By Grocery List Plus Editorial Staff | Published on June 12, 2026
Serves 36
47 cal · 60 min
Sweet and Spicy Bacon Wrapped Meatballs
Recipe GLPR01a863851e4181
Tender meatballs wrapped in crispy bacon and coated with a sweet and savory blend of brown sugar and chili powder. These crowd-pleasing appetizers bake until the bacon is golden and caramelized, creating an irresistible combination of flavors and textures. Perfect for parties, game day, or entertaining.
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Ingredients
1 pound bacon, cut into 36 half-slices
36 fully cooked Italian-style meatballs, thawed
1 cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons chili powder
Nonstick cooking spray
Directions
Preheat your oven to 350°F.
In a small bowl, whisk together the brown sugar and chili powder until well combined. Set aside.
Lightly spray a broiler pan with nonstick cooking spray.
Wrap each thawed meatball with a half-slice of bacon, slightly overlapping the bacon ends. Secure each meatball with a toothpick inserted through the bacon to hold it in place.
Working in batches, dredge the bacon-wrapped meatballs in the brown sugar and chili powder mixture, pressing gently so the coating adheres well on all sides.
Arrange the coated meatballs in a single layer on the prepared broiler pan.
Bake at 350°F for 40–45 minutes, until the bacon is crispy and the coating is caramelized. Serve warm.
Comments
This is a workable weeknight recipe with ingredients stocked at every Charlotte chain—bacon, ground meat, brown sugar, and chili powder are all standard, making it practical and accessible. At roughly 30 to 40 cents per meatball, it's genuinely affordable, though the cost per serving improves only if you're actually feeding a crowd; for a smaller family it lands less favorably. The stated 60 minutes is honest only if your meatballs come premade; rolling 36 from scratch adds 15 to 20 minutes, and bacon-wrapping another 10. The recipe reheats well on a sheet pan in a low oven, so leftovers are reliable, but it demands active hands during assembly and isn't a set-it-and-forget-it dish.
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