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Crock Pot Cranberry Meatballs are an easy recipe, a crowd favorite, and the perfect appetizer for the holiday season – with frozen meatballs, bottle of chili sauce, and jellied cranberry sauce. Store-bought meatballs cook in a spicy cranberry sauce that’s sweet, tart, and mildly spicy.
If you want more recipes for cocktail meatballs (aka – party meatballs) then try these Crockpot Grape Jelly Meatballs and Slow Cooker Asian Sesame Meatballs.
Slow Cooker Cranberry Meatballs (Cranberry Sauce Meatballs)
Cranberry meatballs are an easy appetizer for a holiday party, New Year’s Eve party, game day, or anytime you need finger foods or a crowd pleasing party food!
These tasty meatballs cook in the crock pot with a can of cranberry sauce that provides a little tang in the sweet and lightly spicy sauce. It’s a perfect blend of tart & sweet flavor with the addition of the mildly spicy jar of chili sauce.
3-Ingredient Cranberry Meatballs (Simple Ingredients Needed)
- Frozen Meatballs : These are the pre-cooked meatballs that you buy at the grocery store. I recommend using homestyle or regular beef meatballs in this recipe. The Italian style meatballs will not pair well with the flavors in these cranberry meatballs recipe. You could also use turkey meatballs with good results.
- Canned Jellied Cranberry Sauce : This is the cranberry sauce that comes in the can. You want the jellied sauce and not the whole cranberry sauce.
- Chili Sauce : I highly recommend using the name-brand chili sauce (Hienz brand) for the best flavor. There are a few things that I won’t buy store-brand, and chili sauce is one of them surprisingly. The Heinz brand tastes so much better!
How To Make Crockpot Cranberry Meatballs
Add the jellied cranberry sauce and chili sauce into the slow cooker. Stir until it’s well combined and mixed.
Add in the frozen meatballs and stir until they’re well coated in the cranberry sauce.
Cover and cook on LOW heat for 3-4 hours.
How Should I Store Leftover Cranberry Meatballs?
Any leftover meatballs should be stored in an airtight container, in the fridge, for up to 1 week. To reheat, place them in the microwave for 60 seconds at a time until thoroughly warm, or you can use a saucepan to heat them on the stove top. Add a splash of water or broth if the sauce becomes too thick when reheating.
Recipe FAQ’s
Can I Use A Pressure Cooker To Speed Up The Process?
I don’t recommend using the Instant Pot to make these cranberry jellied meatballs. The sauce will become too runny and separate, which won’t allow the meatballs to get a good sticky glaze of all the flavor from the cranberry sauce and chili sauce.
Are These An Appetizer or a Main Dish?
They can be both! That’s the fantastic thing about this recipe. Serve them as a main dish at dinner time – either one rice, as is, alongside some roasted veggies, or make meatball subs with them. They also make a great finger food & delicious appetizer, served with some toothpicks for easy eating, at holiday parties or gatherings.
Can I Make Them Sweeter?
Yes, if you want a sweeter cocktail meatballs (similar to the grape jelly meatballs) you can add some light brown sugar in with the chili sauce and cranberry sauce. When using sugar, I actually like to heat up the sauce ingredients on the stove top before pouring it into the slow cooker over top the meatballs. That way, the sugar breaks down over the stove top heat and creates a smooth and melted sauce. Start with 1/4 cup brown sugar and add more as needed/wanted.
More Crockpot Meatballs Recipes You’ll Love
- Easy Swedish Meatballs
- Slow Cooker Salisbury Steak Meatballs
- Crockpot Meatball Stroganoff
- Slow Cooker Cheesy Enchilada Meatballs
- Crockpot Sweet and Sour Meatballs
Cranberry Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 can (14 oz) jellied cranberry sauce
- 1 bottle (12 oz) chili sauce
- 1 bag (32 oz) frozen homestyle meatballs
Instructions
- Add the jellied cranberry sauce and chili sauce into the slow cooker. Stir until it's well combined and mixed.
- Add in the frozen meatballs and stir until they're well coated in the cranberry sauce.
- Cover and cook on LOW heat for 3-4 hours.
Nutrition
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