BBQ Meatballs are the easiest ever, portable game day snack!
Just a few simple ingredients, and bare minimum work on you’re part and you’ve got yourself a sweet and savory slow cooker meatball recipe that your friends will love!
BBQ Meatballs Crockpot Recipe
I feel like it’s just not game day without a crockpot full of meatballs! In my family we love to make a bunch of delicious appetizers to enjoy while we watch football every Sunday. In truth, I’m not a huge football fan. I’m kind of just there for the food!
We had a friend who would often bring BBQ Meatballs with Grape Jelly. And while they were super tasty, I was just dying to make my own BBQ meatballs recipe that was a little different than the those. I knew I wanted a seriously easy recipe that didn’t take up too much time. I also wanted then to be super addictive and the kind of snack you’d happily chow down on along with the rest of your game day spread.
I had a few prerequisites for my BBQ Meatballs recipe:
- They should be made in a slow cooker- I love that the crockpot allows us to “set it and forget it” and that it’s also super portable. I’m sure you can easily work out how to make BBQ Meatballs on the stove as well. But I made these with every intention of using a crockpot.
- They should include minimal ingredients- I want to be able to to throw a few things into the crockpot with less than 10 minutes prep and then not have to touch it until it’s time to eat. I also gave a tasty substitution option for one ingredient that isn’t super uncommon, but that perhaps everyone might not have on hand.
- You shouldn’t have to spend your time rolling ground meat into meatballs- Look, I love homemade meatballs (check out my Grandma’s real-deal Italian meatballs!) but The last thing I want to be doing on a Sunday morning is rolling ground beef into homemade meatballs; that’s too much work. So buy frozen, pre-made meatballs! I promise this will still taste great.
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Ingredients
- 2 cups tomato ketchup
- 2 Tablespoons liquid smoke (you can also substitute soy sauce for a less smoky flavor)
- 1 1/2 cups brown sugar
- 1/2 cup onion, minced
- 1 24 ounce package pre-made frozen meatballs
Instructions
In the bowl of the slow cooker, whisk together the ketchup, liquid smoke (or soy sauce) and brown sugar until well combined.
Stir in onions and meatballs until evenly coated.
Cover the slow cooker and set to high.
Cook for 2 hours until hot and bubbly.
Set the slow cooker to warm and serve hot.
Some of my other favorite breakfast recipes include:
Jessy is the gal behind The Life Jolie blog, where you’ll find simple family recipes and anecdotes about parenting and travel. she and her husband Justin also own Morninglory Digital Media which specializes in food video. Jessy is the mother to little two girls and a dog and resides in Rochester, NY.
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