Smoked Cheese Stuffed Meatballs with BBQ Glaze Recipe
These Smoked Cheese Stuffed Meatballs are a flavorful twist on classic meatballs, filled with gooey mozzarella and smoked to perfection. Combining ground beef and pork with Italian panko, Parmesan, and a blend of spices, these meatballs are gently smoked at a low temperature and finished with a sweet and tangy BBQ sauce glaze.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 40 minutes
- Yield: 9 meatballs
- Category: Main Course
- Method: Smoking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 1 pound ground pork
- 1 cup Italian panko crumbs
- ½ cup yellow onion, chopped
- ⅓ cup milk
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 large eggs
- 2 teaspoon beef seasoning
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 9 sticks mozzarella string cheese
BBQ Sauce
- 1 cup BBQ sauce
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the smoker: Set your smoker to 250 degrees Fahrenheit to prepare it for slow smoking the meatballs.
- Mix meatball ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, combine ground beef, ground pork, Italian panko crumbs, chopped yellow onion, milk, grated Parmesan cheese, salt, eggs, beef seasoning, pepper, and garlic powder. Mix gently to combine, taking care not to overwork the meat mixture to keep it tender.
- Chill the meatball mixture: Place the bowl with the meat mixture in the freezer for about 15 minutes to firm up the meat. This makes shaping the meatballs easier and neater.
- Prepare the cheese: Cut each mozzarella string cheese stick into five equal pieces to create 45 cheese pieces in total for stuffing.
- Form stuffed meatballs: Using a medium cookie scoop, portion out the meat mixture. Form each portion into a ball, then press your thumb into the center to create a cavity. Insert one piece of mozzarella cheese into the cavity and wrap the meat around it tightly, ensuring the cheese is sealed inside to prevent it from oozing out during cooking.
- Place on wire rack: Lightly oil a wire rack and arrange all the stuffed meatballs on it, spaced evenly to allow smoke circulation.
- Smoke the meatballs: Place the wire rack with meatballs into the preheated smoker at 250°F and smoke for 35 to 40 minutes.
- Prepare the BBQ glaze: In a small bowl, mix together the BBQ sauce, honey, and brown sugar until well combined.
- Glaze and finish smoking: After the initial smoking time, brush the prepared BBQ sauce mixture over each meatball. Continue to cook for another 10 minutes or until the internal temperature of the meatballs reaches 165°F, ensuring they are fully cooked and the glaze is set.
- Serve: Remove the meatballs from the smoker and serve immediately while hot and juicy.
Notes
- Using a combination of ground beef and pork adds richness and moisture to the meatballs.
- Chilling the meat mixture before shaping helps prevent the meatballs from falling apart or melting cheese leakage during cooking.
- If you don’t have a smoker, a charcoal or gas grill set up for indirect low heat smoke can be used as an alternative.
- Be sure to seal the cheese well inside the meatballs to avoid cheese oozing out while cooking.
- Use a meat thermometer to check for safe internal temperature of 165°F before serving.
