Meatball stuffed biscuits are one of my favorite easy game day appetizers! If you have a bag of frozen meatballs sitting in the freezer and you are tired of turning them into spaghetti, this is what to make with them instead. Flaky biscuits stuffed with frozen meatballs and melty mozzarella, baked golden and served with warm marinara.
Why this recipe works
You need one can of refrigerated biscuits, a bag of frozen meatballs, cheese sticks, and about half an hour to make these easy meatball stuffed biscuits. And when I say easy, I mean easy easy. We’re basically sealing the cheese into a dough pocket along with a meatball. That’s it. Serve them up with marinara or pizza sauce and you have a game day or holiday appetizer that comes together quickly!
I first made these over 10 years ago and they were a big hit at our football party. The Beef Council has demonstrated our recipe on the local news several times which we really appreciate! It was great to make these again in order to take new photos. Everyone loved them.
Looking for more ground beef ideas? See our collection of 90 best ground beef recipes here.
Ingredients you will need
Get all measurements, ingredients, and instructions in the printable version at the end of this post.
Ingredient Info and Substitution Suggestions
REFRIGERATED BISCUITS – I use Pillsbury Grands buttermilk biscuits, which come eight to a can. Each one gets cut in half, so a single can gives you sixteen stuffed biscuits without any dough making or math. The flaky layered varieties give you the prettiest pull-apart result. If you cannot get them in your area, my homemade biscuits work great too!
FROZEN MEATBALLS – Reach for the one-ounce dinner size here, not the half-ounce appetizer ones. You want sixteen of them, one per biscuit half, and they go in whole. The smaller appetizer meatballs get lost inside a Grands biscuit. If you would rather make your own, the meatballs from my spaghetti and meatballs in marinara sauce are excellent here, but they do need to be fully cooked and cooled before they go into the biscuit dough.
STRING CHEESE – Four sticks of mozzarella string cheese, each cut into four pieces, gives you exactly sixteen pieces. Bulk or shredded mozzarella works too, though I find the string cheese pieces easier to seal inside the dough without stray shreds getting caught in the seam.
MARINARA SAUCE – This is for dipping. Use your favorite jarred sauce or the marinara from my spaghetti and meatballs. Warm it before serving!
How to Make Meatball Stuffed Biscuits
These step by step photos and instructions are here to help you visualize how to make this recipe. You can Jump to Recipe to get the printable version of this recipe, complete with measurements and instructions at the bottom.
- Preheat oven to 375F.
- Cut each biscuit in half, you should have 16 pieces.
- Cut each stick of cheese into 4 pieces.
- Gently roll a biscuit piece into a ball and flatten it in the palm of your hand. Place one piece of string cheese (you may need to flatten it with your fingers) and one meatball into the biscuit. Wrap remaining dough around the filling and seal edges.
- Place seam side down into a 9-inch round cake pan. Repeat for remaining meatballs.
- In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, onion powder, and Italian seasoning. Brush over the tops of the biscuit balls.
- Add parmesan cheese to the top of each biscuit ball.
- Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.
- Serve warm with your favorite marinara sauce.
Frequently Asked Questions & Expert Tips
Yes. Frozen is simply a shortcut, not a requirement. The one thing that matters is that the meatballs go into the dough fully cooked and cooled, because the biscuit bakes faster than raw meat does.
Use the 1 ounce dinner size, which is the standard frozen meatball you will find in most grocery freezer sections. I would not use the half-ounce appetizer meatballs. They are small enough that they disappear into a Grands biscuit and you can easily miss out on some meatball in each bite if they’re too small.
This is probably because the seam was not fully sealed. Flatten the dough a little wider than feels necessary, tuck the filling into the center, then pinch the edges together firmly and pinch again. Place every one of them seam side down in the pan.
Yes, you can assemble, cover tightly, refrigerate for a few hours, and bake when ready!
A meatball biscuit bake tosses quartered biscuit dough, meatballs, and sauce together in a pan and bakes it all as one dish, so you serve it with a spoon. These are individually wrapped, so each one is a self-contained bite with the cheese sealed inside. Both are great! These are the ones you want when people are standing up, holding a plate, and watching a game.
Storage and Freezing Information
Store fully cooled leftovers in an airtight container kept in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. They’re best reheated in a 350F oven or air fryer.
You can freeze the fully cooled meatball stuffed biscuits by placing them in a large ziptop bag in a single layer. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before loosely covering with foil and reheating in a 350F oven for around 10 minutes.
Serving Suggestions
Meatball stuffed biscuits are best served with warmed marinara or pizza sauce. They are also great with nacho cheese sauce! Although they’re best when enjoyed right away, I have absolutely baked them, wrapped them, and transported them to soccer and football games along with some marinara back when my kids were young, and they liked them just as much.
For a football party spread, they hold their own next to bacon wrapped little smokies and a cold, crunchy appetizer veggie pizza. Add a platter of pinwheel sandwiches if you are feeding a crowd that grazes for hours.
