Slow Cooker Cocktail Meatballs are delightful. I have to admit to loving meatballs. Not the yucky kind that are pre-made and taste like dirt! No, good, homemade meatballs with tasty ingredients. Of course, it helps if they are smothered in a delicious sauce too, or served with spaghetti. Give me more meatballs! Turkey, chicken or beef (even venison)–just give me meatballs! 🙂

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We had a houseful of people over to our house last Sunday after church. We had a special speaker that day so we invited his family and several other families from our church over for a casual finger food luncheon afterwards. I served some of my favorite things, 🙂 Easy Turkey and Cheese Tortilla Roll Ups, Veggie Tortilla Roll Ups, Chunky Blond Brownies, Blarney Stones and several other appetizers I’ve yet to post up including this one.

I first tried this recipe at a class Sunday school party about six or seven years ago. The gal who made it told me all she used was grape jelly, ketchup and frozen meatballs. It was so delicious I had her email me the recipe. I decided to make up my own meatballs so they would be fresh and not frozen or filled with junk. I went ahead and made up the meatballs and sauce a day before I needed it. I though, ok, I’m good this is great, I’ll have everything done in advance.

Hmmmmmm….I tasted the sauce and it was not like what I remembered. Perhaps because Dorthea used a cheap ketchup it wasn’t as overpowering. Or maybe because she cooked her meatballs in the sauce all day long and some of those flavors permeated the sauce better. Whatever, this one was way too ketchupy for my taste. I didn’t like it. I pondered over what I was going to do for several hours.

Finally, after checking on Pinterest to see similar recipes I found it was made only two ways and never with ketchup. It was grape jelly with Sweet Baby Rays BBQ sauce or grape jelly with chili sauce. So I asked my husband to run to the store for me and get Sweet Baby Rays and another jar of grape jelly and decided to start over. I poured out the old sauce and started fresh with the new ingredients on the day of the party. Thankfully, when I got home from church and tasted the sauce, it was wonderful.

I hope this will encourage those of you who try new recipes and they don’t always turned out like you hoped they would. Sometimes a little tinkering is all they need to be perfect for your family and friends.

So if you’re looking for a tasty cocktail meatball recipe this is a good one. If you do use frozen meatballs, you’d better be careful to get a lean meat, otherwise a lot of grease will be added to the sauce. I used a 93 or 96% lean beef, and because I baked them there wasn’t much grease when I added them to the crockpot. You can also add these to the crockpot if you start first thing in the morning and not bother pre-baking the meatballs. Just make sure you use lean beef unless you want a greasy sauce!

Slow Cooker Cocktail Meatballs made with Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ Sauce are amazing.

Everyone, even the kids, loved these meatballs.

Slow Cooker Cocktail Meatballs are incredibly easy. You can make these even easier if you use frozen meatballs. Put everything in the crockpot before you go to work and when you come home they’re ready to eat!

Here’s what I did.

I used these ingredients. I swapped out the Ketchup for Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ Sauce.

To make meatballs: Place lean 93% or 96% ground beef or sirloin in a mixing bowl. Add seasoned bread crumbs, an egg, salt, pepper, basil and oregano.

Mix ingredients with your hands and fingers until thoroughly mixed.

Roll meatball mixture into balls and place on cookie sheets that have been sprayed with cooking spray.

Bake at 350 for about 20-30 minutes or until meatballs are browned. (Or you can add the meatballs to the sauce if you plan to cook it all day in the crockpot).

The sauce has only these two ingredients.

Place BBQ sauce and grape jelly in crockpot. Stir well to combine.

Add cooked meatballs and cook a few hours on high until ingredients are hot. Or you can add raw meatballs and cook the whole thing in the crockpot about 8-10 hours on low until hot. Stir well before serving.

Once sauce is heated thoroughly and meatballs are cooked, you can serve straight from the crockpot. I used tongs to hold a meatball in one hand, and placed a toothpick in the other, so everyone could pick them up more easily.

This is also a great main dish meal if you want to serve the meatballs over cooked rice.

These meatballs are loaded with flavor.

If you’re looking for a terrific appetizer for tailgating, New Year’s Eve or Super Bowl parties, this is it! 🙂

Here’s the recipe.

SLOW COOKER COCKTAIL MEATBALLS

(Recipe adapted from Dorthea Herndon, when we attended Hillcrest Baptist Church, Cedar Hill, TX)

Slow Cooker Cocktail Meatballs

Teresa Ambra

This amazing appetizer is a wonderful hot dish for tailgating or Super Bowl parties, but it's also great as a main dish served over rice! This one uses Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce and grape jelly for the sauce! It is so mouthwatering everyone is sure to want seconds.

