Bacon Bourbon Meatballs! These meatballs are made with bacon and ground beef and simmered in a bourbon bbq sauce. Perfect to serve as an appetizer for the big game or on a sandwich for family dinner!
You guys. These meatballs.
They’re made with Bacon! Whoa. Mind blown right? That’s right. Bacon. Bourbon. Meatballs. Periods added for extra emphasis not really required in the title. But have you ever had a bacon meatball?
These are super simple to make. I just put the raw bacon strips in my food processor (affiliate link) until it was ground up. Added some onion, which saved me the trouble of dicing it. My eyes were super grateful for this. Then mixed it up with some ground beef, bread crumbs and egg. The usual. But. You guys. Bacon.
Then after the meatballs are cooked we make the sauce. Which is a combination of bbq sauce and bourbon.
These little bacon bourbon meatballs are going to be the perfect snack to have out for upcoming game days, or get togethers. Or you can always make them into sandwiches and serve them for family dinner. Or just put a bunch in a bowl and call it a meal.. which might just be what the hubs and I did.
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Bacon Bourbon Meatballs! These meatballs are made with bacon and ground beef and simmered in a bourbon bbq sauce. Perfect to serve as an appetizer for the big game or on a sandwich for family dinner!
Ingredients
- 6 bacon strips
- 1/2 medium yellow onion
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
- 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 cup barbecue sauce
- 1/2 cup water
- 3 tablespoons bourbon
Instructions
- Place the uncooked bacon into a food processor (affiliate link) and process for about 1 minute or until bacon is finely ground up. Add in the onion and process until onion is finely chopped and mixed in.
- Spoon bacon and onion mixture into large bowl. Add ground beef, breadcrumbs, parsley, egg, chili powder, and salt. Stir to combine.
- Scoop out the meat mixture and roll into balls using your palms, should make about 24 1 inch meatballs.
- Heat oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Place the meatballs into the sauce pan and cook, turning every couple minutes to ensure all sides cook evenly. Cook for about 8-10 minutes until fully cooked.
- Remove the meatballs and set aside. Remove the pan from the heat and pour out the excess grease.
- Add the barbecue sauce, water and bourbon to the saucepan and return to heat. Stir to mix the sauce together. Add in the meatballs and allow them to simmer in the sauce for at least 10 minutes.
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Amy Stafford says
NICE! Those look pretty darn awesome.
Serene says
Thanks Amy!
Sharon @ What The Fork Food Blog says
Bacon bourbon meatballs, heck yes! I want them all,..
★★★★★
Serene says
Thanks Sharon 🙂
Nutmeg Nanny says
Bacon AND bourbon! YES PLEASE!
Serene says
Winning combo! Thanks 🙂
Jodi says
Do you use bourbon the alcohol or bourbon the sauce in the recipe?
Serene says
Hi Jodi, I just add a bit of the bourbon alcohol to the sauce and let it simmer 🙂
Tara says
Hi
What kind of bourbon do you use ?
Serene says
Whatever kind we have on hand!
Heather | Heather Likes Food says
Anything with bacon is on my list!
★★★★★
Serene says
Same here! Thanks Heather. xo
Kristyn says
I love having meatballs as appetizers at any party I’m hosting and these ones sound great! I’ll have to give these a try!
Serene says
I’m the same! Always a slow cooker of meatballs set out 🙂
Des @ Life's Ambrosia says
Oh my heavens! What glorious meatballs! They would be gone in a flash in my house!
DessertForTwo says
Did you say bourbon?! I’m in!
Gloria Davis says
The meatballs look delicious can they be baked and can they be made frozen, can you taste the bourbon in the sauce, thinking about making these for a church fellowship. Thaks for your response.
Serene says
Hi Gloria! The meatballs can definitely be baked and then added to the sauce. I would still simmer them in the sauce to help the flavor get into the meatballs. You could also use frozen meatballs instead of making your own. However, the frozen meatballs won’t have the bacon in them! But regular meatballs in the sauce would still be good. And yes, you can taste the bourbon, you can definitely start with a smaller amount of the bourbon if you want and add more to taste. I hope that helps 🙂 Let me know how it goes!
Julie Briggs says
These meatballs sound AMAZING! Can’t wait to try.
Serene says
Thanks so much Julie!
Terry Brandau says
Serene, these meatballs sound amazing, I can’t wait to try them and serve to my lucky guests!
Serene says
Thanks so much Terry!
Michael says
THESE ARE FREAKIN AWESOME. Sorry for shouting. But did I mention, THESE ARE FREAKIN AWESOME!!!!
Serene says
OH MY GOSH!!! I absolutely agree!!! 🙂 Thanks so much Michael.
Kim says
I made these for tomorrow and had to stop myself from eating a bunch! They are excellent. I’m so glad I doubled the recipe. I don’t have a food processor so I just cut the bacon into tiny “ground” up pieces and finely cut the onion with a knife. Thanks for sharing.
Serene says
Awesome! I’m so happy you enjoyed them Kim! Thanks for letting me know 🙂
Paige says
I want to make these into a meal!! What can I serve them with?
