These grape jelly meatballs are tossed in the slow cooker for a few hours and then make a perfect snack or appetizer for game day! Meatballs with grape jelly and chili sauce might sound a little crazy, but the sauce transforms into something amazing while it cooks!
I’m getting a bit of a complex here, guys.
Every time I go shopping with my daughter she ends up shouting that I can’t possibly be a girl because I don’t like sparkles and glitter and bling and neon colored pictures of cats wearing sunglasses adorning my clothes.
Which, let’s be real for a minute, if that’s the measuring stick of girl vs. boy, I’m fine being a boy. Cats on clothes will never be my thing. Ever.
But, every time she loudly proclaims, “You’re not even a REAL girl, Mom!” I get a little uncomfortable and wonder what the other shoppers think. I promise, guys. I am a lady.
Grape Jelly Meatballs are the perfect appetizer or snack for your next party!
Anyway, this really has very little do with meatballs other than the fact that I feel like meatballs are a manly food.
You don’t see a lot of dainty little girls grubbin’ on a meatball sandwich, with melty cheese all up in their hair, and marinara sauce down the front of their shirt.
I can’t help it though. Maybe my daughter is right.
Not only do I freakin’ love a good meatball recipe, I am thoroughly obsessed with meatloaf.
My cheeseburger meatloaf is one of the most made recipes in my repertoire. Bacon, cheese, beef. Yep. Manly.
So, this year I was thinking about New Year’s Eve and football food and I knew that we needed some crockpot meatballs to go alongside the pizza rolls. With grape jelly and chili sauce.
You might think meatballs with grape jelly sounds weird, and your’e not wrong, but if you’ve never tried these I implore you to give them a shot.
The jelly and chili sauce do something magical when slow cooked with the beef and the resulting sauce is a perfectly sweetened barbecue sauce with just the right kick. I use this Heinz chili sauce (affiliate link) and you can usually find it near the ketchup and other condiments.
Meatballs with grape jelly are sweet saucy perfection!
I can eat my weight in grape jelly meatballs and I don’t want to tell you how much I weigh, so I’ll just say that’s a lotta dang meatballs.
Best of all, these are made in the slow cooker, which means they’re super simple to throw together and you basically dump things in and then walk away.
I use my Ninja slow cooker for this recipe. I have quite a few slow coookers, but the Ninja is my favorite – nothing sticks to it, it cooks evenly, and I love the timer on it. It has tons of 5 star Amazon reviews too. You can buy one here. <– This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.
I know meatballs with jelly sounds a little out there, but I hope you give this a try! So good!
Grape Jelly Meatballs
Ingredients
- 2 pounds frozen meatballs
- 12 ounces chili sauce
- 1 1/2 cups grape jelly
Instructions
- Add the chili sauce and grape jelly to a slow cooker. Stir to combine.
- Add the meatballs and stir to coat.
- Cover and cook on low for 4 hours. Serve as an appetizer or over rice as a main dish.
Nutrition Information:
More savory recipes? No problem.
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Debra says
I have been making these for years, serve them over egg noodles as a main course.
I make the meatballs from scratch with onions, garlic and parsley in them. Really good and rarely any leftovers.
Karly says
Oh, love the idea of serving them as a main dish!
Kim says
Do you bake the meatballs that you made homemade before putting them in the crockpot?
Maggie says
I made these for an appetizer for Thanksgiving as I was looking for something to use in a crock-pot that would hold up to a 30 minute drive. These were perfect!! They were the first appetizer to run out! Delicious and definitely plan on making again! I found ‘party size’ frozen meatballs at Trader Joes and they worked great. Next time I will double the recipe as they go fast…figure about 5 a person! Thanks for the delicious idea!!
Karly says
So glad they were a hit! 🙂
jolene says
what exactly is chili sauce? :-/
Karly says
You can find it near the ketchup at the grocery store usually. I buy the Heinz brand. It’s basically just a tangy sauce made from tomatoes and chili peppers.
Kimberly Taylor says
I’m making some right now! Taking them to a friends tonight. I heated my chili sauce and grape jelly up before adding to the crockpot though. Hopefully they’ll turn out good.
