Are you a big fan of meatball subs and sandwiches? If the answer is yes, then this Meatball Casserole is a total win for you. Filled with delicious Italian meatballs and stringy mozzarella cheese, this easy casserole recipe is sure to be a hit with your family!
Why You’ll Love This Meatball Casserole Recipe
When it comes to comfort food, Italian dishes are hard to beat. And this meatball sub casserole? Definitely not an exception. It’s a heavenly mixture of meatballs, biscuit pieces, and marinara sauce, with a layer of creamy mozzarella cheese on top! Here are just a few reasons why you’ll love it.
- Family Favorite: We’ve been making this recipe for years and it’s become a true family favorite. Why? It’s mostly hands free and the flavors are definitely kid approved. A win for the cook and a win for the family!
- Super Easy: This dish is easy to make. Just grab those frozen meatballs out of the freezer, get some refrigerated biscuits, and you’re basically good to go.
- Cold Weather Comfort Food: A hearty casserole like this is perfect for when the weather gets colder, but honestly, it’s the kind of meal that stays on my menu all year long. It tastes out-of-this-world amazing!
Looking for more hearty casserole dinners? Check out our loaded potato and meatloaf casserole, our easy beef pot pie recipe, and our loaded mashed potato and meatball casserole!
What You’ll Need
Ready for some serious comfort food? We are too! Here are the ingredients you’ll need to round up before you start cooking. Scroll down to the recipe card for exact amounts.
- Olive Oil
- Veggies: We’ll be using yellow onion, green bell pepper, and fresh garlic cloves.
- Marinara Sauce: Use whatever sauce you love, we love Rao’s marinara sauce the best if using store bought. Or if you have the time, this homemade marinara is worth the extra few minutes of work!
- Seasonings: Grab some Italian Seasoning, salt, and pepper
- 8 Count Refrigerated Biscuits
- Frozen Italian Style Meatballs: Or you can make your own homemade Italian meatballs, just bake them before putting them into the casserole!
- Cheese: Load up with some fresh mozzarella cheese and Parmesan.
- Fresh Herbs: Freshly minced parsley or basil for topping, optional.
How to Make Meatball Sub Casserole
With just a few simple steps, you’ll be ready to enjoy the incredible flavors in this meatball sub casserole! Check out the recipe card for detailed instructions.
- Prep: Preheat your oven to 375°F and grease a 9×13 casserole dish.
- Sauté: Cook the onion and bell pepper in a hot skillet for a few minutes followed by the garlic. Cook together another 30 seconds or so until it smells amazing.
- Mix: Combine the onion mixture, marinara sauce, and seasonings in a large bowl. Cut each biscuit into 6 equal pieces and gently toss them in the sauce. Add the meatballs and gently fold in.
- Bake: Transfer everything into your greased baking dish, cover with foil, and bake for about 25 minutes. Remove the foil, add the cheeses, and bake for another 15-20 minutes until the cheese is melted and the casserole is nice and bubbly.
- Serve: If you’d like, broil the casserole for another minute or two to toast the cheese. Then, sprinkle with fresh herbs, and dig in!
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Tips for Best Results
As you can see, it’s a pretty straight-forward recipe, but there are a few tips that might be useful before you start.
- Sauce Choice: A thick, blended marinara sauce will keep the biscuit pieces from getting too soggy, but keep in mind that the pieces will still be a little soft.
- Homemade Meatballs: If you’re going to use homemade meatballs make sure you’ve cooked them through first, because the original recipe calls for store-bought meatballs.
- Biscuit Substitute: You can use garlic bread instead of biscuit pieces if you want; just make sure you toast it before you add it into the casserole.
- Vegetarian Option: This recipe could easily be vegetarian with the use of plant-based meatballs!
What to Serve With Meatball Casserole
This casserole serves 4-6 people comfortably, and possibly more if you’re cooking for little ones. In addition to that, a small salad or some greens go great on the side. I always love this Maggiano’s chopped salad on the side. As for the casserole itself, it tastes best when it’s served hot from the oven – let it cool down a little bit though, nobody likes a burnt tongue!
How to Store and Reheat Leftovers
Aren’t leftovers the greatest thing about casseroles? We think so! Here’s how to handle them.
- Refrigerate: To preserve this casserole (if there’s anything left to preserve), you’ll want to store it in an airtight container and eat it within 4-5 days.
- Reheat: Later, when you’re ready to eat it again, pop it in the oven for about 20 minutes to reheat it, and enjoy once more!
- Freeze: You can also freeze leftovers (we like to do individual portions) in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 3 months.
More Easy Casserole Recipes
- Million Dollar Mac and Cheese Casserole
- Chicken and Dumplings Casserole
- Biscuits and Gravy Casserole
Meatball Sub Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon oil
- 1 large yellow onion, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, cored seeded and diced
- 3 fresh garlic cloves, minced
- 2 ½ cups marinara sauce
- ½ tsp Italian seasoning
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 can, 16.3 oz 8 count refrigerated biscuits
- 16 oz bag Frozen Italian Style Meatballs, thawed
- 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
- ⅓ cup grated parmesan cheese
- fresh parsley or basil, finely minced (for garnish)
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Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 9×13 casserole dish, set aside.
- In a large skillet over medium-high heat, sauté onion and bell pepper in olive oil until
wilted. Add garlic and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Remove from heat. - In a large bowl, combine onion mixture, marinara sauce, Italian seasoning, salt and
pepper. - Cut each biscuit into 6 equal pieces and gently toss cut biscuits in the marinara mixture. Add meatballs and fold just a couple of times to disperse meatballs (they don’t
have to be fully coated in sauce) - Transfer mixture into greased casserole dish. Cover casserole dish with foil and bake
for 25 minutes. - Remove foil, add cheeses, and bake another 15 to 20 minutes, until bubbly and cheese
is melted. If desired, broil a minute or two top crisp the top just slightly. - Sprinkle top with fresh herbs if desired and serve hot!
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This is my second time eating this. I made it in a pan last time this time it goes in a bump pan. See how it is. I love the taste.
Can you freeze this? It looks so good.
I never leave a comment but I’m going to now. I just made this recipe and I cooked it for 375 for 25 minutes the first time took it out and the meatballs were still frozen, biscuits weren’t near done and the sauce was still cold so I decided to cook it for 30 more minutes before adding the cheese to see if that works. I’ll update when it’s done
Hi Katie! After the first 25 minutes, you remove the foil and bake it for an additional 20 minutes (with no foil). So yes, it wasn’t done baking yet and should finish in the next 20 minutes of baking time and be nice and hot!