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These Philly cheesesteak meatballs are a creative twist on our classic smoked meatballs recipe. Stuffed with American cheese and smoked on the pellet grill for extra flavor, these Philly-style meatballs are loaded with flavor and cheesy goodness!
Why this Cheesesteak Meatballs Recipe Works
- Extra smoky flavor – I’ve always said that a pellet grill is basically just an oven with flavor, and these smoked Philly meatballs have an extra layer of delicious smoky flavor.
- Less mess versus pan frying – Making meatballs on the smoker versus in a skillet on the stovetop cuts down on grease splatters and mess.
- Cheese-stuffed goodness – The creamy American cheese filling perfectly compliments the smoky beef, and the cheese drizzle on top is a nod to authentic Philly cheesesteaks.
Ingredients Notes
These are the ingredients that we used for our cheesesteak meatballs, as well as some notes and variations. Exact ingredients and measurements listed in the recipe card down below.
- ground meat – Our meatball mixture contains one pound of 80/20 ground beef and one pound of a beef, pork, and veal blend specifically made for meatloaf or meatballs. If you can’t find the blend that we used, then you can substitute extra ground beef or a full pound of ground pork.
- fresh hoagie roll – For a nod to Philadelphia and the authentic Philly cheesesteaks, we used a hoagie roll for the breadcrumbs element in our meatballs. You will need about 1 cup of fresh breadcrumbs, or you can substitute plain dried breadcrumbs. We’ve also made smoked meatballs with crushed pork rinds for a lower carb option.
- milk and egg – These add the moisture that you need to keep your meatballs from falling apart on the grill.
- Worcestershire sauce
- garlic and onion – We used freshly grated onion and minced garlic.
- American cheese block – We used an 8 ounce block of American cheese, cut into cubes for stuffing in the middle of the meatballs. Provolone is another classic cheese for cheesesteaks, but we definitely prefer the taste and texture of the American cheese in this recipe.
- Cheez Whiz or homemade cheese sauce (optional) – We prefer our own homemade cheese sauce for drizzling on top of these smoked meatballs, but you can also use the staple Philly ingredient, Cheez Whiz.
How to Make Philly Cheesesteak Meatballs on the Pellet Grill
These smoked Philly meatballs are made very similarly to oven-baked cheese stuffed meatballs. The complete instructions are in the recipe card at the end of this post.
Step 1: Make the meatball mixture – Start by mixing the ground meats, milk, egg, Worcestershire sauce, grated onion, breadcrumbs, garlic, and your favorite all purpose seasoning in a large mixing bowl. I like to use my hands to make sure everything is well combined. Then allow the meatball mixture to sit in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes – this step is very important, because it allows the breadcrumbs to soak up the moisture from the meat and wet ingredients.
Step 2: Roll and season the Philly meatballs – Use a cookie scoop or measuring cup to portion out about ⅓ cup of the meat mixture. Place one cube of American cheese inside the meat mixture, and roll it into a ball. Then season with all-purpose seasoning. *TIP – Be sure to completely cover the cheese cube so that the cheese doesn’t ooze out while cooking.
Step 3: Transfer the cheese-stuffed meatballs to a wire rack – For smoking smaller items like meatballs, I recommend using a wire rack to get the food on and off the grill quickly. Be sure to oil the rack first, so that your meatballs don’t stick.
Step 4: Smoke the cheese stuffed meatballs on the grill – Place the wire rack with the meatballs on the pellet grill or smoker. Smoke at 250°F until the internal temperature of the smoked meatballs reaches about 160°F.
*TIP – Be sure to check the internal temp for multiple meatballs, as some may cook more quickly than others based on size or the position on the grill. Since the meatballs contain ground pork, be sure to cook to a minimum internal temperature of 160°F, as read by an instant read meat thermometer.
Making the Cheese Sauce
We’ve made this cheesesteak meatballs recipe with Cheez Whiz in the past, but we prefer serving the meatballs with our homemade cheese sauce drizzled on top.
For our easy cheese sauce, add 1/2 cup heavy cream to a small saucepan and heat over medium-low heat until just before boiling. Then stir in 2 slices American cheese and 4-6 ounces shredded sharp cheddar cheese until melted.
**If using Cheez Whiz, we recommend heating 1 to 1-1/2 cups in a small saucepan with about 1/4 cup of milk or half & half to thin it out a bit.
Tips for Cheesesteak Meatballs
- Wear bbq gloves – When rolling the meatballs, we prefer to wear black bbq gloves so that the meat doesn’t stick to our hands. Less mess!
