Easy Sweet Sour Crock Pot Meatballs (Printable)

Delicious frozen meatballs infused with a tangy-sweet fruit preserve sauce. Perfect for an easy appetizer or satisfying meal.

# What You 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 tbsp soy sauce
06 - 1/4 cup light brown sugar
07 - 1 tbsp Dijon mustard (optional)
08 - 1/2 tsp garlic powder
09 - 1/2 tsp ground ginger
10 - 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

# How To Make It:

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

# Expert Tips:

01 -
  • The sauce strikes that perfect balance between tangy and sweet that keeps people coming back for just one more
  • You can dump everything in the slow cooker and walk away, which is exactly the kind of magic I need on busy days
02 -
  • I once tried doubling the recipe in a regular-sized slow cooker and ended up with sauce bubbling over onto my counter—stick to the recommended amount or use a larger slow cooker
  • The sauce thickens considerably as it cooks, so don't panic if it seems too thin when you first pour it over the meatballs
03 -
  • Spray your slow cooker insert with cooking spray before adding the meatballs—the sauce is sticky and this saves you from serious scrubbing later
  • If you're serving these at a party, consider setting out a small bowl of extra sauce for dipping, because people will want it
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