Easy BBQ Pork Meatballs with Simple Homemade Barbecue Sauce
These ground pork meatballs are easy to make! This homemade meatball recipe is delicious by itself as an appetizer, meal prep, or paired with mashed potatoes and veggies for a quick weeknight dinner.
I originally made this pork meatballs recipe as a part of some brand work that I was doing. My challenge was to create a mashed potato bowl recipe that could serve as a complete meal! I developed these homemade meatballs recipe for that project, but felt like these BBQ meatballs were good enough to be shared as their own recipe.
You can serve these flavorful meatballs as the main dish or a great appetizer! The simple ingredients are likely things that you have in your pantry already, even the ingredients for the barbecue sauce! And, the techniques in this recipe will yield juicy pork meatballs every time.
There is one very important skip to making tender meatballs that I don’t want you to skip. This step is searing the meatballs in the skillet until they are golden brown! Doing this adds so much flavor, AND it helps to lock in the juices, so they don’t seep out while cooking. This step is the secret to a really good meatball!
Yes, you can make these easy meatballs in the slow cooker! Sear them first on the stovetop, then add them to the slow cooker with the barbecue sauce.
If you have more ground pork to use, try making this Pork Sausage Meatloaf.
Recipe Substitutions and Additions
Feel free to substitute ground chicken, ground turkey, ground beef or even ground veal for the pork.
Use the barbecue sauce of your choice instead of the homemade sauce.
Add a pinch of red pepper flakes or a few dashes of hot sauce to the barbecue sauce to add a bit of heat!
Other meatball recipes on Blackberry Babe: Cranberry Barbecue Meatballs | Keto Swedish Meatballs | Spinach Turkey Meatballs |Turkey Meatball Stroganoff
Pork Meatball Serving Suggestions
These meatballs are wonderful as an appetizer! Serve as cocktail meatballs with toothpicks.
Or make them for dinner! I like to serve them on top of Caramelized Onion and Bacon Mashed Potatoes with Sauteed Green Beans with Bacon and Mustard Glaze.
For dessert, try out this delicious Crescent Roll Peach Cobbler recipe.
Storing Leftover Meatballs
Place leftover meatballs in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.
Or place leftovers in freezer bags or freezer containers. Freeze for 3-4 months. Allow to thaw before reheating gently. You may want to make extra barbecue sauce to reheat the meatballs in.
I hope that you enjoy this easy BBQ pork meatball recipe! If you make them, let me know how it went in the comments below.
Easy BBQ Pork Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Meatball Ingredients:
- 1 pound ground pork
- ½ cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
BBQ Sauce Ingredients:
- ½ cup ketchup
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce OR soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Optional Garnish:
- French fried potatoes
- Diced green onion or fresh herbs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare a rimmed baking sheet or casserole dish with cooking spray.
- Make the meatball mixture: Add pork to a large mixing bowl, then add bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, egg and seasonings. Stir with a fork to combine.
- Use a spoon to scoop up the pork mixture and roll each scoop by hand into roughly a 1-inch ball.
- To a large skillet, add the tablespoon of oil and heat on medium-high heat.
- Add meatballs to skillet in a single layer and allow to sear for 2-3 minutes per side.
- Remove meatballs from the pan with a slotted spoon and transfer to the prepared baking sheet or casserole dish.
- Make the sauce: In a small saucepan, add ketchup, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce (or soy sauce) and garlic powder. Heat on medium-high heat until it begins to simmer. Allow to simmer for 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently, then remove from heat.
- Pour sauce over the seared meatballs in casserole dish and transfer to the oven.
- Bake for about 5 minutes, or until the meatballs measure at an Internal temperature of 145 degrees Fahrenheit or higher using an instant read thermometer.
- Serve warm topped with optional garnish.
