Classic cocktail meatballs keep warm on your buffet table for hours in the slowcooker. This wildly popular sweet and sour sauce is made from ketchup and grape jam but is elevated by a dash of hot sauce to keep it from being too sweet.
PREP TIME 5 minutesminutes
COOK TIME 20 minutesminutes
TOTAL TIME 25 minutesminutes
YIELD 16servings
Ingredients
1tbspolive oil
1 1/2poundsprepared frozen meatballsbeef, turkey, or pork
3/4cupwater
3/4cupbrown sugar
1/3cupapple cider vinegar
1/3cupketchup
1/4cupgrape jam
1tbsphot saucelike Texas Pete
1tbspWorcestershire sauce
1tbspcornstarch
Instructions
In a large, deep skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Add the meatballs to the skillet and cook until the outsides have browned. The meatballs don't need to have cooked through, they will warm in the slowcooker. Transfer the meatballs to a Crockpot.
Meanwhile, add the water, brown sugar, vinegar, ketchup, grape jam, hot sauce and Worcestershire sauce to a sauce pan and whisk them together. Heat over medium high and bring to a boil.
In a small bowl, add 3 tablespoons of cold water. Add the cornstarch and whisk it in with a fork. Add the mixture to the bubbling saucepan. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for about 5 minutes.
Pour the prepared sauce over the meatballs in the slowcooker and gently stir to coat.
Cover the slowcooker and heat on low for 30 minutes - 1 hour or until the meatballs are finished warming through.
To serve, you can keep the meatballs warm on the Keep Warm setting for a couple of hours.