Easy Slow Cooker Grape Jelly Meatballs Recipe

Easy Grape Jelly Meatballs are made with grape jelly, chili sauce and ground beef. I discovered just how easy and delicious they are to make in the slow cooker, almost as easy as using frozen meatballs, but a lot tastier!

We love ground beef recipes for the slow cooker and know you’ll be excited to try these 20 Ground Beef Slow Cooker Recipes.  We also have an amazing list of Instant Pot Ground Beef recipes you may want to try.  

Easy Slow Cooker Grape Jelly Meatballs Recipe

Should I Brown slow cooker meatballs before putting in slow cooker?

Yes, we do recommend browning the meatballs before placing them in the slow cooker.  This gives them a chance to cook some of the grease out, so they’re not cooking in extra grease and adding grease to the sauce.  Other options could be:

1. Boil in a little bit of beef broth and eliminate the grease in that way.
2. Use low fat meat and don’t worry about browning ahead of time.
3. Only lightly brown them in the skillet, knowing that they will continue cooking in the slow cooker.

How long can you leave meatballs in a crockpot?

This recipe recommends cooking them in the slow cooker for 6-8 hours on low, however you can leave them in longer on the “Keep Warm” setting of your crockpot.

Can I substitute frozen meatballs for these homemade meatballs?

Yes, as I know sometimes time is a problem, when it comes to making homemade meatballs, you can switch them out for frozen meatballs if you prefer.  In order to do this, just mix up the sauce as directed in the recipe and cook the frozen meatballs in that sauce.

WANT MORE EASY SLOW COOKER RECIPES?

•    Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos
•    Easy Crock Pot Mexican Casserole
•    Slow Cooker Pot Roast
•    Slow Cooker Lemon Pepper Turkey Breast

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Easy Slow Cooker Grape Jelly Meatballs Recipe

Easy Grape Jelly Meatballs are made with grape jelly, chili sauce and ground beef. I discovered just how easy and delicious they are to make in the slow cooker, almost as easy as using frozen meatballs, but a lot tastier!  

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 6 hours

Servings 6

Author Sarah Robinson

Ingredients

• 2 pounds ground beef
• 1 egg
• 1 onion chopped
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 12 oz bottle chili sauce (found in condiment aisle near ketchup)
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• 1 cup grape jelly

Instructions

• In large bowl, combine beef, egg, onion and salt.
• Mix together and shape into balls.
• Cook for 10-15 minutes in a skillet so that you can get some grease out of them.  They can finish cooking in the slow cooker.
• In crockpot, combine chili sauce, lemon juice and grape jelly.
• Stir in meatballs and cook on high for 4 to 5 hours or on low for 6-8 hours.

Freezer to Slow Cooker Instructions:

• In large bowl, combine beef, egg, onion and salt.
• Mix together and shape into balls.
• Cook for 10-15 minutes in a skillet so that you can get some grease out of them.  They can finish cooking in the slow cooker.
• Place in a gallon size freezer safe bag.
• Mix together chili sauce, grape jelly and lemon juice.
• Pour over the meatballs in the bag.
• Label and lay flat to freeze.
• Remove from the freezer the night before you plan to cook them.
• Follow cooking instructions on above recipe.

Notes

For your weekly Freezer to Slow Cooker meal plan, I invite you to subscribe to our Freezer to Slow Cooker Meal Plan Subscription.  We have both regular and low carb versions!

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