- Use a cookie scoop to portion out the meat – We used a 2 tablespoon cookie scoop, and we scooped 3 level scoops to portion out the meat. So each meatball is roughly 1/3 cup. The cookie scoop makes forming the meatballs quick and easy.
- Oil the wire cooling rack first – Lightly oil your wire rack with cooking spray or a paper towel with a few drops of cooking oil on it. This helps prevent your meatballs from sticking to the rack.
- Refrigerate meat mixture – Be sure to allow the meatball mixture to rest in the refrigerator for a full 30 minutes before rolling. This helps the breadcrumbs absorb the excess moisture.
Philly Cheesesteak Meatballs on the Pellet Grill
Ingredients
- 1 lb 80/20 ground beef
- 1 lb beef, pork, veal blend, *See notes
- 1 cup fresh breadcrumbs, *See notes
- ½ medium onion, grated, about ½ cup
- 1 egg
- ½ cup milk
- 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 jalapeno, seeded and finely diced, optional
- 1½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 8 ounce American cheese block, cut into 16 cubes *See notes
- all-purpose seasoning of your choice
- Cheez Whiz or cheese sauce, for serving, *See notes
Instructions
- Heat pellet grill or smoker to 250℉ with your choice of wood or pellets.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together the egg, milk, Worcestershire sauce, minced garlic, diced jalapeno, salt, and pepper until well combined. Then mix in the breadcrumbs, grated onion, ground beef, and ground beef/pork/veal blend. Use your hands or a wooden spoon to incorporate all of the ingredients together. Allow the mixture to sit in the refrigerator for 30 minutes for all of the ingredients to come together and the breadcrumbs to soak up some of the moisture.
- While the meatball mixture is resting, oil a wire cooling rack with non-stick cooking spray or a paper towel with a few drops of cooking oil. Set aside.
- Use a cookie scoop or measuring cup to portion out about ⅓ cup of the meat mixture. Place one cube of cheese inside the meat mixture, and roll it in the palms of your hands to form a ball. Take care to completely cover the cheese cube. Repeat until all of the meatballs are stuffed with cheese and formed into balls. *You should have 16 meatballs. TIP – We used 3 level scoops of a 2 tablespoon cookie scoop to portion out our meat quickly and easily.
- Sprinkle the meatballs with your favorite all-purpose seasoning, and transfer to the wire cooling rack, evenly spaced. *We used Shake That All-Purpose Seasoning.
- Place the wire cooling rack with the meatballs on the indirect heat side of the grill. Smoke at 250℉ until the internal temperature of the meatballs reaches 160℉ as read by an instant read meat thermometer. *Our meatballs took about 2 hours and 30 minutes to reach 160℉ internal temp, but cooking times will vary based on your pellet grill and the size of your meatballs.
- When the Philly meatballs are almost done smoking, prepare the cheese sauce. Either heat Cheez Whiz in a small saucepan (mixed with about 2 tablespoons of milk if you wish), or make the homemade cheese sauce. *See notes.
- When smoked meatballs reach the proper internal temp, remove from the smoker or grill and transfer to a serving platter. Drizzle with cheese sauce and serve warm.
Video
Notes
- Beef, pork, veal blend – Our recipe calls for one pound of a beef, pork, and veal blend specifically made for meatloaf or meatballs. You should be able to find this in the meat case of most grocery stores labeled as “Meatloaf” or “Meatball” blend. If you can’t find the blend that we used, then you can substitute extra 80/20 ground beef.
- For the breadcrumbs – We made fresh breadcrumbs by pulsing one deli hoagie roll in a food processor (our nod to Philly). You can substitute 1 cup plain dried breadcrumbs or rolled quick cooking oats if you wish.
- Forming the meatballs – We highly recommend using a quick-release cookie scoop for portioning out the meatball mixture. We used a 2 tablespoons cookie scoop to scoop out three scoops of the meatball mixture – so each ball was roughly 1/3 cup.
- For the American cheese – We have tried this recipe with a provolone cheese block (another classic Philly cheese), but we prefer to stuff the meatballs with American cheese. You can get an 8 ounce block of American cheese freshly sliced from the deli counter.
- For the cheese sauce – Cheez Whiz is a classic choice for Philly cheesesteaks, but we prefer our own homemade cheese sauce because it is not as sharp. *If using Cheez Whiz, we recommend heating 1 to 1-1/2 cups in a small saucepan with about 1/4 cup of milk or half & half to thin it out a bit. For our cheese sauce, add 1/2 cup heavy cream to a small saucepan and heat over medium-low heat until just before boiling. Then stir in 2 slices American cheese and 4-6 ounces shredded sharp cheddar cheese until melted.
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