No ratings yet

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 35 minutes mins

Cook Time 5 hours hrs

Total Time 5 hours hrs 35 minutes mins

Course Appetizer

Cuisine American

Servings 12

Calories 304 kcal

Equipment

• 1 crockpot
• 1 18x26" cookie sheet pan
• measuring cups & spoons if making homemade meatballs
• 1 mixing bowl if making homemade meatballs
• 1 wooden spoon
• toothpicks to serve the meatballs with
• 1 sharp knife to cut vegetables (if making homemade meatballs)

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

COCKTAIL MEATBALLS:

• 32 oz. bag frozen meatballs or make up about 2 lbs. of meatballs from recipe below
• 16 oz. jar Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ Sauce
• 16 oz. jar Bama grape jelly

HOMEMADE MEATBALLS:

• 2 lbs. lean ground sirloin
• 1 cup 4C Seasoned bread crumbs
• 1 large egg
• 1/3 cup diced onion
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1 tsp. dried basil
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 1 tsp. dried parsley

Instructions

 

COCKTAIL MEATBALLS:

• Mix together meatballs and place on sprayed cookie sheets.
• Bake at 350° for about 20-30 minutes.
• Spray crock pot with cooking spray.
• While meatballs are baking, pour barbecue sauce and grape jelly into crock pot and stir well.
• Add meatballs and heat through for a few hours on low.
• Continue stirring occasionally to get lumps out of jelly and make a smooth sauce.
• These are delicious served as appetizers or as a main dish with noodles or rice.

HOMEMADE MEATBALLS:

• Combine ingredients really well with your hands.
• Shape into meatballs.
• Spray cookie sheets with cooking spray.
• Bake meatballs at 350° for about 20-30 minutes.
• Add to crockpot with jelly/BBQ sauce mixture.
• Continue cooking on low until meatballs absorb the flavors from the sauce—about 3-4 hours.

Notes

NOTE: You can also add raw meatballs to the sauce and cook on low for 8-10 hours.

 

NOTE: Be sure you use a high quality lean ground beef 93% or 96% lean or you will have a greasy sauce!

 

^© Can’t Stay Out of the Kitchen

Nutrition

Calories: 304kcalCarbohydrates: 59gProtein: 8gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.4gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0.3gCholesterol: 43mgSodium: 771mgPotassium: 141mgFiber: 0.3gSugar: 53gCalcium: 30mgIron: 0.9mg

Keyword appetizer, barbecue, crockpot, meatballs, Slow Cooker

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Slow Cooker Cocktail Meatballs are great for #SuperBowl fare or #tailgating parties!

This easy recipe is fantastic to make for parties when you don’t want to spend all day working on an appetizer!

Don’t Slow Cooker Cocktail Meatballs look terrific?

You may also enjoy these delicious recipes!

Spicy Honey Hot Wings

Bacon Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes

Jalapeno Cheddar Roll Ups

Slow Cooker Cocktail Meatballs

Teresa Ambra

This amazing appetizer is a wonderful hot dish for tailgating or Super Bowl parties, but it's also great as a main dish served over rice! This one uses Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce and grape jelly for the sauce! It is so mouthwatering everyone is sure to want seconds.

No ratings yet

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 35 minutes mins

Cook Time 5 hours hrs

Total Time 5 hours hrs 35 minutes mins

Course Appetizer

Cuisine American

Servings 12

Calories 304 kcal

Equipment

• 1 crockpot
• 1 18×26" cookie sheet pan
• measuring cups & spoons if making homemade meatballs
• 1 mixing bowl if making homemade meatballs
• 1 wooden spoon
• toothpicks to serve the meatballs with
• 1 sharp knife to cut vegetables (if making homemade meatballs)

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

COCKTAIL MEATBALLS:

• 32 oz. bag frozen meatballs or make up about 2 lbs. of meatballs from recipe below
• 16 oz. jar Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ Sauce
• 16 oz. jar Bama grape jelly

HOMEMADE MEATBALLS:

• 2 lbs. lean ground sirloin
• 1 cup 4C Seasoned bread crumbs
• 1 large egg
• 1/3 cup diced onion
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. ground black pepper
• 1 tsp. dried basil
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• 1 tsp. dried parsley

Instructions

 

COCKTAIL MEATBALLS:

• Mix together meatballs and place on sprayed cookie sheets.
• Bake at 350° for about 20-30 minutes.
• Spray crock pot with cooking spray.
• While meatballs are baking, pour barbecue sauce and grape jelly into crock pot and stir well.
• Add meatballs and heat through for a few hours on low.
• Continue stirring occasionally to get lumps out of jelly and make a smooth sauce.
• These are delicious served as appetizers or as a main dish with noodles or rice.

HOMEMADE MEATBALLS:

• Combine ingredients really well with your hands.
• Shape into meatballs.
• Spray cookie sheets with cooking spray.
• Bake meatballs at 350° for about 20-30 minutes.
• Add to crockpot with jelly/BBQ sauce mixture.
• Continue cooking on low until meatballs absorb the flavors from the sauce—about 3-4 hours.

Notes

NOTE: You can also add raw meatballs to the sauce and cook on low for 8-10 hours.

 

NOTE: Be sure you use a high quality lean ground beef 93% or 96% lean or you will have a greasy sauce!

 

^© Can’t Stay Out of the Kitchen

Nutrition

Calories: 304kcalCarbohydrates: 59gProtein: 8gFat: 6gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.4gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0.3gCholesterol: 43mgSodium: 771mgPotassium: 141mgFiber: 0.3gSugar: 53gCalcium: 30mgIron: 0.9mg

Keyword appetizer, barbecue, crockpot, meatballs, Slow Cooker

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!