 large meatballs.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Anika376 says
Why are they not spiky like porcupines? When I make them they are spiky. Haven’t seen a single recipe for porcupine meatballs on the internet that showed spiky meatballs.
Lori Gladden says
I have never had these!! I am going to try!!
thekitchenmagpie says
Let me know what you think!!
Alana Meisner says
I feel like we grew up in parallel households!
My mom made a casserole with rice, tomato soup and hamburger patties on top. She fried the patties first. Deconstructed porcupine meatballs, she was ahead of her time!!
I make it an even lazier way with ground beef and onions.
The Kitchen Magpie says
Mmmm I’m all for easier ways of making dishes!
Sophie Nakoneczny says
Gosh, made those when my kids were young!
Susan Swann says
My poor mum – first time she tried to make these, the rice didn’t cook… we pretended they were fine and crunched our way through dinner.
The Kitchen Magpie says
Oh my goodness! Your poor mom!
Around the World in 80 Cupcakes says
Porcupine meatballs are the bomb! They always make me laugh though. Whenever I make them, or think of making them all I can think is “Pork Cupine, Steve. It’s up there!” \U0001f923
Yvonne Anne Sapach says
I have a great recipe for these. Love them.
Kimberley Tremblay says
OMG yes!!!!! and I haven’t lived at home for over 30 years and never made them. I dont miss them. Sorry!!! lmao
Valerie Elliott says
I’ve made these for years but speed up the process a little in order to make a “time friendly” meal. I use 2 cans of tomato soup and about 3/4 can of milk. I heat this while forming meatballs (seasoning as you like, and include mixing in insant rice). After the meatballs are formed just drop them all in the soup. Cook 15 minutes and they’re done. While they cook I prepare rice to serve the meatballs and “soupy sauce” over. Quick and easy!
Patti Woodham says
Oh Lynn look\U0001f441\U0001f441
Robin D Wasicuna says
My granny used to make these for me…\U0001f614 what a nice memory \U0001f60a thank you!!
Richard Howell says
Sure hope you removed the needles first !
The Kitchen Magpie says
Har de har har ;). Oh, that’s a joke my dad would make!
Kimberly J. Stonehouse says
I had no tomato and used mushroom it was so good
April Bermel says
My mother made these.
Jean Regamey-Gagnon says
Yes this was one of my favorites as a child
Darin Covey says
Looks good never heard of them I must try
The Kitchen Magpie says
They are delicious, a true classic.
Sophie Amelia says
I am with you…much prefer cookbooks with a photo for every recipe!
The Kitchen Magpie says
Oh, it’s a must! It’s just a tease when you can’t see what the food is supposed to look like!
Sophie Amelia says
I will not buy cookbooks that do not have all the pictures, as they are half of the pleasure of browsing through the book
The Kitchen Magpie says
Oh you’ll love mine then! \U0001f609
Kimberley Tremblay says
haha yes. lol i havent made them since i moved out, 30+years ago
The Kitchen Magpie says
Now you need to make them!
Vern Ledger says
Oh my goodness!! Have not made those in long time!! Will be in the menus this week!!
Eileen Bulger says
we make ours in the pressure cooker, love ’em.
Natalie Faulkner-Northrop says
I make these all the time! They are a big hit with my 4 year old who is picky about eating meat. Plus you can sneak veggies into them. They’re awesome!
Mrsrbg says
Thanks for the throwback recipe. I added in some franks red hot sauce for a kick, and they were delicious. The pork keeps these meatballs nice and moist. A must try.
Leanne B says
Hi Karlynn, I can’t wait to make this for my family – this is a classic that my husband brings up every once in a while and now I finally have a recipe to try! Do you think this could be finished in the crockpot instead of on the stove? Like 3-4 hours on low?
thekitchenmagpie says
Leanne B Yes, absolutely you can finish them in the crockpot on low like that.
Margaret Kufuor-Boakye says
My mom made these too in the 1950’s. Recipe goes very far back. I just made your Saskatoon jam. I love it. So delightful!!!
The Kitchen Magpie says
They are a classic!
The Kitchen Magpie says
Glad that you liked the jam!!
The Kitchen Magpie says
Oh that would be great too!
Heather Pollock says
Sounds good to place over broad egg noodles!
I may place these in marinara sauce to cook!
I looove marinara!
The Kitchen Magpie says
I’m pretty sure that I’ll crash right away lol!
Heather Pollock says
Holy mackerel… Wish I had that energy!