Smashed Meatball Sandwich
Three smashed meatballs stacked up with cheese and sauce on focaccia to make a perfectly balanced meatball sandwich! I wasn’t sure if this would just feel like a burger, but it actually screamed meatball sandwich in my mouth!
The inspiration for this sandwich.
Taking a cue from smash burgers, I decided to smash some meatballs for a sandwich. I was thinking about how a meatball sandwich is a structural nightmare. Even if you have huge meatballs, there is still space in between the balls that make awkward bites. You could break up the balls, but at that point, it’s just an Italian sloppy joe! I created this version to have a perfect ratio of cheese, sauce, bread, and meatballs in every bite!
Smashing the meatballs
I made the focaccia a day early so I was able to give the meatballs the focus they needed. My meatball mix is fresh parsley, lots of parm, breadcrumbs and garlic, and a little dried oregano and chili flake. I normally put an egg in, but I didn’t use one in the smash version.
Put the meatball on the heat and let it cook for a minute. Then flip it and smash it! The flipping will help it not stick to the smasher. Make sure you make it as thin as you can and it will get super crispy and lacy. it will also help put 3 smashed meatballs on each sandwich without it being too tall. The cheese and breadcrumbs help make it extra crispy!
Stack the smashed meatballs
Meatball, sauce, cheese, repeat, repeat! I used provolone on two of the meatballs, and mozzarella on the one in the middle.
Build the smashed meatball sandwich
Focaccia on the bottom, sauce, meatball stack, more sauce.
Then add the top slice of focaccia! This smashed meatball sandwich was so epic and delicious!
Serve the smashed meatball sandwich
This was huge so I cut it in half and it was perfectly two servings. I was worried there would be too much meat but it was actually balanced with the bread.
I might never go back to the traditional meatball sandwich!
Twists and thoughts on this idea
I used a pound of beef for this and with the add-ins it made 6 3oz meatballs which was great for 2 smashed meatballs sandwiches split between 4 people total. You could do beef and pork, or beef and turkey like I normally do in my meatballs. I also left out the egg since we don’t need a binder. Keep the breadcrumbs though, they hold in the juices!
I use this focaccia as a jumping off point for my recipe, but I adjusted slightly and calculated it for the size pan and thickness I wanted. If you have a favorite focaccia recipe you should use that! Or you could get one from the store! You could also make it thicker and slice it in half the long way for a top and bottom bun.
For more tasty sandwiches, check out my Italian wedding soup sandwich, big mac club, or this hot dog pizza sandwich!
Smashed Meatball Sandwich
Ingredients
Bread prep the day before
- 320 g bread flour
- 10 g salt
- 5 g instant dry yeast
- 280 g water
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
Meatballs
- 1 pound ground beef 80/20
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese grated on a microplane
- 1/4 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley
- 2 cloves garlic grated
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon chili flakes or to personal taste
Finish it
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 tablespoon chopped rosemary
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 pinch salt
- 4 slices provolone
- 2 slices mozzarella
- 1 cup tomato sauce store bought or homemade
Instructions
prep the bread the day before
- In a large bowl mix the flour, salt, yeast, and water. Stir to combine, and continue stirring for about 3-5 minutes.
- Make sure the bowl is at least 3x the size of the amount of dough you have made, otherwize transfer it to a new bowl. Coat the top of the dough with olive oil. Cover the bowl and put it in the fridge to rise overnight
Make the meatballs
- Mix all the meatball ingredients in a large bowl and use your hands to make sure they are really well mixed. Form 9 meatballs from this mixture. They should be medium-large meatballs, about 3 ounces each. Set aside in the fridge until ready to use.
4 hours before you want to eat
- Take the dough out of the fridge. Use a spatula to unstick it from the edges of the bowl. It will deflate a bit. Pull one edge towards the center, then spin the bowl slightly and repeat. Do this about 12 times to form a loose wet dough ball.
- Pour 2 tablespoons olive oil into a 1/4 sheet pan and brush all around the pan. place your dough ball into the pan, seam side down. Allow to rest on the counter for 3-4 hours. it should expand to fill the pan. I usually cover it with another pan upside down.
Finish the bread
- Preheat oven to 450
- Mix 2 tablespoons of olive oil with the chopped rosemary, garlic, and salt.
- Dip your fingers in oil, and use them to dimple the dough and help it stretch out in the pan.
- Drizzle the rosemary oil over the bread
- Bake at 450 for 25 minutes until browned on top and fluffy.
Make the sandwiches
- Preheat a cast iron griddle to high heat. Add a high smoke point oil like peanut to the pan. Place a meatball down and cook 1 minute, then flip it and smash it as thin as you can. You really want to smash it! Let it cook a minute or two smashed, then use a spatula to scrape it off the griddle and flip it. Continue this process with all the meatballs.
- Top each with some sauce, then a slice of cheese. Layer them in two stacks of 3 smashed meatballs, with the mozzarella topped meatballs in the center of each stack.
- Cut the bread into 4 quarters.
- Put a slice of bread down and top with some sauce. Then add the meatball stack, then more sauce. Top with another slice of bread. Repeat with the second sandwich. Cut in half and serve!