Meatball Subs are a comfort food favorite! Make them at home with juicy homemade meatballs, marinara sauce, fresh mozzarella, parmesan cheese, and toasted rolls.
Want more comforting Italian recipes? Try this Chicken Parmesan Pasta recipe, Crockpot Creamy Garlic Chicken, and Slow Cooker Baked Ziti Recipe!
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There’s nothing like a homemade Meatball Sub. The kind that’s messy, dripping with sauce and melty cheese, and needs to be eaten with both hands.
This isn’t the kind you’d find at Subway or any other sandwich shop.
This one has homemade meatballs made with a mix of beef and Italian sausage, simmered in marinara, and topped with gooey melted mozzarella and parmesan.
The result is a sub that’s crunchy, cheesy, and full of all the good stuff you want in a sandwich.
Why we love this Meatball Sandwich recipe:
- Make-ahead friendly: You can make the meatballs ahead of time and assemble whenever you’re ready to eat!
- Comfort food: This Meatball Sub is the kind of meal that sticks to your ribs with juicy meatballs, marinara sauce, and melty cheese all tucked in a warm, toasted sub roll.
- Easy: This recipe takes an hour tops and is super easy to throw together, perfect for a busy weeknight when you still want something satisfying.
Homemade Meatball Sub Ingredients:
- Fresh bread crumbs (or dried bread crumbs): These help bind the meatballs together. Fresh is best for a soft texture, but dried will work in a pinch!
- Milk or water: Used to soak the bread crumbs and keep the meatballs tender.
- Ground beef: The base of your meatballs. Lean beef is good for less fat, but a little fat will help keep them juicy.
- Ground Italian sausage: Adds flavor and a bit of spice to your meatballs. If you want a milder taste, you can swap it for regular sausage or ground pork.
- Grated Parmesan cheese: This gives your meatballs a nice salty bite and helps them stay together. Freshly grated is best for flavor.
- Egg: Binds everything together and keeps the meatballs from falling apart.
- Italian seasoning: For that classic Italian flavor!
- Marinara sauce: A good jarred marinara will save you time, but you can use homemade if you like!
- Sub buns: The perfect vessel to hold all the goodness! If you’re out of sub buns, any soft sandwich roll or baguette can work. You can also use hoagie rolls or even toasted slices of French bread for a different twist.
- Mozzarella cheese: Melted mozzarella is what makes a Meatball Sub. Freshly shredded mozzarella will melt better than the pre-shredded kind.
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese: A sprinkle on top to finish it off.
How to make Italian Meatball Subs:
This is a brief overview of how to make the recipe. Make sure to check out the recipe card for the full list of recipe instructions!
- Mix bread crumbs, milk (or water), ground beef, ground sausage, Parmesan, egg, and seasonings.
- Form into meatballs. You can use a cookie scoop or your hands to scoop out the meat!
- In a large skillet, sear meatballs until browned on all sides.
- Add marinara sauce to the skillet, cover, and simmer until meatballs are cooked through.
- Slice buns and toast them with garlic butter if desired.
- Spoon meatballs into toasted buns, top with mozzarella and Parmesan. Bake and enjoy!
Variations and Substitutions
- Add veggies: To bulk up the subs, add some sautéed bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, or spinach into the subs before serving.
- Cheese swaps: If mozzarella isn’t your favorite, provolone or cheddar can work well for a different cheese pull experience. For a sharper flavor, swap Parmesan for pecorino Romano.
How to store leftover Meatball Subs:
Meatball subs are best served immediately, but sometimes leftovers are inevitable. If possible, store meatballs and buns separately.
To store leftover Meatball Subs, wrap them tightly in foil or place them in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
When ready to reheat, bake or air fry at a low temperature to keep the bread from getting dried out on the outside before the inside is warmed through.
Make-ahead option:
You can definitely prep the meatballs and sauce ahead of time! Simply make the meatballs, cook them, and store them in the sauce.
When you’re ready to assemble the subs, just heat the meatballs and sauce, toast the buns, and top them with cheese. You can also freeze the cooked meatballs for up to 3 months, then defrost and heat when ready to use.
Serving suggestions:
Serve your hearty Meatball Sub with a classic caesar salad as a side and some Tiramisu for dessert!
We also love these Air Fryer Green Beans or Easy Broccoli Salad for something green.
More Italian-inspired recipes you’ll love:
- Chicken Parmesan Recipe — that crispy crust is everything!
- Crockpot Lasagna — so easy!
- Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo — this one never misses.
- Creamy Cheese Tortellini — made with just a few ingredients!
Meatball Sub Recipe
written by Ashley Fehr
Ingredients
Homemade Meatballs
- ¾ cup fresh bread crumbs (or ¼ cup dried)
- 2 tablespoons milk or water
- ½ lb ground beef
- ½ lb ground Italian sausage
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
Meatball Subs
- 2 cups marinara sauce
- 4 sub buns
- ¼ cup garlic butter (optional)
- 2 cups freshly shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
Homemade Meatballs
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees F and line a baking sheet with tin foil — optional but helps with clean up!
- Stir together bread crumbs and milk or water and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine beef, pork, Parmesan, eggs, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper and soaked bread until just combined — don't overmix!
- Shape into 1½" meatballs (I get about 20 this way) and place 1" apart on the baking sheet.
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and spray with nonstick spray. Add the meatballs and sear in a single layer on each side, about 2 minutes per side. (You can also bake them for 10-12 minutes).
- Add the sauce to the pan, reduce the heat to low and cover. Simmer until a meat thermometer reads at least 160 degrees F in the largest meatballs (a meat thermometer is your best chance at having perfectly cooked meatballs!)
Meatball Subs
- Optional: slice open sub buns and spread with garlic butter. Place in a 9×13" baking dish, open, and toast until lightly golden.
- When buns are toasted, remove from the oven and spoon meatballs into each sub bun.
- Reduce oven temperature to 400 degrees F.
- Top with an equal amount of mozzarella and Parmesan. Return to the oven and bake until warmed and toasted, about 10 minutes. Serve.
Notes
- Bread crumbs: You’ll need roughly 1 slice bread to make ¾ cup bread crumbs.
- Ground beef and Italian sausage: you can use lean meat if you’re looking to reduce fat, but they may not be as juicy. You can also substitute the Italian sausage for ground pork.
- Sub buns: I also love making half size subs on little crusty rolls for the kids!
- Garlic butter: the toasting isn’t necessary, but I do find it takes this sandwich to the next level.
Nutrition Information
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