Easy Dinner Idea: Oven Baked Meatball Sandwiches Recipe

19K Shares

This oven baked meatball sandwich recipe is a perfect easy dinner idea for busy days. Also great for large groups, game day, or as an on-the-go meal. It’s one of our most popular posts – pinned over 1 million times!

The ingredients are simple — you will need meatballs, pasta sauce, mozzarella cheese, and sandwich rolls.

Many times I like to make my popular Baked Turkey Meatballs with Spinach for our Meatball Sandwiches, but I also make them with frozen, pre-made meatballs from the freezer section of my grocery store. I do that A LOT. So, if you want easy, go with the frozen ones. If you have more time, go for homemade meatballs.

Here’s how to make this easy dinner idea:

Get your rolls ready. You want rolls that aren’t cut all the way through, they should be connected one side so that they will cradle the ingredients. I usually buy rolls that are already cut like this, or rolls that aren’t cut at all and I cut them myself.

Place your meatballs in a big pot and cover them with your pasta sauce.

If you are using frozen meatballs, place them frozen into the pot — no need to cook them in advance. If you are using homemade ones, put them into the pot after cooking them.

Cover your meatballs with sauce (enough that all the meatballs are covered). You can use homemade pasta sauce or jarred sauce. Gently fold the meatballs with the sauce, this isn’t the time for vigorous stirring or you’ll destroy the meatballs. Heat them on low-medium, stirring occasionally, until the meatballs are heated thoroughly.

Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Take each roll and fill with as many meatballs as you can fit. I usually do this with a slotted spoon and I avoid scooping the sauce as much as possible. I can generally get 4-5 meatballs into one sandwich roll, but this will vary depending on the size of roll you use.

Top the meatballs with a bit of pasta sauce from your pot. Place your meatball sandwiches, as you fill them, directly on the baking sheet.

Now, top each sandwich with shredded mozzarella cheese. My favorite part…CHEESE.

Bake in an oven at 400 degrees until cheese is melted, hot, and bubbly! Serve with a salad or chips for a super easy meal.

Want another easy, cheesy sandwich recipe? Check out our Buffalo Chicken Panini Recipe!

Oven Baked Meatball Sandwiches Tips

If you are serving these during a party, game night, or if these are being packed for meals away from home, it might be helpful to wrap each sandwich individually. I liked to do this with foil, before baking. Here’s how:

Tear off one piece of foil for each sandwich (big enough to wrap the sandwich)
With one piece of foil, spray the top of the foil with cooking spray.
Place a sandwich roll in the middle and on top of the cooking sprayed side of the foil.
Fill with meatballs and pasta sauce. Top with cheese.
Fold one large corner of the foil completely over the top of the sandwich. Fold the left and the right sides of the foil over the sandwich. Roll the sandwich towards the top part of the foil so the entire sandwich is secured in the foil.
Bake in a 400 degree F oven for approximately 10-15 minutes, or until cheese is completely melted.