Meatball Sub Sandwiches

Meatball Sub Sandwiches are an easy classic everyone will love! Starring homemade meatballs on garlic buttered hoagie rolls with marinara and melty mozzarella. Easy to serve one or a crowd with air fryer and oven instructions!

Can’t give you a delicious meatball recipe without sharing the single best use of meatballs (in my opinion!). These Meatball Sub Sandwiches are a cheesy, messy, toasty classic that’s not complicated at all! 

If you’ve got your meatballs already in the freezer, this dinner takes less than 30 minutes to put together. If you like meatballs and pasta, you’ll LOVE a good meatball sub sandwich.

Why are they called ‘sub’ sandwiches?

The ‘sub’ in sub sandwich is short for submarine! Several sources including What’s Cooking America say that the name submarine sandwich was first used by Italian immigrants in 1910. Later, submarine sandwiches became popular in Connecticut during World War II, when soldiers ate these sandwiches by a submarine base. 

Sub sandwiches are similar to Grinders, Po’Boy, Hero, and Italian Sandwiches, but generally the ingredients and name origin differ between each kind of sandwich.

What do you put on a Meatball Sub Sandwich?

Meatball Sub Sandwiches are incredibly simple to make, and even easier if you already have ready-to-cook meatballs on hand. Here’s what goes in my meatball sub sandwich:

• hoagie rolls – For the bread, I recommend using hoagie rolls. I tried this recipe with hotdog buns. Honestly, they were just too measly to hold on to the saucy meatballs, and they got soggy real quick. So in my opinion, it’s worth it to get hoagie rolls.
• meatballs! – Let’s talk meatballs. For this recipe, I’m using my Easy Freezer-Friendly Meatball recipe, but you can use any meatballs you have in the freezer, or you own meatball recipe. This main dish recipe goes WAY quicker if you already have premade meatballs on hand that you can just toss in the oven or air fryer. 
• marinara sauce – I always have jarred marinara sauce from Costco on hand, so that’s what I used here. Super versatile and delicious.
• mozzarella cheese – This recipe tastes wonderful with either fresh or shredded mozzarella. However, the fresh mozzarella takes a bit longer to melt, so you risk burning the bread a little. For the quickest, easiest way, use shredded mozzarella.
• butter – After some testing, I’ve determined that these meatball sub sandwiches are WAY better with a butter & garlic toasted bun. It makes the meal smell better, adds another flavor, and really gives it a restaurant feel. 
• garlic powder – I just used a sprinkle of garlic powder, probably less than 1/8 of a teaspoon, but it makes the kitchen smell like garlic bread, and it tastes SO good.

What kind of bread should you use for Meatball Sub Sandwiches?

For this recipe, I recommend using hoagie rolls. You can also use hearty French bread, however I have not tested this. 

I do not recommend using hotdog buns, unless it’s all you’ve got. They’re much smaller and less hearty that hoagie rolls, so they don’t do as good of a job holding the meatballs in the bread. I also found the hotdog buns got soggy quicker than hoagie rolls.

What kind of cheese do you put on the Meatball Sub Sandwiches?

Here are some cheese ideas along with pros and cons I discovered during testing:

• shredded mozzarella cheese – easiest cheese to use for this recipe, melts at a good pace.
• fresh mozzarella cheese – deliciously cheesy to use, but takes longer to melt and risks burnt bread. Be careful with this one!
• sliced provolone – haven’t tried but I bet this would be good too if provolone is your jam.

What should you serve with meatball sub sandwiches?

These meatball sub sandwiches are a pretty hefty main dish, so I’d recommend keeping the sides meat and cheese free. Sometimes eating one of these sandwiches alone is a big enough meal for me! 

Here are some food pairing ideas to go with these Meatball Sub Sandwiches:

• A large veg heavy side salad
• Air Fryer Jojo Potato Wedges
• Make-Ahead Quinoa Party Salad
• fresh veggies and hummus

Can you make meatball sub sandwiches with frozen meatballs?

Yes! This is my favorite method and the quickest way to get dinner ready! Save time by using pre-formed, frozen meatballs, instead of making them on the same day as you want the meatball sub sandwiches.

The best way to meal prep this recipe is to keep a batch of formed meatballs in the freezer. Then, grab exactly as many as you need depending on how many meatball sub sandwiches you want to make. Each sandwich should fit 4 meatballs, 5 meatballs if they’re a little smaller.

What are the best meatballs for a meatball sub sandwich?

This is probably going to come down to opinion, but here are a couple things I want in my meatballs if they’re going on a meatball sub sandwich:

• I prefer larger meatballs for the sandwich. The smaller the meatballs, the more you have to put on the sandwich. And then the more meatballs there are to fall out of your sandwich 🙁
• I’m a little biased but I prefer to use my meatballs for these sandwiches! I’ve included the recipe for my Easy Freezer-Friendly Meatballs in the recipe card, but if you visit the recipe page, there’s more photos and helpful meatball info!
• I prefer to top the meatballs with spoonfuls of sauce, rather than use saucy stove-top meatballs. I think this helps reduce sogginess! And I just like to cook my meatballs in the air fryer – easier and less sauce goes everywhere while simmering.

Tips for the Best Meatball Sub Sandwiches:

I’m not a meatball sub sandwich expert, but I have made these sandwiches several times in the last couple weeks and here are my tips:

• Shredded mozzarella is easier to use and melts faster so there’s no chance of bread burning. If you love fresh mozz, just be sure to watch the bread closely so it doesn’t burn. If necessary, cover bread with strips of aluminum foil and leave the cheese exposed to melt and brown.
• If I want to make just 1 or 2 sandwiches, I use the air fryer, because it’s quicker and gives a more even golden brown. If I wanted to make more at one time, I would use the oven method because my air fryer can’t fit more than 2 sandwiches.
• Keeping a batch of Easy Freezer-Friendly Meatballs in the freezer reduces the time it takes to get this meal on the table during the week!
• Make only as many as you need – these sandwiches don’t hold up in the fridge well.

How to store Meatball Sub Sandwiches:

I do not recommend storing/reheating these sandwiches, as the bread will get very soggy and it will lose the texture. 

How to freeze leftover meatballs:

To freeze extra meatballs, flash freeze raw meatballs on a sheet pan for 4 hours to overnight, then transfer to a freezer safe container, such as a Stasher 1/2 Gallon Storage Bag (affiliate link!). Use within 3-4 months for best quality. See detailed photos and more info on the recipe page for Easy Freezer-Friendly Meatballs.