Meatballs aren’t just for spaghetti! Fire up your Instant Pot and make a platter of juicy Meatball Sliders for dinner. These hot sandwiches make a perfect appetizer too!
Love meatballs? Be sure to give our delicious Instant Pot Swedish Meatball recipe a try too! Or bake up a casserole of this easy Meatball Parmesan. So good and tasty. Be sure to try our white castle sliders next.
Why this Recipe is Best
Frozen meatballs make a convenient meal starter, tossed with sauce and served with pasta, but they’re not always the most exciting or flavorful. The good news is that adding pizzazz to a plain meatball is super easy!
With this recipe, you pressure cook the frozen meatballs with marinara sauce to fill them with classic Italian flavors while making them extra moist and juicy. Toss them with grated Mozzarella cheese and pile them onto slider buns brushed with garlic and you have a flavorful party food, appetizer or meal in no time.
Instant Pot Meatball Sliders are a kid friendly meal that adults love too!
Ingredient Notes
- Frozen Meatballs – Any brand of meatballs will do. You can make this vegetarian by subbing “meatless balls” too!
- Slider buns – Any bun will do but I especially love the sweet Hawaiian rolls for making sliders. .
Easy Instructions
To make the meatballs, place them in the Instant Pot with marinara sauce and water. Cook on high pressure for 4 minutes, vent, then add the mozzarella cheese, stirring until it’s melted.
Assemble the sliders by placing meatballs on the sliced buns. Add a little grated Parmesan on the sandwich and brush the tops of the buns with a mixture of melted butter, garlic and parsley.
Serving Suggestions
Meatball Sliders are huge hit at parties! Keep the meatballs warm in the Instant Pot and serve the rolls on the side so everyone can assemble their own sliders. (Go ahead and skip the butter topping if you do this–the sliders will still be tasty!)
These definitely work as a main course as well. Serve a plate of sliders with an Olive Garden Salad to round out the meal.
You can also use Hamburger buns or sub rolls to turn these meatballs into dinner-sized sandwiches! If you’re making a big sandwich, use 3 or 4 meatballs per roll.
I often like to warm the rolls slightly before making the sliders but it’s not necessary. They’ll taste great either way.
Serve the meatballs on some garlic bread or cheesy garlic bread for a change. Or whip up your own dinner rolls!
Craving pasta? Serve with spaghetti noodles or go ahead and just make Instant Pot Spaghetti and Meatballs.
Favorite Pastas: Million Dollar Spaghetti Casserole | Baked Ziti
Recipe FAQs
Absolutely! This is a great method for reheating the meatballs you stashed away in the freezer.
Yes, feel free to substitute other cheese you like on your meatballs. Provolone and pepperjack would be delicious choices.
Keep any leftover meatballs in a sealed container in the refrigerator. Reheat in the microwave or on the stove at a low heat and serve warm.
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Instant Pot Meatball Sliders
Ingredients
- 1 bag frozen meatballs 16 oz
- 2 cups marinara sauce
- ½ cup water
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella
- 12 slider rolls
- 2 Tablespoons butter melted
- 2 Tablespoons parmesan cheese grated
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon fresh chopped parsley
Instructions
Pressure Cook the Meatballs
- Add the meatballs, marinara sauce, and water to the bottom of the Instant Pot.
- Lock the lid in place and make sure the valve on top is set to "SEALING." Select High Pressure (or Manual) for a cook time of 4 minutes.
- Once the cook time ends, do a quick release of the pressure by moving the valve on top to "VENTING."
- Open the lid and add in the mozzarella cheese. Stir to combine.
Assemble the Sliders
- Place 1-2 meatballs on each slider bun. Top with extra cheese, if desired.
- In a small bowl, combine melted butter, parmesan, garlic powder and parsley.
- Brush butter mixture over the tops of each bun and enjoy immediately.
Notes
- Grate your own cheese: If possible, I like to buy cheese in blocks and grate it myself to add to recipes. It melts more quickly and tastes fresher this way!
- Stove Top: Add the meatballs and marinara to a dutch oven. Cover and simmer on low, stirring occasionally. When ready to serve, follow directions for garlic butt on buns and add cheese.
- Spicy meatballs: For a spicy meatball slider, add crushed red pepper flakes to taste to the meatballs and sauce after you add the mozzarella.Sweet Hawaiian Rolls are delicious, but any bun will work.
- Keeping the meatballs warm: You can leave the meatballs in your Instant Pot on the keep warm setting for up to an hour to keep them piping hot!
- See blog post for more recipe tips and tricks.
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Nutrition
With an Instant Pot and a few ingredients, you’ll turn an ordinary bag of frozen meatballs into an exciting appetizer, dinner sandwich or party food! Meatball Sliders are as easy to make as they are fun to eat!
I made these sliders a few days ago and WOW! This was a big hit and I will make these frequently.
This looks so delicious and so tasty! I can’t wait to give this a try! My hubby is going to love this! So excited!