Sweet and Sour Crock Pot Meatballs (Print Version)

Frozen meatballs in tangy-sweet peach preserve sauce. Effortless slow cooker appetizer or main dish for any occasion.

# What You'll Need:

→ Meatballs

01 - 2 lbs frozen fully-cooked meatballs

→ Sweet and Sour Sauce

02 - 1 cup peach or apricot preserves
03 - 1/2 cup ketchup
04 - 1/4 cup rice vinegar or apple cider vinegar
05 - 2 tablespoons soy sauce
06 - 1/4 cup light brown sugar
07 - 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, optional
08 - 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
09 - 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
10 - 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, optional

# Directions:

01 - Place frozen meatballs into the slow cooker bowl.
02 - In a mixing bowl, whisk together peach or apricot preserves, ketchup, vinegar, soy sauce, brown sugar, Dijon mustard if using, garlic powder, ginger, and red pepper flakes until smooth.
03 - Pour sauce over meatballs and stir gently to coat all meatballs evenly.
04 - Cover and cook on LOW for 3 to 4 hours until meatballs are heated through and sauce is bubbling. Stir once or twice during cooking if possible.
05 - Transfer to serving dish. Serve hot as an appetizer with toothpicks or over rice as a main dish.

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • Five minutes of prep means you can start this right before guests arrive and look like a culinary genius.
  • The sweet-tangy sauce clings to every meatball and tastes like you spent hours reducing it on the stove.
02 -
  • Stir at least once during cooking or the meatballs on the bottom can stick and the sauce won't coat evenly.
  • If the sauce looks too thick after a few hours, add a splash of water or pineapple juice to loosen it up.
03 -
  • Use a liner in your slow cooker for the easiest cleanup, the sticky sauce can be stubborn otherwise.
  • Taste the sauce before pouring it over the meatballs and adjust the vinegar or sugar to your preference, every brand of preserves is a little different.
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