This Smoked Frozen Meatball recipe is something that I have want to try for about a year and for some reason never got around to making. Well, it turns out that I have been missing out on something easy, fast and delicious to cook on my smoker!
These meatballs are ready in under two hours and are absolutely delicious. If you are looking for an easy to make appetizer then keep reading and I’ll take care of you!
Start with the Right Frozen Meatballs
I started with a 1.5 pound bag of frozen, fully cooked, Johnsonville Homestyle meatballs and they were perfect.
Why these meatballs?
I wanted the meatballs to be fully cooked so it wouldn’t mater if I heated them up to 145F or 165F. This gave me lots of flexibility in how I approached this recipe that wouldn’t have been there if I started with uncooked meatballs.
I went with the “Homestyle” flavor because I have found that I am not a fan of smoked Italian style sausages. I love Italian style sausages/meatballs on the grill but don’t really care for how they taste when combined with smoke.
Lastly, I just like the Johnsonville brand. You are welcome to chose whichever brand you prefer 🙂
Smoke the Meatballs at 225F
I placed the meatballs into an aluminum foil pan in a single layer. The pan went onto my Z Grills pellet grill set at 225F which was burning hickory pellets.
If you wanted a heavier smoke flavor you could run your smoker at 180F and cook the meatballs a little longer or add a smoke tube of smoldering pellets beside the tray.
I went with 225F as it seemed like a nice balance between time and smoke.
I smoked the meatballs at 225F for one hour.
Every 15 minutes I opened the lid and shook the pan to move the meatballs around.
After an hour the meatballs had taken on some nice color and were completely heated through with an average internal temperature of just under 160F.
Add Sauce to the Smoked Meatballs
After the meatballs have smoked for one hour add about a half cup of barbecue sauce to the aluminum foil pan and shake it around to completely coat the surface of the meatballs.
I used Head Country Hot and Spicy barbecue sauce but you can use any sauce you like. I have seen some people go a completely different route and coat the meatballs with melted pepper jelly.
After the meatballs have been coated in sauce close the lid and let the meatballs cook for 15 more minutes.
After 15 minutes remove the meatballs from the smoker and serve.
How to Serve Smoked Meatballs
I served the meatballs as an appetizer with some pretzel sticks. It was pretty easy to stab the meatball with the pretzel and it made for a great two bite snack.
You could easily serve the meatballs in a hotdog bun along with some cheese.
Another option is to slice a couple of them in half and serve on a King’s Hawaiian roll as a meatball slider.
I suspect the most popular option is going to be to leave them in the pan and devour them on the kitchen counter!
Easy Smoked Frozen Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs Johnsonville Frozen Meatballs Homestyle, Fully Cooked
- 1/2 cup Barbecue Sauce Head Country Hot and Spicy
- 1 cup Stick Pretzels
Instructions
- Turn on your smoker and set the temperature to 225F.
- Place the frozen meatballs into an aluminum foil pan in a single layer.
- Place the pan into the smoker and cook for one hour. Shake the pan every 15 minutes.
- Add the barbecue sauce to the pan and shake to coat.
- Smoke the meatballs for 15 more minutes.
- Serve the meatballs with the pretzel sticks or use to make hoagies or sliders.
