Meatball Sub
Baked meatballs simmered in a quick tomato sauce, loaded into a roll that has been toasted with cheese first so it does not disintegrate. The toasted cheese layer is a waterproof membrane and that is exactly why it is there.
Photograph credit: Pizza Meatball sub, Firehouse Subs by PenPineapplePinniped · CC0 · Wikimedia Commons
Photograph credit: Vegetarian Meatball Sub (+ Fries) by Thriving Vegetarian · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Making Meatball Sub
Tap a step to highlight it, or turn on Cook Mode for large type and step-by-step focus.
-
Heat the oven to 220°C / 425°F and line a tray.
-
Soak the breadcrumbs in the milk for 5 minutes, then mix with both minces, the egg, Parmigiano, garlic, parsley, salt, pepper and oregano. Mix with your hands only until combined.
-
Roll into 20 balls of about 45 g and space them on the tray.
-
Bake 15 minutes, until browned on top but not cooked through.
-
Meanwhile heat the oil in a wide pan and cook the garlic and chilli flakes 1 minute, then add the tomatoes, sugar and salt and simmer 12 minutes.
-
Slide the baked meatballs and any tray juices into the sauce and simmer gently 12 minutes more, turning once, until cooked through. Stir in the basil.
-
Open the rolls, scatter half the mozzarella over the cut faces, and grill for 2 to 3 minutes until melted and bubbling. This layer is what keeps the bread from going to pulp.
-
Load 5 meatballs and a generous spoonful of sauce into each roll.
-
Top with the remaining mozzarella and the Parmigiano and grill 3 minutes more, until melted and blistered.
Something wrong or unclear in this recipe? Report a problem with this recipe.
Notes for Getting It Right
- Grill the cheese into the bread first. Skip it and you will be eating the sandwich with a fork.
- Do not over-sauce. Enough to coat the meatballs, not enough to pool.
- The meatballs and sauce freeze well; the assembly takes six minutes from there.
Changing the Recipe
- An eighth of a teaspoon of garlic powder per clove is the stand-in usually given when you are out of fresh garlic; it will not brown the same way, and it burns easily, so add it with the liquid.
- Fresh herbs work in place of the dried oregano at roughly three times the quantity — a teaspoon of dried is about a tablespoon of fresh, chopped.
What Goes With Meatball Sub
- A cold lager
- Pickled peppers
- A sharp green salad
Storing & Reheating Meatball Sub
Meatballs in sauce keep 4 days refrigerated and freeze for 3 months. Assemble to order.
What's in a Serving
Per serving, an approximate calculation from the ingredient list. Treat it as a rough guide: part of the energy comes from foods, or weights per item, with no recorded source. How the figures are worked out.
Your notes on this recipe
Cooked this? Keep a note for next time
Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked. Found a mistake? Tell us.
First published ; last changed .