Serene says
Anything! You could serve them over some rice, or with some potatoes or a salad as a side dish. Or put them on a sandwich! Let me know what you do 🙂
Angel says
Can you make these in a slowcooker? And how much does. One pound make?
Serene says
Hi Angel, you can let the meatballs simmer in the sauce in slow cooker. You would still need to prepare the meatballs according to the recipe though. They wouldn’t cook evenly in the slow cooker and you would end up with all of the grease in the sauce. And typically when I make meatballs about 1 pound of meat will make about 10 meatballs I want to say. But it all depends on how big you end up making them. I hope that helps you out 🙂
Angel says
Ahhh yes thank you!! I’ll make them your way and transfer into the slowcooker for the party tomorrow . 😘😘😘
Connie says
If I can’t have the bourbon should I still use the 1/2 cup of water? Can I follow all the directions except for using the bourbon? The meatball recipe with the bacon sounds great. Thanks
Serene says
Hi Connie 🙂 Definitely still add the water since it will thin out the sauce, which you will still want. And you can definitely just follow the directions and leave out the bourbon! Let me know how they turn out!
Josh says
Looks like I’m a little late to the party, but just wanted to comment on these meatballs. They are friggin delicious! I used 1/2 ground beef and 1/2 ground pork, because that’s what I had on hand.. My batch made 40 meatballs, I used my cookie scoop to make sure they were pretty much all the same size and I baked them at 375 for 20-25 minutes on a dark pan with a cooling rack on top so all the grease fell below, then simmered in the sauce for 10 minutes. Definitely putting this into the Christmas Appetizer file for this year. Thanks!!
Serene says
I’m so glad you enjoyed!! Thanks so much for sharing 🙂
Holly says
Yum! I made these tonight for dinner. With a side of mashed potatoes and carrots. Would be a fantastic appetizer. I used “Sweet Baby Rays Honey BBQ” , Maker’s Mark Bourbon. Definitely kept on my Pinterest food board!
Serene says
So glad you enjoyed Holly! Sounds like a wonderful meal 🙂
Dianna says
How long should they simmer in the crockpot? For my schedule- I was thinking of preparing & cooking the meatballs the night before, then putting them in the crockpot the next day with the sauce.
Serene says
Hi Dianna! I do this often too! I typically will simmer the meatballs in the sauce for at least an hour on low heat. Then just switch to keep them warm. Hope that helps! Let me know how they turn out 🙂
Tyson says
I’m going to be making these for a potluck and probably will double the recipe. What is the most recommended bbq sauce to use? Or what did you use Serene? Thanks in advance.
Serene says
Hi Tyson! You can use whichever BBQ sauce you enjoy! We typically have a KC Masterpiece Original or Sweet Baby Rays Original on hand in our house. But if there’s a certain one that you like over other BBQ sauces then feel free to use that. Let me know how they turn out 🙂
Sandra Roberts says
I don’t have a food processor. Is there a way to finely chop the bacon any other way?
Thanks,
Sandra
Serene says
If you don’t have a food processor or blender I would just finely chop it up as small as you can. It should still mix in with the beef just fine 🙂
Shawn says
Went all out with your recipe. Got a pound of unsliced cherry smoked bacon, and 2 pounds of eye of round. Ground them together course, then chopped my onion and ground all three together fine. Added seasonings, eggs, and bread crumbs, then browned in a pan before moving to the slow cooker with a homemade BBQ sauce and plenty of bourbon. Great idea!!
Serene says
Yes!! This is the perfect recipe to go all out on too. So glad you enjoyed 🙂
Jessica says
Could these meatballs be cooked the night before, frozen, then reheated in a crock pot on the sauce the next day? I’m thinking Thanksgiving appetizer for a work party but I just won’t have time to make them in the morning!
Serene says
Hi Jessica 🙂 You can absolutely make the meatballs the night before. I wouldn’t freeze them though, just store them in the refrigerator and reheat the next day in the crock pot with the sauce. They will be an amazing appetizer!
Maria says
The meatballs look delicious, I can’t wait to try them. Can the meatballs be frozen after they are cooked?
Serene says
Hi Maria! Yes, you can absolutely freeze the meatballs after they’re cooked. Then to reheat you can just add them to the sauce and let them simmer.
Paulette Gleason says
Hi , instead of frying the meatballs I would like to bake them in the oven how long do you think I would need to bake them.
Serene says
Hi Paulette, bake the meatballs at 400 for about 20 minutes and check to make sure they are cooked all the way 🙂
Casey says
I plan on making this for my nursing class this week, but we need the nutrition facts. Do any of y’all have them, if not I can add it up myself.. can’t wait to try these!!!
Serene says
Hi Casey! Unfortunately I don’t have the nutrition facts. I find that My Fitness Pal is a great place to input everything to get that information though 🙂 Let me know how they turn out!
Tiffany says
These meatballs were to die for! Made them for a Christmas party and my guests devoured them! Next time I might try adding more bourbon and less water to the sauce to get more of that flavor.
