Go Back

Grape Jelly BBQ Meatballs

Grape Jelly BBQ Meatballs are sticky, glossy, and made with a slow-cooker simmer using grape jelly for a sweet-savory finish. Frozen fully cooked meatballs turn tender and hot through while the sauce thickens into a clinging glaze.
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 3 hours
Total Time 3 hours 5 minutes
Servings: 10 servings
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: American
Calories: 420
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Meatballs and sauce mixture
  • 2 lb frozen fully cooked meatballs
  • 1 can (18 oz) BBQ sauce
  • 1 cup grape jelly
  • 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 0.5 tsp garlic powder
Garnish and serving
  • chopped fresh parsley

Equipment

  • 1 cast iron skillet

Method
 

Make the sauce base
  1. Whisk BBQ sauce, grape jelly, Worcestershire sauce, and garlic powder in a slow cooker until smooth and combined. The mixture should look fully blended with no jelly streaks.
Coat the meatballs
  1. Add the frozen fully cooked meatballs to the slow cooker and stir to coat well. Make sure the sauce clings to the surface of the meatballs.
Slow cook until hot through
  1. Cover and cook on LOW for 3–4 hours or on HIGH for about 2 hours. Stir once halfway through to help the glaze coat evenly.
Finish and serve
  1. Stir until the sauce is glossy and the meatballs are heated through throughout. Garnish with chopped fresh parsley, keep on WARM, and serve with toothpicks.

Notes

Pro tip: keep the slow cooker covered while it comes up to heat, then stir once halfway so the glaze turns shiny and coats every meatball. Store leftovers in the refrigerator up to 4 days; reheat on LOW until hot. Freeze up to 2 months, thaw overnight in the fridge, then reheat gently. For a lighter option, use low-sugar BBQ sauce and reduce the grape jelly to 3/4 cup.