These gluten-free meatball sub sandwiches are made using the best homemade meatball recipe and the fluffiest gluten-free sub buns! They can easily be made grain-free and dairy-free as well. The grain-free meatball recipe that I use for these sub sandwiches is a menu staple on my homestead and the sub rolls can easily be store-bought or homemade. Top the subs with your favorite paleo approved condiments and these subs will quickly become a delicious healthy dinner option, sure to be loved by modern pioneers of all ages. I know they will be re-appearing on the homestead menu frequently! Read on to see what else I love about these gluten-free meatball subs!
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Modern Pioneer Recipe
These gluten-free meatball sub sandwiches are a delicious modern pioneer recipe! I know the early pioneers couldn’t go to a Subway, and in fact, modern pioneers don’t have to either. I personally have never been to a Subway or eaten a Subway sandwich, but I am perfectly happy with making my own sub sandwiches right in my homestead kitchen!
Speaking of subs, I must admit I am a huge sandwich fan. I love trying different kinds of sandwiches, different brands of gluten-free breads and rolls, or trying to make my own grain-free breads and rolls. My all time favorite sandwiches are a classic ham sandwich or a classic PB&J sandwich. That being said, I think these gluten-free subs are pretty awesome too! They meet all the expectations I would have of a traditional sub sandwich: flavorful, delicious, and soft.
As a modern pioneer recipe, these sub sandwiches can easily be made into a healthy gluten-free or grain-free meal. Choose to make your subs completely from scratch or take a short-cut and splurge with your favorite store-bought sub roll. These meatball sub sandwiches can easily be made….
- gluten-free: Little Northern Bakehouse hot dog buns, Canyon Bakehouse sub rolls
- grain-free: Against the Grain baguette
- dairy-free: Daiya dairy-free cheese, Miyoko’s dairy-free cheese
- nut free: use nut free sub rolls and cheese
- corn free: use corn free sub rolls
- soy free: make sure your sub rolls and cheese are soy free
- naturally sweetened: use sugar free pasta sauce (or make your own homemade pasta sauce!)
If I haven’t got you convinced on these meatball subs yet, you can always take a quick look at this crockpot sloppy joe recipe which is just as simple and delicious as these meatball sub sandwiches!
Tips for Making Homemade Meatballs
Some people may get grossed out by making their own meatballs. Me, I love handling raw meat! Call me weird, but it’s just so satisfying to stick your hands into a mound of meat and massage it and mix it all together. Raw meat does not bother me a bit.
Handling Raw Meat: However if you don’t have the same feelings that I do towards raw meat, I have a few suggestions for you. One is to wear kitchen gloves. Put a barrier between you and the meat and you may find it easier to tough that raw stuff. Another suggestion would be to use a spatula to combine the ingredients. It may not combine them as thoroughly, but a good stirring job would probably be satisfactory. My last idea would be to put everything in a blender or food processor and combine the ingredients that way.
Shaping the Meatballs: To shape the meatballs, if you are like me and don’t mind touching raw meat, you can just take spoonful’s and roll them into balls. However, if you get a little squeamish about handling raw meat, a cookie or ice cream scoop may be more your style.
Meat Choice: I like to use straight, lean venison for making my meatballs. However, you can use any other lean, ground meat for your meatballs. Some people like to mix 50/50 pork and beef or venison to add a little flavor, moisture, and fat to the otherwise lean red meat. You can also use ground turkey or chicken.
For another flavorful and moist meatball recipe, make sure you check out this recipe for grain-free spaghetti and meatballs!
Meatball Sub Toppings
BBQ Sauce: Condiments can be a big thing for some people. In my family, they aren’t too big of a deal, but there are a few staples that must be in the fridge or pantry. One of those is bar-b-que sauce. My dad, Anna, and I love our bar-b-que sauce. When I first went on a low inflammation diet, I tried making my own bar-b-que sauce and canning it. It didn’t turn out that great. For me, it wasn’t thick enough or flavorful enough.
Thankfully, I have been able to find a few brands that make paleo approved or gluten-free bar-b-que sauces that I enjoy. If I feel like trying to be good and sticking to a paleo-ish diet, I go with the paleo approved Primal Kitchen BBQ sauce. However, if I feel like splurging and being a little naughty, I go with the organic Woodstock BBQ sauce. Both are delicious and pair perfectly with these grain-free meatball subs!
Sauce: You can use either BBQ sauce or pasta sauce for adding flavor to your meatball subs! You can easily buy your favorite pasta sauce brand or try making your own homemade pasta sauce. If you do opt to buy pasta sauce, try to choose a sauce that is not only gluten-free, but also doesn’t contain any added sugar or corn products.
