Slow Cooker Cranberry Meatballs

These slow cooker cranberry meatballs are homemade beef meatballs baked in the oven, then tossed in a sweet and spicy sauce made with cranberry sauce and Huy Fong chili garlic sauce. They stay warm in the slow cooker, and they disappear fast at any holiday party or game day gathering.

I’ve been making my homemade cranberry sauce every Thanksgiving since I was a kid, and I always triple the recipe so there’s extra for things like this. Sweet-tart cranberries plus garlicky chili heat is a combination you don’t get from a bag of frozen meatballs and a can of jellied sauce.

Confession time. When I first shared this recipe back in 2014, I called them Schweddy Balls. That SNL skit was my favorite at the time, and we thought we were hilarious. I made them to be funny, but they also taste really good, so they’ve finally earned a grown-up name.

Want to save this recipe?

Enter your email below and I’ll send it straight to your inbox. Plus you’ll get great recipe ideas from me every week!

Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.

Email *

Title Permalink Post

Save Recipe

Why You’ll Love These Cranberry Meatballs

• Homemade meatballs, not a frozen bag. Ground beef, fresh parsley and onion, shaped by hand and baked until browned.
• Sweet heat. Chili garlic sauce gives the cranberry a kick that most cranberry meatballs don’t have.
• Make-ahead friendly. The meatballs can be baked days before the party.
• No babysitting. Once they’re in the slow cooker, they just sit there looking pretty until someone grabs a toothpick.

What You’ll Need

• Ground beef: I use grass-fed when it’s available.
• Egg and bread crumbs: they hold the meatballs together.
• Fresh parsley: minced. It adds color and a fresh flavor to every bite.
• Onion: one very small onion, or half of a large one, minced fine so the meatballs hold their shape.
• Cranberry sauce: homemade or canned whole berry (more on that below).
• Huy Fong chili garlic sauce: this is where the heat comes from. A quarter cup gives the sauce a real kick.
• Lemon juice: just a little, to brighten the sauce.

Full amounts are in the recipe card below.

Homemade Cranberry Sauce or Canned

Homemade cranberry sauce is what makes these mine. It’s chunky, with whole berries that cling to the meatballs.

No homemade sauce, or it’s the middle of summer and you can’t find a fresh cranberry anywhere? Canned whole berry cranberry sauce works just fine. Skip the jellied kind. It’s set firm and has no berries, so you lose those chunks of cranberry that make the sauce.

How to Make Slow Cooker Cranberry Meatballs Step-by-Step

The meatballs are fully baked in the oven, so the slow cooker’s only job is to keep them hot and saucy.

Step 1: Start the Sauce

Stir the cranberry sauce, chili garlic sauce and lemon juice together in the slow cooker. Cover it and turn it to low, so the sauce warms up while you make the meatballs.

Step 2: Mix the Meatballs

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Combine the ground beef, egg, parsley, bread crumbs and onion in a bowl and mix with your hands just until everything comes together.

Step 3: Shape Them

Roll the mixture into bite-size balls about the size of a large walnut and space them out on a baking sheet. You’ll get about 40. Keep them the same size, so they bake evenly and every bite gets the right amount of sauce.

Step 4: Bake

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the meatballs are nicely browned on top and 160°F in the center.

PRO TIP: Browned on top doesn’t always mean done. Check one of the biggest meatballs with an instant-read thermometer. Ground beef is safe to eat at 160°F.

Step 5: Toss and Keep Warm

Add the hot meatballs to the slow cooker and gently toss them in the sauce. Leave it on low until everything is heated through, then switch to warm for the party. Set out toothpicks and let everyone help themselves.

Common Cranberry Meatball Problems To Avoid

• Tough, dense meatballs: the meat was overmixed. Stop as soon as everything is combined.
• Too spicy: if you don’t want them spicy, use less chili garlic sauce. You can always stir more into the slow cooker, but you can’t take it out.

Making Ahead, Storing and Freezing

• Make ahead: bake the meatballs up to 3 days ahead, let them cool, and keep them in an airtight container in the fridge.
• Reheating: don’t warm cold meatballs in the slow cooker. It heats so slowly that food can sit too long at temperatures where bacteria grow. Reheat the meatballs in the oven or microwave until they reach 165°F, warm the sauce on the stove, then put everything in a preheated slow cooker.
• At the party: keep them at 140°F or warmer (check with a thermometer the first time you use your slow cooker’s warm setting). Off the heat, they shouldn’t sit out longer than 2 hours.
• Leftovers: refrigerate them as soon as the party winds down and eat them within 3 to 4 days. Reheat them the same way.
• Freezing: freeze the baked, cooled meatballs on a sheet pan, then move them to a freezer bag. They’re best within 2 to 3 months. Thaw them overnight in the fridge, then reheat them the same way.

What to Serve with Cranberry Meatballs

For a holiday appetizer table, put these out next to a slow cooker of warm buffalo chicken dip. To drink, a two-ingredient cranberry martini or an orange cranberry prosecco cocktail keeps the cranberry theme going.

Love a party meatball? Try my classic Swedish meatballs and meatloaf meatballs too.

Can I use frozen meatballs?

Yes. Heat fully cooked frozen meatballs in the oven following the package directions until they’re hot all the way through, then toss them with the warm sauce in the slow cooker. Don’t put them in the slow cooker frozen.

Can I use ground turkey?

Yes. Ground turkey needs to reach 165°F in the center, so bake it until a thermometer reads that.

How many people does this serve?

About 8 to 10 people as an appetizer, at 4 or 5 meatballs each. The recipe doubles or triples easily if you’re serving a crowd.

Can I make them on the stovetop instead?

Yes. Bake the meatballs, then warm them in the sauce in a covered pot over low heat until heated through. Keep the pot on the lowest setting while you serve.

Can I make them without chili garlic sauce?

Yes. Leave it out and you’ll have a sweet-tart cranberry glaze with no heat at all.

More Holiday Appetizer Recipes

Putting together a holiday appetizer spread? These are a few more of my favorites.

Cranberry Brie Bites

Holiday Bacon Wrapped Dates

Green Chile Meatballs

Easy Teriyaki Meatballs