Check out my super easy and tasty smoked meatballs for beginners. While BBQ sauce smoker meatballs are terribly delicious – today we’re going a different direction. I’m going to walk you through making Italian beef meatballs on the Traeger Pellet Grill with pasta sauce. Let’s get smoking…
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Why this smoked meatball recipe is so good
- It’s truly unique to make Italian smoked foods.
- Also add the smoked pasta sauce to homemade pasta.
- Meatballs can be made ahead, or you can use frozen meatballs instead.
- New to smoked beef recipes? See my step by step video on how to smoke meatballs (scroll to bottom of page).
Ingredients
Here’s what you need to make smoked meatballs traeger style.
To make homemade meatballs (mine have veggies in them)
- 2 lb ground beef (can substitute half with 1 lb ground pork)
- 2 large eggs, whisked
- 1 medium onion, red, diced small
- 1 carrot, diced small
- 1 red pepper, diced small
- 1 tbsp garlic, minced
- 1.5 tsp Italian seasoning, dried
- ½ tsp pepper
- 1 tsp salt
See how to make cranberry bbq meatballs…
For finishing smoked meatballs in sauce
- 24 oz pasta sauce, your choice tomato sauce
Serving suggestions
- Sandwich rolls, buns, subs
- Pasta (we like spaghetti or linguini)
- Parmesan cheese
- Mozzarella cheese
- Basil
The inside color the smoked ground beef takes on reminds me of smoked brisket flat. It’s a beautiful red ring.
See how to make Traeger smoked lasagna in 1 hour…
How to make smoked meatballs on pellet grills
Now I’ll walk you through it…
Quick look at this smoker recipe
- Smoke meatballs for an hour at 225 degrees F on a rimmed baking sheet pan (with a rack on it).
- Transfer meatballs to a baking dish, add pasta sauce.
- Finish smoking meatballs at 325 degrees F for about 45 min until done temp (160 or when it reaches 165 if you want completely done, without needing time to come up to temperature).
- Serve and enjoy.
Detailed recipe steps
- Preheat Traeger Grills or Pitt Boss or whatever pellet grill you’re using to 225 degrees F.
- Make meatballs. Add all homemade meatball ingredients to a large mixing bowl. Use a ¼ cup (or a large spoon or an ice cream scoop) to form round 3” meatballs. Place meatballs on a rimmed sheet pan or cast iron skillet, with space between them. Smoke immediately, or set them covered in the fridge for up to a day before smoking.
- Smoke ‘em. Place the pan with the meatballs (on the rack) in the smoker. Smoke beef balls for an hour at 225 degrees F. Remove meatballs from the smoker and raise the temperature of the pellet grill to 325 degrees F.
- Smoke pasta sauce with balls. Add half the pasta sauce to the bottom of a large baking dish. Transfer the partially smoked meatballs on top of the pasta in the baking dish. Top meatballs with the rest of the pasta sauce.
- Continue smoking meatballs until done. Smoke them in pasta sauce for about 45 minutes at 325 degrees F, until they reach about 160 degrees F inside. During this time finish the dish you’re serving the meatballs with: prepare sub rolls for smoked meatball sandwiches or boil pasta, etc.
- Serve when cool enough to enjoy.
More smoked meatball recipes to try
There are so many other creative recipes to try beyond smoking Italian meatballs…
- Make them bacon wrapped.
- Use venison / chicken / turkey or another ground meat (check individual done temps for variations).
- Smoke them in BBQ sauce (mix in some water to reduce the thickness.
- Make stuffed meatballs by adding in a cube of mozzarella cheese to the center of each meatball.
- Make keto smoked meatballs with this recipe for meatballs with veggies.
Another recipe to smoke on the Traeger at 225 degrees F is this side dish for smoked asparagus. It cooks in about an hour.
FAQs
This recipe takes a couple of hours in the smoker, after making the meatballs. Exactly how long to smoke meatballs will depend on the size of them, and how many times you open your Traeger, which lets heat escape.
Yes, so make sure to use a thermometer to measure the done temperature of meatballs reaches 160 degrees F (or 165 if you want them “completely done”). The size of my meatballs are usually 3-4 inches in diameter.
These Traeger smoked meatballs were flavored with Traeger Hickory Pellets. It’s a strong flavor that will make the sauce very smoky as well. I’ve also had wood fired meatballs with wood chips that were Alder and Apple – a bit lighter, but still delicious.
For meal prep, I’ll often make a big batch of meatballs and freeze half in a sheet pan, covered in plastic wrap. The night before I want to cook the frozen meatballs, I’ll move the pan to the fridge. They’re usually thawed by the next day when it’s time to cook them. Sometimes I’ll smoke meatballs, other times I’ll make these slow cooked beef Hawaiian meatballs in the crock pot.
They’re great with pasta side dishes – they bring a totally different, unexpected but tasty flavor profile to the dish. So do that for dinner the first day. And if you have leftovers the next day, serve them with big, fluffy ciabatta rolls to make smoked meatball sandwiches. They’re a great game day recipe.
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Pro tip: One of my go-to tricks for perfectly cooked food every time is using the right BBQ meat thermometers.
Are you a foodie, too?
Hey home chefs, hope that answers all your questions about cooking meatballs on the smoker. Feel free to drop me a line and let me know what version of smoked meatballs you want to try next.
If you don’t follow me on instagram you totally should @sipbitego. And for more deliciousness, subscribe to the Sip Bite Go channel and see the Sip Bite Go recipe collection.
Best Traeger Smoked Meatballs Recipe | Sip Bite Go
Video
Equipment
Ingredients
To make homemade meatballs (mine have veggies in them)
- 2 lb ground beef can substitute half with 1 lb ground pork
- 2 large eggs whisked
- 1 medium onion red, diced small
- 1 medium carrot diced small
- 1 medium red pepper diced small
- 1 tbsp garlic minced
- 1.5 tsp Italian seasoning dried
- ½ tsp pepper
- 1 tsp salt
For finishing smoked meatballs in sauce
- 24 oz pasta sauce your choice flavor
Serving suggestions (not included in nutrition info)
- Sandwich rolls buns
- Pasta
- Parmesan cheese
- Mozzarella cheese
- Basil
Instructions
- Preheat Traeger Grills or Pitt Boss or whatever pellet grill you’re using to 225 degrees F.
- Make meatballs. Add all homemade meatball ingredients to a large mixing bowl. Use a ¼ cup (or a large spoon or an ice cream scoop) to form round 3” meatballs (I use my hands, usually in gloves to form them). Place meatballs on a rimmed sheet pan or cast iron skillet, with space between them. Smoke immediately, or set them covered in the fridge for up to a day before smoking.
- Smoke meatballs. Place the pan with the meatballs (on the rack) in the smoker. Smoke meatballs for an hour at 225 degrees F. Remove meatballs from the smoker and raise the temperature of the pellet grill to 325 degrees F.
- Smoke pasta sauce for meatballs. Add half the pasta sauce to the bottom of a large baking dish. Transfer the partially smoked meatballs on top of the pasta in the baking dish. Top meatballs with the rest of the pasta sauce.
- Continue smoking meatballs until done. Smoke meatballs in pasta sauce for about 45 minutes at 325 degrees F, until they reach about 160 degrees F inside. During this time finish the dish you’re serving the meatballs with:prepare bread and accompaniments for smoked meatball sandwiches or boil pasta, etc.
- Serve when cool enough to enjoy.
Debra Falasco says
This is one of our favorite smoker recipes! We use our own meatball recipes and follow the smoking directions. They are perfect every time!