Cheese: Another topping that I like to add to my meatball subs is cheese. Here is another odd fact about me: I am not a big cheese fan, but I actually like dairy-free cheese the best. I have tried various different dairy-free cheeses, and while none of them are exactly like real cheese, the brands that have worked the best for me are Daiya cheese shreds and Miyoko’s dairy-free cheeses.
Meatball Sub Recipe Tips
These meatballs subs are way easy to make! You can even make them up ahead of time and freeze them! For these recipe tips, I’ll give you a few guidelines to follow when making the meatball recipe, but I will also give you some substitutions for certain ingredients.
- Why Coconut Aminos?– The coconut aminos in this meatball recipe is a substitute for soy sauce and it helps keep the meatballs moist and tender.
- Egg-Free Option?– Sorry, I haven’t come up with a substitute for the egg yet. No egg-free meatball recipe this time.
- Flour Substitutes– For the tapioca flour in the meatballs, you can substitute in arrowroot flour. You could also try coconut or cassava flour, but be aware that those flours could dry out the meatballs more.
- Don’t Skip the Smoke!– Liquid smoke is a must! I love using natural liquid smoke in any meat-based recipe!
- Mustard Tip– Instead of organic mustard, you can substitute in ground mustard seed.
- Onion Tip– For the onion, you can chop or slice it as finely as you want. For picky eaters, you may want to finely chop it with a veggie chopper or a food processor to eliminate any onion chunks.
- Grain-free Sub Rolls– I love using the Against the Grain baguettes for these subs, but you could also make your own using this grain-free cheese roll recipe or a Chebe bread mix!
Order Up!
You are going to love the moist, flavorful meatballs paired with the light, fluffy sub rolls and topped with plenty of sauce and melted cheese! If you are in a hurry, just cook the meatballs up ahead of time and store them in the fridge or freezer. Or, make the whole subs up ahead of time and re-heat them when you are ready to serve them! Easy as a Subway!
Gluten-free Meatball Sub Sandwiches
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 1 lb. ground venison
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp. onion powder
- 1/2 tsp. sea salt
- 1 T. coconut aminos
- 1 medium organic, pasture-raised egg
- 1/4 cup Bob's Red Mill tapioca flour
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1 T. liquid smoke
- 1 T. raw honey
- 1 tsp. organic mustard
- 1/4 tsp. smoked paprika
Subs
- 4 gluten-free or grain-free sub rolls
- 1 cup dairy-free mozzarella cheese shreds
- 1 cup gluten-free, sugar free pasta sauce
- dairy-free parmesan cheese crumbles
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line an 8×8" glass baking dish with parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine all of the meatball ingredients. Thoroughly mix the ingredients together using your hands.
- Use a cookie scoop to scoop up some of the meat and roll it into a ball between your hands. Place the meatball in the baking dish. The meatballs can be placed fairly close together on the parchment paper, just not touching. You should be able to make 15-16 meatballs.
- Bake the meatballs for 25-30 minutes or until the internal temperature reads 160°F. Remove the meatballs from the oven and increase the oven temperature to 400°F.
- Line a glass baking pan with parchment paper, the pan should be able to snuggly fit the number of subs sandwiches you are making. Prep the sub rolls by cutting each roll open and buttering inside if desired (you can skip this step to keep the meal dairy-free).
- Place 3-4 meatballs in each sub roll. Add plenty of pasta sauce to each sub. Place the subs side-by-side in the glass baking dish. Liberally sprinkle the mozzarella cheese over the subs. Top the subs with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese.
- Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake the subs for 10-15 minutes or until the cheese has melted. Enjoy warm!
Where to Find the Ingredients
- Simply Organic onion powder
- Simply Organic garlic powder
- Coconut Secret coconut aminos
- Wright’s liquid smoke
- Little Northern Bakehouse hot dog buns
- Canyon Bakehouse sub rolls
- Against the Grain baguette bulk
- Bob’s Red Mill tapioca flour
- Organic, sugar-free pasta sauce
- Supplies: 8×8″ glass baking dish, unbleached parchment paper
For the Against the Grain baguettes, I have been able to find them at Whole Foods Market, Kroger, my local co-op, and certain small health food stores. Look around for a location that sells them near you! They are a grain-free staple in my house!
These gluten-free meatball sub sandwiches are simple, healthy, and delicious! The perfect dinner option for a quick weekday meal on the homestead or an amazing weekend party night! Whip them up quickly ahead of time, or enjoy the process of creating your very own healthy sub sandwich. I am sure you will find these sub sandwiches the perfect substitute to a traditional sub, and so much tastier since you made them in your own homestead kitchen!
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by Alexa
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