BBQ bacon-wrapped meatballs are a simple and delicious appetizer that uses only a few ingredients! They're perfectly scrumptious served at any occasion and are gobbled up quickly at parties! This recipe uses homemade meatballs, but you can also take a shortcut by using store-bought ones. Wrap them in bacon, brush with your favourite BBQ sauce, and you've got a simple yet addictive appetizer!
I hope you enjoy this recipe! ❤️ If you give it a try, please let me know how it turned out for you in the comments section at the bottom of the page or share a pic of your om noms on Instagram and tag @dishesanddustbunnies! ❤️
Ingredients Used to make BBQ Bacon Wrapped Meatballs
BBQ bacon-wrapped meatballs are actually very easy to make as they require only a few simple ingredients. ,I used homemade meatballs for this recipe, but you can also take a shortcut by using store-bought frozen meatballs.
In addition to meatballs (homemade or frozen), the only other ingredients you'll need for this recipe is bacon, cut into thirds as well as a bottle or two of your favourite barbeque sauce… and that's it!
You can get creative with your ingredients to customize this recipe to suit your taste and have a little fun! Sometimes I like to use different flavours of bacon to give my recipe a little bit of a different flavour Dash maple bacon gives the meatballs a little bit of a different flavour than if I use Hickory smoked bacon. It's up to you!
Get creative also by changing up the type of barbeque sauce that you use for this recipe – it can give your recipe a whole different flavour each time! Personally I'm a fan of barbeque sauces with a smoky sweet flavour, but you can use any barbeque sauce that strikes your fancy.
Be sure to see the recipe card at the bottom of the post for full ingredients & instructions!
How to make Bacon Wrapped BBQ Meatballs – Overview
In the recipe at the bottom of the page, you'll find the full instructions on making barbeque bacon-wrapped meatballs, but first, here's a quick overview of how easy it is to make this recipe.
For this recipe, I recommend placing a wire rack over a baking sheet so that you're not cooking them in all the fat that drains from the bacon as it cooks. You can see from the pictures above exactly what I use when making this recipe.
This recipe is so simple that all you have to do is wrap your bacon strips (which have been cut into thirds) around meatballs, secure them with a toothpick, brush them with barbeque sauce, then place them in the oven to cook for 30-40 minutes. A couple of times during the cooking process, you'll want to take the pan of meatballs from the oven, flip them and brush them with a bit more barbeque sauce.
Once they're done cooking, and the bacon has crisped up enough, brush them with more BBQ sauce and serve – that's all there is to it! 😋
How to Prepare Ahead, Serve and Store
Serve: Bacon-wrapped barbeque meatballs are best served warm. When served as an appetizer (like on game night!), they can be left out for up to 2 hours on a serving plate. You can also place the meatballs in a crockpot set to low to keep warm while serving.
Prepare Ahead of time: If you'd like to prepare your bacon-wrapped meatballs ahead of time, you can do this by preparing them according to the recipe instructions, but store them in a container until you're ready to cook them. This can be done the night before.
How to Store: Barbeque bacon-wrapped meatballs will be good for up to 4 days when stored in an air-tight container in the fridge and when frozen, they will be good for up to 2 months.
Other recipes you'll enjoy:
Bacon Wrapped BBQ Meatballs
- Total Time: 55 minutes
- Yield: about 22 meatballs 1x
Ingredients
- 1 package of bacon, strips cut into thirds
- 2 cups (or more) BBQ sauce – you can use any variety you prefer. I like to use a sauce with a bold hickory or smoky flavour.
- 1.5 lbs frozen prepared meatballs (partially thawed so toothpick will go through)
OR homemade meatballs using the Meatball Mix below. 🙂 - toothpicks
Meatball Mix
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 small onion, chopped finely
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1/4 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- 2 tbsps Italian style bread crumbs (plain breadcrumbs are also fine if that's what you have)
- salt, to taste
- pepper, to taste
Instructions
If using homemade meatballs:
- Combine all meatball ingredients and form into balls about 1/2″-1″ wide, or small enough for bacon strips to wrap around. You can make the meatballs whatever size you prefer, but I find forming them small enough to be bite-sized is best, especially if you're going to use them as an appetizer. If you're making them as a main course, you can make them larger if you like.
To prepare the BBQ Bacon Wrapped Meatballs
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- If using homemade meatballs, combine all meatball ingredients as described above. If using frozen meatballs, allow to thaw slightly so it'll be easy to push a toothpick through.
- Wrap meatballs in bacon and secure with a toothpick. Do this with each meatball and place on top of a wire baking rack over a baking sheet (for easy clean up, line the baking sheet with foil). It's important that the meatballs cook on top of the wire rack to prevent them from sitting in the grease as they cook.
- Once meatballs are placed on the baking rack, brush them with BBQ sauce. Flip them over and brush the other sides as well.
- Bake for 15 minutes, then remove from the oven and brush with more BBQ sauce.
- Bake for another 15 minutes and brush with BBQ sauce.
- Place the meatballs back into the oven for 5-10 more minutes to crisp up the bacon.
- Once the bacon on the meatballs are crisp, you can remove them from the oven.
- Before serving, while they're still warm, brush them one more time with BBQ sauce.
Notes
Note: You can make these meatballs any size you like, not just 1/2″-1″ diameter. Keep in mind that the larger your meatballs, the more bacon you may need to wrap around them. Also larger meatballs tend to work well for a main dish for dinner along with some sides, smaller meatballs work nicely for appetizers or party food.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American/Canadian
