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Whether it’s March Madness, any other sports event or you’re just looking for a delicious and easy recipe, these Smoked Meatball Sliders are the answer! Flavorful, juicy, cheesy, they are the perfect small bite size snack.
For other slider recipe inspiration check out my french toast breakfast sliders or grilled beefy cheesesteak sliders.
Table of Contents
Ingredient List for Smoked Meatball Sliders.
- Ground Beef: go with a 80/20 fat to lean ration on the beef. Perfect balance for a juicy meatball.
- Colby Jack slices: mild and cheesy topping for the sliders.
- Egg: glue or binding agent for the meatball ingredients.
- Breadcrumbs: works as the binder for the meatball ingredients
- Parsley: freshly chopped herbs to add flavor to the smoked meatballs.
- All purpose seasoning: adds levels of salt, pepper, paprika and garlic to the meatballs
- Slider buns: needed bread for the smoked meatball sliders
- Marinara sauce: tangy and saucy application for the meatballs.
Step 1: How to make the best smoked meatballs.
This recipe is very simple and requires only a few ingredients. The smokiness from the grill adds another layer of flavor that you cannot get in the oven or stop top.
For the meat, I went with ground beef (80/20 blend). In a large mixing bowl, add in the meat, Dad’s All Purpose rub, 1 raw egg, breadcrumbs, and chopped parsley.
With your hands, mix all the ingredients together. Make sure to blend in all the loose ingredients massaging them into the meat.
Scoop up enough of the mixture and roll a golf sized ball and slightly flatten then into patties. Repeat this until you use up all the meat. Place the raw meatballs on a wire rack and let’s get the grill going.
This recipe is very similar to my smoked meatloaf recipe. This is NOT your mama’s meatloaf. It’s tender, flavorful and straight up delicious!
If you are not into all that bread, make these simple and savory smoked meatball biscuits. Still has all the amazing beefy flavors all wrapped into a flaky buttery biscuit!
Recipe Tip
- For additional flavor, add a few drops of your hot sauce of choice.
- Weight the meatballs to be equal in size for an even cook.
Dad’s Seasonings
Must have grillin seasonings!
Step 2: How to smoke the perfect meatballs.
Heat up the grill to 275 degrees and set it up for indirect heat. Place the wire rack loaded with the meatballs and let it smoke on the grill until they reach 145 degrees internal temp.
Pull the smoked meatballs off the grill once they reach and internal temperature of 160 degrees.
Let them rest for 5-10 before assembling the sliders.
Finally it’s time to assemble the smoked meatball sliders. On a metal tray, layer the bottom slider with colby jack cheese, place the smoked meatballs on each slider, and cover each one with a spoonful of marinara sauce. Finally, shred some fresh parmesan over the top and place it back on the grill for 10 minutes allowing the cheese to melt. Place the top slider buns over the the smoked meatballs for 1-2 additional minutes to toast up.
Remove the smoked meatball sliders off the grill and enjoy while still hot with string cheese. Enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions:
Yes, you can replace ground beef with ground pork, chicken, turkey or venison. For poultry make sure to keep the meatballs on the grill for longer until the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.
Also another great option is to use a blend like 1/3 pork, 2/3 beef or visa versa. Adds additional fat to the meatball.
Yes, the meatballs can be made in the kitchen vs. an outside grill. Bake them in the oven or cook them in a pan on the stove top and finish the assembled sliders in the oven. The only piece missing will the natural smokiness you get when cooking the meatballs on the grill.
Similar BBQ Sandwich Recipes:
If you tried this Smoked Meatball Sliders or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the📝 comments. I love hearing from you!
Smoked Meatball Sliders
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp Dad's All Purpose Rub
- 1 lb Ground beef (80/20)
- 9 Colby jack cheese slices
- 1 Egg
- 1 cup Marinara sauce
- 1/2 cup Chopped parsley
- 1/2 cup Breadcrumbs
- 1 pkg Slider buns
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, add in the meat, Dad's All Purpose Rub, 1 raw egg, breadcrumbs, and chopped parsley.
- With your hands, mix all the ingredients together. Make sure to blend in all the loose ingredients massaging them into the meat.
- Scoop up the mixture to make golf ball sized meatballs. Repeat this until you use up all the meat.
- Heat up the grill to 275 degrees and set it up for indirect heat.
- Smoke the meatballs on the grill until they reach 145 degrees internal temp.
- Remove off the grill to rest.
- On a metal tray, layer the bottom slider with colby jack cheese, place the smoked meatballs on each slide, cover each one with a spoonful of marinara sauce and shred some fresh parmesan over the top. Place it back on the grill for 10 minutes allowing the cheese to melt.
- Place the top slider buns over the the smoked meatballs for 1-2 additional minutes to toast up.
Video
Notes
- For additional flavor, add a few drops of your hot sauce of choice.
- Weight the meatballs to be equal in size for an even cook.
- Yes, you can replace ground beef with ground pork, chicken, turkey or venison. For poultry make sure to keep the meatballs on the grill for longer until the internal temperature reaches 160 degrees.
- Also another great option is to use a blend like 1/3 pork, 2/3 beef or visa versa. Adds additional fat to the meatball.
