These sweet and sour meatballs are homemade meatballs that are cooked in the crock pot with a two ingredient sauce. The perfect main course or party appetizer that always gets rave reviews!
You can never go wrong with meatballs, whether it’s a cheesy meatball bake, Mexican meatball soup, or these super easy cocktail style meatballs. I make these for every party and they’re always the first thing to disappear!
In my opinion, you can never have too many meatball recipes! These slow cooker sweet and sour meatballs couldn’t be any easier, and they’re one of my favorite snacks to serve at gatherings. These meatballs are also great served as a main course over rice pilaf or garlic mashed potatoes with a vegetable side.
Sweet And Sour Meatballs Ingredients
To make this recipe, you will need ground beef, eggs, breadcrumbs, onion, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, chili sauce, grape jelly and parsley.
How do you make sweet and sour meatballs?
Preheat the oven broiler, and line a sheet pan with foil. Place the beef, eggs, breadcrumbs, onion, salt, pepper and garlic powder in a large bowl, then stir to combine. Shape the meat into balls, and place them on the pan. Broil under the meatballs are golden brown. Melt the grape jelly in the microwave or in a pan on the stove. Whisk in the chili sauce. Place the meatballs in a slow cooker, and pour the sauce over the top. Cook on low heat, then add a sprinkle of parsley and serve.
Tips for sweet and sour meatballs
- Make sure to mince your onion finely so that there aren’t large chunks in the meatballs. Alternatively, you could grate the onion.
- You can make your meatballs as big or as small as you like. I typically go for meatballs that are about 1 inch in diameter.
- I typically make these meatballs with 90% lean ground beef, as it is flavorful but not overly greasy.
- In a hurry? You can use frozen pre-cooked meatballs instead of homemade meatballs, but I recommend going for the homemade meatballs.
Quick Tip
The meatballs can be cooked up to 2 days before you plan to make this recipe. You can also make a double batch of the meatballs and freeze some for later use.
Recipe FAQs
In this particular case, the sweet and sour sauce is made with grape jelly and chili sauce, which are whisked together then poured over the meatballs. If you’d rather use an Asian style sweet and sour sauce, you can use my homemade sweet and sour sauce recipe.
Chili sauce is a thick red condiment similar to ketchup but with a bit of a spicy kick. I typically use Heinz brand. These meatballs clock in on the mild side of the heat scale, because the sweetness of the jelly tempers the bit of heat from the chili sauce. If you’re adverse to any type of spice, you can substitute ketchup instead.
This recipe is a great candidate for the freezer! You can freeze your meatballs with or without the sauce, them warm them through either in the slow cooker or on the stove top. Your sauce may have a thinner consistency upon thawing, so if you’d like a thicker sauce, you can add a tablespoon of cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons of cold water to your pot, then simmer until thickened.
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Flavor Variations
This recipe is great as written, but you can easily customize some of the flavors to suit your taste.
- Meat: You can make the meatballs with ground turkey or ground chicken if you prefer not to use beef.
- Sauce: Swap out the grape jelly for apricot jam or cranberry sauce for a different flavor profile. You can also stir in a little brown sugar for a sweeter sauce.
- Toppings: Instead of fresh parsley, try topping your meatballs with sliced chives or green onions.
Once you try these easy meatballs, you’ll find yourself making them on a regular basis! No one will know how simple they are to make, but you’ll get plenty of compliments from family and friends.
More Appetizer Ideas
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Ham and Cheese Sliders
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Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms
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Buffalo Chicken Nuggets
30 mins
Love This Recipe?
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Sweet and Sour Meatballs
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef I use 90% lean
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup onion finely diced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 12 ounce bottle chili sauce
- 1 1/2 cups grape jelly
- 2 tablespoons parsley
- cooking spray
Instructions
- Preheat the broiler. Line a sheet pan with foil and coat the foil with cooking spray.
- Place the ground beef, eggs, breadcrumbs, onion, salt, pepper and garlic powder in a large bowl. Stir until thoroughly combined.
- Shape the meat mixture into 1 inch meatballs and place the meatballs on the prepared pan.
- Broil for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown.
- While the meatballs are cooking, prepare the sauce.
- Melt the grape jelly by microwaving it for 30 second increments or melting it in a saucepan over medium heat.
- After the jelly has melted, whisk in the chili sauce.
- Coat a slow cooker with cooking spray. Add the meatballs, then pour the sauce over the top. Toss to coat.
- Cook for 3 hours on low. Sprinkle with parsley, then serve.
Notes
- You can make your meatballs as big or as small as you like. I typically go for meatballs that are about 1 inch in diameter.
- I typically make these meatballs with 90% lean ground beef, as it is flavorful but not overly greasy.
This recipe sounds great. What would you suggest pairing it with for dinner?
I’d serve the meatballs over rice or mashed potatoes with a green veggie on the side like broccoli or green beans!
I am a vegetarian and I try to replace meatballs with soya chunks or some tofu. I am sure they will go well with your lovely recipe 🙂
yummmy! This recipe looks so delicious. I love meatball , definitely I’m going to try this.
these sound like a good alternative! my husband loves sweet and sour anything
They look so good! I’ll be making these next week 100%
My kids would absolutely love these. This would disappear in no time at our house! This is my kind of weekend treat.
These look so savory, I simply must!!!
Those meatballs look yummy. Def. going to try this recipe.
We haven’t made meatballs in quite some time and these look delicious. It’s nice to make a big batch and freeze them so they are ready to go anytime.
Girl i just love your blog I stop in for some daily dinner inspo all the time next up sweet n sour meatballs
Something different and good to try today. I always learn new recipes wherever I read posts here. Thanks.
i just so happens to have all of these ingredients in my fridge so i think i’ll make it for tonight! thank you ❤️❤️
Looks wonderful, instead of baking the meatballs do you think they could go in the crock pot? Thanks
They can go in the crock pot!
These look and sound delicious, will have to give them a try
Slow Cooker are my favorite recipes. Sweet and sour is a stricking combo for a big dish. I like meatballs in general so I totally don’t mind making your dish at home. Saving for later!
Sounds so yummy. thanks for sharing would love to try out
I don’t eat meat anymore but I know that my husband would love these. I’ll have to make them for him soon.
Hmmmm yum! This sweet and sour meatballs looks soooo delicious! Can’t wait to try this.
OMG These look amazing!!!! I have a twist I take on Meatballs but these look soooo good, I will try this next time! THanks for sharing!!!!
Yum these sound like a delicious alternative to traditional meatballs! I will certainly have to give them a go!