Smoked Meatballs

4.06 from 17 votes

There unbelievable flavor in these smoked meatballs which are juicy and oh-so tasty! Serve with your favorite sauce or just nibble on them like they are!

Prep Time10

Cook Time1 30

Total Time1 40

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Keyword: beef, smoked, smoked meatballs, traeger

Servings: servings

Calories: 363kcal

Author: Chef Jenn

Equipment

Ingredients

2 slices white bread
1/2 cup milk
1 lb lean ground beef 80/20
1 lb ground pork
1 tbsp Italian seasoning
2 eggs
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper

Instructions

Tear the bread into pieces and put it into a small bowl. Pour the milk over the bread and let it sit for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare the rest of the ingredients by putting everything into a large bowl.
Add the soaked bread and any residual milk.
Using your hands, mix all the ingredients together but don't overmix. Just mix until it is all combined.
Form the mixture into 36 ping pong ball sized meatballs. Pop them into a meatball griller and smoke at 180-F for 30 minutes.
Turn the heat up to 225-F and continue to smoke for an additional hour or until the internal temperature reaches 165-F.
Rest the meatballs lightly covered with foil for 15 minutes then serve and enjoy!

Notes

Chef Jenn's Tips

Use a meatball griller, otherwise you won't have meatBALLS. The low and slow cooking time will cause the meatballs to settle and become flat on the bottom. They'll still taste great, but they won't be meatballs.
A mixture of pork and beef makes nice fatty meatballs. I use lean beef and regular ground pork - you can use fattier blends but they'll ooze off a lot of fat.
Don't overwork the meatballs - only mix the meat enough to combine it all thoroughly
Bigger meatballs will take longer to cook, so adjust your time accordingly.
Use a digital meat thermometer and pull the meatballs out to rest when they hit 165-F.

Nutrition