Diane says
My son-in-law makes these for all special occasions. I don’t know what spices to use. Can someone tell me what to use. I think some chili powder and cayenne (pinch).
Karly says
I don’t add any spices to them. Just follow the recipe and adjust to your taste, if desired. 🙂
Jessica says
What kind of meatballs? Sweedish? beef?
Karly says
I just use regular frozen beef meatballs.
Cindy Frost says
Can you use a sugar-free or reduced sugar jelly and get the same results?
Karly says
I would think so! Taste will be a little different, of course, but the sauce should behave just the same.
Carol Sieders says
Why didn’t my sauce thicken? It was runny.
Karly says
It just basically turns into a sticky barbecue sauce. It doesn’t get real thick.
Laura M says
This recipe has been around long enough to be a classic! If you like these, you’ll love this variation. Slightly less sweet but as easy. Melt a jar of apple jelly, then stir in the small bottle of Heinz hot ketchup.
Tish says
Hi Karly. Question, how would i incorporate pineapples with this? Your recipensounds delicious btw. But i wanna add pineapple. Would i add some juice, no juice. Help.. TIA
Karly says
Hi Tish! Pineapple sounds like a yummy addition! I think you could add some juice for a bit of that flavor, though it might get a bit lost with the other ingredients. Another option might be to replace 1/4 of the grape jelly with crushed pineapple if you don’t mind the added texture. I think either option would work but you’ll have to experiment and see how it goes. 🙂
Megan says
you are absolutely hilarious I laughed SO hard! This is so true with me too! I do not get the cat obsession… 🙂 These look quick and delicious!!
Sarah @ Savoring Spoon says
Just a quick clarification! Which brand of chili sauce and which brand of frozen meatballs did you use? 🙂 I want to get it as close to the original as possible.
Karly says
I use Heinz chili sauce and Casa meatballs. 🙂 Hope you love these!
Sarah @ SavoringSpoon says
Thanks for letting me know! I’ll be on the lookout for these when I’m at the grocery store!
Diane says
What if I can’t find Heinz chili sauce What is the closest and in what aisle. International ?
Karly says
Chili sauce is located near the ketchup, usually up on the top shelf near the cocktail sauce.
Sarah @ Savoring Spoon says
These look so shiny and tasty! My family is having friends over for Christmas dinner this year, and these look like the perfect little appetizers to serve 🙂 I like how they are simple and make-ahead so I can still enjoy most of the day without stressing out about making food early on! Pinned 🙂
Mirta Porley says
I’ll have to try to prepare as they look delicious
Karly says
Enjoy!
Karly says
Thank you!
Simple Green Moms says
Grape Jelly Meatballs bring me back to my childhood holidays and the super yummy appetizer section that I basically filled my entire plate with at family gatherings. Love these! YUM!!
Karly says
Yes! The appetizers are the best, right?
David says
My wife uses Heinz Chilly sauce really adds a great tang to the meatballs !
Karly says
Same here! Love that stuff!
Carol at Wild Goose Tea says
I have had these before. It is AMAZING how good they are and how popular.
Rebecca Horner says
Love the new format!
Cindy says
I just wanted to say I like your format change, and these meatballs are the bomb! Thanks! ????
Karly says
Thank you!
Amanda says
I absolutely love these! We don’t make them often so when I do get to eat them, they are extra special.
LINDA PAYNE says
I’ve made these for years, and I remember when I got the recipe, I thought the lady was joking when she gave me the ingredients, but they are amazing and so simple!
Karly says
Right? So good, but kinda freaky. Haha! 🙂
Sandra says
Hi there, your recipe calls for grape ‘jelly’. I am in Australia. Would your jelly be what we call jam? Many thanks ?
Karly says
Yep, grape jam would work just as well!
Tara says
I love these meatballs! We serve appetizers for dinner on Christmas Eve and these have made the cut this year.
Karly says
Yay! They’re so good! 🙂
Tara says
3 Year’s later & they’re a must have for our Christmas party every year!! I pulled up the recipe for the ingredients and saw my comment from 2014. Thanks again!
Karly says
That’s so awesome, Tara! 🙂