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With only 3 ingredients these sweet & tangy balls make a quick and easy party appetizer. Your guests will love them!

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I asked everyone on Twitter & Facebook last night what I should post today. I was torn between posting a savory or a sweet and needed some votes. Of course they ended up with the same amount of sweet votes and savory votes so luckily I have both in one dish for y’all today :)

I’m bringing a post back from the past today. These sweet & tangy balls were first on the blog last year and they definitely needed to be in the spotlight again cause first, I doubt you guys even went back that far in my archives to find them, and secondly, I doubt my pictures back then could’ve whet your appetite ;)


Whenever I throw a party, this is my NUMBER ONE go to dish, and for extremely good reason. These meatballs are like crack. They fly out of the crockpot. Everyone’s plate is always full of these and I don’t blame them. Honestly, if you make a double batch of these and have chip, guac, salsa (and some booze, duh) and nothing else; your guests would be more than satisfied. I could’ve sworn, at the rate the meatballs were being consumed at our housewarming a couple weekends ago, there could’ve been a rock-paper-scissor championship for the last couple meatballs.


One of the BEST parts of this appetizer is: it’s three ingredients, you don’t do anything except throw everything in the crockpot, stir every few hours, and serve. So easy. Who needs a complicated dish when they’re hosting?

I guarantee you that if you make these for your next party, everyone will go ape-sh!t over them. No exaggeration. These are 200% guaranteed to be a hit. My mom made these for us when were younger and we ate them over white rice for dinner. Yeah, we were healthy kids.

Man, now I’m craving some (meat)balls.

Oh, bee-tee-dubs, officially 8 months today ’til the big day…who’s counting? Certainly not me ;)

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4.75 from 16 votes

Sweet & Tangy Balls

The easiest appetizer for a party! These sweet and tangy meatballs will be a hit!
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 4 hours
Total Time: 4 hours 5 minutes
Servings: 64 meatballs

Equipment

Ingredients 

  • Large pack of frozen meatballs, mine had about 64 in them
  • 16 ounce (453 g) jar grape jelly
  • 12 ounce (340 g) jar of chili sauce, (I used a Wegman's brand but Heinz sells them too; it's usually located near the ketchup & hot sauce)

Instructions 

  • In a small pot on medium high heat, combine jelly and chili sauce until they’re combined and jelly is not chunky.
  • Put the entire bag of meatballs in the slow cooker insert and pour the jelly chili sauce on top, stir the meatballs around until they’re all coated.
  • Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours. Toss every couple hours or so to re-coat the meatballs in the sauce.
  • Serve hot.

Nutrition

Serving: 4Meatballs, Calories: 272kcal, Carbohydrates: 29g, Protein: 9g, Fat: 13g, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 25g

This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition information can vary for a variety of reasons. For the most precise nutritional data use your preferred nutrition calculator based on the actual ingredients you used in the recipe.

The default measuring system for this website is US Customary. Unit conversions are provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. While we strive to provide accurate unit conversions, please be aware that there may be some discrepancies.

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159 Comments

  1. Hi Julie,

    I tried your recipe and absolutely love it! I plan to serve this at a baby shower I’m planning but what else would be good to go along with the meatballs?

  2. Hi – are these frozen meatballs pre-cooked? the ones im finding at my store are already cooked. Thanks!

  3. Would you consider using frozen Italian meatballs? Unfortunately those were the only one’s my amazing spouse brought home, lol!

  4. I just wanted to say THANK YOU for the way you reply so graciously to people that have taken a 3 ingredient recipe that you didn’t have to share and change it, complain about it and make it difficult. I am inspired by you and wish we were friends. :)

  5. Hi Shelia, how much hamburger mince do you buy? Would 500g or 1kg be best? Also, is it just fresh mince that you add the French onion soup mix and the raw egg to? Thanks! Kirsten

    1. They can be slightly spicy depending on your tolerance. I don’t think they’re very spicy but it’s hard to say because if you don’t like spicy, you might be more sensitive to it.