They are also wonderful set out next to a pot of cheddar cheese potato soup or a bowl of three bean chili on game day. Dunking a cheesy meatball biscuit into soup is one of the better decisions you can make on a cold afternoon.
I especially love these for football parties or as something quick and easy when people are coming over.
More Appetizer Recipes
- BBQ Meatballs
- Meatball Sliders
- Ritz Cracker Party Sandwiches
- Baked Ham and Cheese Sliders
- Grape Jelly Meatballs
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Meatball Stuffed Biscuits
IMPORTANT – There are often Frequently Asked Questions within the blog post that you may find helpful. Simply scroll back up to read them!
Print It Pin It Rate ItIngredients
- 16 ounce can of Pillsbury Grands biscuits 8 large biscuits
- 4 mozzarella cheese sticks
- 16 frozen meatballs dinner size
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 Tablespoon grated parmesan cheese
- 1 cup marinara optional for dipping
Things You’ll Need
- 9 inch round cake pan or pie plate
Before You Begin
- Store fully cooled leftovers in an airtight container kept in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. They’re best reheated in a 350F oven or air fryer
- You can freeze the fully cooled meatball stuffed biscuits by placing them in a large ziptop bag in a single layer. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before loosely covering with foil and reheating in a 350F oven for around 10 minutes.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F.
- Cut each biscuit in half, you should have 16 pieces.16 ounce can of Pillsbury Grands biscuits
- Cut each stick of cheese into 4 pieces.4 mozzarella cheese sticks
- Gently roll a biscuit piece into a ball and flatten it in the palm of your hand. Place one piece of string cheese (you may need to flatten it with your fingers) and one meatball into the biscuit. Wrap remaining dough around the filling and seal edges.16 frozen meatballs
- Place seam side down into 9 inch round cake pan. Repeat for remaining meatballs.
- In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, onion powder, and Italian seasoning. Brush over the tops of the biscuit balls.1 Tablespoon olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon onion powder, 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- Add parmesan cheese to the top of each biscuit ball.1 Tablespoon grated parmesan cheese
- Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.
- Serve warm with your favorite marinara sauce.1 cup marinara
Expert Tips & FAQs
- Use the 1 ounce dinner size frozen meatballs, which is the standard frozen meatball you will find in most grocery freezer sections. I would not use the half-ounce appetizer meatballs. They are small enough that they disappear into a Grands biscuit and you can easily miss out on some meatball in each bite if they’re too small.
- Four sticks of mozzarella string cheese, each cut into four pieces, gives you exactly sixteen pieces. Bulk or shredded mozzarella works too, though I find the string cheese pieces easier to seal inside the dough without stray shreds getting caught in the seam.
- I use the Pillsbury Grands biscuits, which come eight to a can. Each one gets cut in half, so a single can gives you sixteen stuffed biscuits without any dough making or math. The flaky layered varieties give you the prettiest pull-apart result but any will do!
Nutrition
The recipes on this blog are tested with a conventional gas oven and gas stovetop. It’s important to note that some ovens, especially as they age, can cook and bake inconsistently. Using an inexpensive oven thermometer can assure you that your oven is truly heating to the proper temperature. If you use a toaster oven or countertop oven, please keep in mind that they may not distribute heat the same as a conventional full sized oven and you may need to adjust your cooking/baking times. In the case of recipes made with a pressure cooker, air fryer, slow cooker, or other appliance, a link to the appliances we use is listed within each respective recipe. For baking recipes where measurements are given by weight, please note that results may not be the same if cups are used instead, and we can’t guarantee success with that method.
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Ronnie Rom says
An you use freshly cooked meatballs or do they need to be frozen? Are they full size meatballs or bite sized?
Amanda Davis says
We use frozen dinner sized (which are 1-ounce) as the appetizer sized meatballs are too small.
Ally says
Can these be frozen? And at what point?
Can they be made ahead?
Thank you!
Amanda Formaro says
I’ll be honest, I have not tried that. However, I would THINK you could assemble and freeze them. Then take them out to thaw, add the butter and toppings and bake.
Amanda Davis says
You can freeze the fully cooled meatball stuffed biscuits by placing them in a large ziptop bag in a single layer. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before loosely covering with foil and reheating in a 350F oven for around 10 minutes.
Nancy says
I made them tonight with the dipping marinara, and man were they good…Took about 26 min. baking time, plus I made steamed broccoli Florets and great lil dinner for sure. I will make this again and again…
Amanda Formaro says
So glad you enjoyed them Nancy! I think they would be great during football season. Finger food for watching the game!
Judy Schechter says
OMG you put my 2 favorite things together! I can’t wait to try these yummy meatballs, thank you for posting this!
Amanda Formaro says
You’re welcome, I hope you enjoy them!
Kathy says
I just shared this and tagged my adult son letting him know we need to get the ingredients for this! It sounds yummy!
Amanda Formaro says
Awesome thanks Kathy!
Liz says
These look good. Thank you.
Amanda Formaro says
Thanks Liz!