Serene says
So glad you enjoyed!! And you can definitely sub out some of the water for the bourbon, the water is just to help thin out the sauce without overloading with the bourbon 🙂
Denise says
I am just wondering with adding the bacon uncooked, is there fat chunks in the meatballs? Like in the center of the meatballs? This does sound delicous, but I don’t like fatty bacon. Do you think it would be ok to cook the bacon and then crumble up and then add to meatball mixture? Thanks for your ideas & can’t wait to read your response & thoughts 🙂
Serene says
Hi Denise! The bacon gets so ground up in the food processor that there’s no big chunks of bacon or bacon fat anywhere in the meatballs. If you were to cook the bacon before putting into the meatballs then the texture of the meatballs will be more chunky, instead of a consistent texture throughout. I wouldn’t recommend it.
Andrea S says
These were so much work. I think I overheated my food processor it was smoking I used 3lbs of ground beef and 2 pkgs of bacon. The bacon just turns to mush and some fat just does not break down, the onion didn’t really get processed very well. I cooked them in an iron skillet and refrigerated them overnight. Used 3cups famous Dave’s BBQ sauce and buffalo trace bourbon 6tbs. No water . Returned to skillet heated up the sauce and meatballs till warm and placed them I crackpot for the afternoon.
A lot of work but they were so good.
Serene says
Hi Andrea! First of all, I’m so happy you enjoyed the meatballs!! And I’m sorry about your food processor. You didn’t add the beef to the processor did you? If you were to make these again in a double batch I would maybe recommend doing one pack of bacon at a time in the processor so it doesn’t get mad at you again 🙂 Thanks so much for taking the time to comment! xox
Anine Gutubakken Byles says
I made these delicious meatballs for dinner tonight, and it was a winner. The whole family loved it. I served it with mash and vegetables. Next time I might make som honey glazed carrots. I think it will go well with chips and coleslaw as well. Thanks for sharing the recipe!
Serene says
So glad you enjoyed! All of those sides sound amazing also 🙂 making me hungry!
Karen says
Hi, these sound so delicious. I’d love to make them in advance for my husbands birthday party in September and would love to know if you have ever tried freezing them. I’m not going to have a lot of time close to the party so making them in advance would be my best option.
Audra says
These meatballs are absolutely amazing! I came across them on Pinterest,, and made them for a small family gathering, and they were gone in 20 minutes! I will definitely be making these again, I will just have to double the recipe next time! Normally I am not a huge fan of barbeque sauce, however with the bourbon and bacon meatballs it was perfect!! New favorite!
Serene says
So glad you enjoyed them!! xo
Shawn says
Made these little bite sized balls of Heaven using deer meat instead of ground beef. They were AMAZING! Thank you for sharing!
★★★★★
Serene says
Thanks so much for the review! Glad you enjoyed 🙂 I bet they were amazing with the deer meat!
Carmon says
Your style is unique in comparison to other people I’ve read stuff from.
Thanks for posting when you have thee opportunity, Guess I’ll just book mark this web
site.
★★★★★
Austen says
These were great! Perfect amount of kick. If you don’t have a food processor, I highly recommend being digilent about chopping up the onions/bacon coarsely. I got lazy and some pieces were a bit too big — which caused the meatballs to lose their shape and not look as great.
Will definitely add these to the list to make again!
★★★★★
Serene says
I’m so glad you enjoyed them Austen!
Danielle says
Just made these for our family Xmas today and they are fantastic. The flavor and texture is perfection. Thanks for the great recipe!
★★★★★
Ladie Merrell says
This recipe is amazing! I must say, I DID make some changes. Not because I didn’t like it as it was, but just because I think it is unlawful to make meatballs without garlic!😄 I added 4 cloves, and also subbed beef broth for the water, just because I always use broth in place of water.
★★★★★
Serene says
So happy you liked it! And seriously, I need to add garlic next time I make them now 🙂
Krystal says
These look great. I may use this recipe to enter into a local cook off. I wanted to know if you used regular or Italian seasoned breadcrumbs?
Serene says
HI Krystal! I used regular breadcrumbs in these. There’s plenty of flavor without the extra seasoning 🙂 Best of luck in the cook off!
JessB says
I’ve made these 3-4 times since the end of December…double batches each time. They are SO DAMN GOOD!
★★★★★
Emily says
I have made these before and they are amazing! Making them for the Super Bowl today! Do you know if this recipe can be doubled?
★★★★★
Serene says
Absolutely can be doubled!
Cynthia L Wood says
It would be perfect if I could print the recipe without the ads.
Serene says
Hi Cynthia. The ads don’t print, as long as you are using the buttons on the site no ads will print with the recipe. They show up on the page, but when it prints out they’re not there. To verify, I just printed this recipe out myself and there is no ads.
B says
My husband is a recovering alcoholic. Is there a substitute for bourbon? Thank you !!!!!!
Serene says
Just leave it out 🙂 They’ll still be delicious!
Dawn says
Are these kid friendly
Serene says
Yes! The alcohol cooks out. They’re perfectly safe for kids to eat.