What’s not to love about this easy Meatball Subs recipe with flavorful meatballs served in a toasted bun with melted provolone cheese and marinara sauce? Easy and delicious! I
Meatball Subs to the rescue.
Meatball Subs to the rescue.Anyone looking for a crowd-pleasing dinner recipe (no matter the age or size of the crowd) could confidently settle on Meatball Subs. I always double the recipe because the meatballs freeze great (raw or cooked), saving me so much time another day. Did I mention everyone LOVES these?
And if serving potluck style you can warm them warm in a crockpot and let people build their own sandwich. We typically serve them with a green side salad, or cucumber salad. Some coleslaw, potato chips or fruit salad would also be great.
Any if you love hot sandwich recipes, try my French Dip, BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches, or Sloppy Joes.
How to make Meatball Subs:
Meatball mixture: Mix crushed saltine crackers, beef broth, spices, and egg (everything except the meat and flour) until combined and set aside for 10 minutes so the crackers can soak up the liquid. Add ground meat and mix until incorporated.
Shape and Bake: Divide and form 15 meatballs, then lightly coat each in flour and place on a greased baking sheet. Bake meatballs for 20-25 minutes, or until cooked through.
Make Sauce: Combine crushed tomatoes, oregano, sugar, basil, and garlic salt in a saucepan then stir to combine. Simmer for 10-15 minutes.
Assemble: Slice each hoagie roll in half and lay provolone cheese on top. Broil on high for 2-3 minutes or until rolls are toasted and cheese is melted. Arrange 3 meatballs on each sub and spoon sauce on top. Serve meatball subs immediately.
Make Ahead and Freezing Instructions:
To Make Ahead: Store cooked meatballs in sauce in the fridge for up to 2 days until you are ready to rewarm and assemble meatball sandwich recipe. Sauce can be made several days in advance and raw meatballs could also be stored in the fridge for 1-2 days until ready to cook.
To Freeze: You can freeze the meatballs raw or cooked: flash freeze them uncovered on a parchment lined baking sheet for an hour, then transfer to a freezer safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw completely in the refrigerator before baking or rewarming. The sauce can be frozen for up to 3 months.
More Sandwich Recipes:
- Patty Melt
- Egg Salad Sandwich
- Greek Burgers with Feta Aioli
- Pizza Sliders
- Meatloaf Sandwich
- Pimento Cheese BLT
- Lobster Roll
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Recipe
Italian Meatball Subs
Ingredients
Meatballs:
- 1/2 cup saltine crackers , crushed
- 1/4 cup low-sodium beef broth
- 2 Tablespoons dried parsley flakes
- 1 large egg , lightly beaten
- 2 teaspoons Dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 pound lean ground beef or ground turkey
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour , for dredging
Sandwiches:
- 5 hoagies or sub rolls
- 10 slices Provolone cheese , or mozzarella
Sauce:
- 28 ounce can crushed tomatoes
- 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil
- 1 1/2 teaspoons Dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
Instructions
- Meatballs: In a large bowl combine all of the meatball ingredients together EXCEPT for the meat; saltines, beef broth, parley, egg, oregano, garlic powder, salt, pepper, basil, crushed red pepper. Stir and rest for 10 minutes so the crackers can soak up the liquid. Add the meat and mix just until combined (don't over mix).
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease a baking sheet, or line with aluminum foil.
- Form 15 meatballs, about the size of golf balls, and gently sprinkle them all around with flour. Place the meatballs one inch apart on the baking sheet and bake for 20 -25 minutes or until cooked through.
- Sauce: Add sauce ingredients to a saucepan and stir to combine. Simmer for 10-15 minutes. When the meatballs are finished baking, transfer them to the sauce.
- Assemble: Slice the hoagie rolls in half and layer each with 2 slices cheese. Broil on high for 2-3 minutes or until rolls are toasted and cheese is melted. Remove from oven. Place 3 meatballs on each sub, followed by a large spoonful of sauce. Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
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*I originally shared this recipe in June 2014. Updated April 2019, October 2021 and January 2025.
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This was beyond amazing. I am dreaming of the next time i can make it. Wow- its amazing! Joey would be head over heels for this meatball sub!
House smells amazing. Cant wait for the finished product.
These are sooo good and so easy to make! I topped mine with mozzarella and parmesan cheese at the very end (we love cheese) and they were perfect!
Thank you so much for this recipe! It has become a staple at my house. I always wind up doubling the recipe for the meatballs and typically use half beef with half spicy sausage. If you like a little spice they are amazing that way.
Soooooooooo good!
This recipe is amazing. I used pepper jack and provolone cheese and it gave the sandwich some zing. Thank you
Love that idea! Thanks for sharing.
Just reading this recipe has me drooling on my tablet. Looks soooooo delish that I must make it. Writing out a grocery list and will be omw to the store to buy the ingredients. Plan on making these subs this week. TFS
Made this for my family last night. It was amazing & not a drop left on any plate. I have already shared with friends. Wonderful!!!!!!
Awesome! It is truly one of my favorites! Thanks for the great feedback!
Last night my husband made fabulous fries in the deep fryer. We usually make oven chip roasties but we’ve had so much snow and so many storms that last night we needed ‘cabin fever’ comfort food so out came the deep fryer. Before we put the oil away, he said he was going to try homemade onion rings tonight. That got me thinking.
He made amazing meatballs the other day with vegetarian ground round and I was thinking about how we could have them with the sure-to-be amazing onion rings. I’m going to get out the bread maker and whip up some buns and use a jar of marinara sauce that I canned using our wonderful garden tomatoes. I can’t wait for supper tonight. With the homemade marinara sauce (with memories of our summer garden and heat) and the snow blowing around outside right now, it will be like summer meets winter. Thanks for the great recipe idea. P.S. We both cook but my husband is fabulous in the kitchen.
It’s cooking now. They smell amazing. The only thing I added was tiny diced green pepper and sweet onion to the meatballs. Hoping the family approves. This is based on the recipe and fragrance so far.
This is one of my families very favorite recipe! I have made them many many times! Just wanted to hop on and say THANK YOU!